Having a 'Room with a view' certainly came true for a customer in the North West USA recently with an award-winning lakeside conservatory, for which the words 'bespoke' and 'unique' could have been coined specifically! In fact, the design so impressed the judges at this year's Glassex Conservatory Design Competition that it deservedly won the Bronze Award for manufacturer, Trade-PLAS.

To withstand the extreme temperatures experienced during the winter in that part of the USA, the entire structure was fabricated in aluminium by Trade-Plas, incorporating externally glazed Beaufort windows throughout it, with a Quantal roof and smart's bi-fold doors.

The direct fix, Beaufort casement windows were in 28mm toughened glass sealed units, topped by an elegant frieze of bevelled glass fanlights. Beaufort was also responsible for the manufacture of all the structural coupling bars and variable-angle baypoles. The finish throughout was in Beaufort's Van Dyke brown to compliment the rural surroundings.
The entire structure is almost 19m long by 5m wide. What made it unique was that the conservatory was designed in three sections, each with a stepped roof - two at 6.5m each and the third 3.5m - so that it gradually follows the slope of the garden down towards the lake.

By replacing part of the gable roof above the kitchen, one end of the conservatory was tied into the building structure giving the kitchen a glazed room and much increased natural light.

In addition to the side windows, Beaufort also supplied the gable end windows at each roof 'step' as well as those at the front third section, which is more of a Victorian style with a gable end. These give wide-open views across a stunning lake, surrounded by wooded hills.

To support such a complicated structure a portal frame was manufactured by an engineer in Stroud and shipped by Trade-Plas with the remainder of the conservatory and glass to the USA.

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