Project Overview
After approximately 18 years of project planning and development, the iconic Zayed National Museum, opened its doors to the public on 3 December 2025, in honour of the UAE’s founding father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
The new national museum of the United Arab Emirates takes the visitor through a journey of the history of the Emirates, from ancient times to the civilisations that shaped the culture and identity of the land to present day.
Architectural Vision & Design
The building’s architecture addresses the challenge of sustaining life in a desert environment, with five lightweight steel wings forming part of a system of natural ventilation within the museum.
Air vents at the top of the wings draw hot air out of the atrium areas and air that has been naturally cooled through pipes buried deep in the desert floor is drawn up into the atrium ventilation system.
Sheikh Zayed’s love of nature is reflected in the five steel wings that are glazed to channel natural light into the galleries below and are shaped to represent the wings of a falcon (a UAE national symbol of power and victory).
The building is a spectacular feat of architecture and technology both inside and outside and was designed by world-renowned architects Foster & Partners.
Covering an area of 56,687 m², the museum covers six permanent galleries including four pod-shaped suspended galleries.
The Security Requirement
While seeking precise and reliable functionality for all aspects of the build, a specification was issued for security rated shutters to protect both back-of-house loading bay areas and also a number of internal exhibition/storage spaces.
Not all of these security shutters were a straight-forward internal face fix; some required an external face fix solution to meet the demands of the exceptional architectural forms.
The Solution
With aesthetic form as well as function being essential to this project, a high security, external face fix solution was required and Charter Global were approached by a specialist contractor in Dubai, and Obexion D10 (SR4) shutters were proposed.
The Obexion MDD-10 is one of the few specialist shutters that can be externally face fixed, as well as having the independently certified LPS 1175 Issue 8 D10 (SR4) security rating.
Internal vs External Face Fix Explained
When installing security shutters, many specify an internal face fix. This places the “attack side” of the shutter behind the building envelope, meaning there are no visible profiles, fixings, or accessible components.
As a result, the shutter is less vulnerable to tampering or forced entry.
Externally fitted shutters are typically more exposed and therefore more vulnerable to attack.
However, many of the Obexion ranges of shutters have both internal and external fixing options.
Crucially, they are designed to deliver the same level of security regardless of installation type.
This is achieved through a unique, patented design by Charter Global that prevents tampering with external profiles and fixings.
Product Application & Performance
The Obexion MDD range covers security ratings from LPS 1175 Issue 8 D5 to D20 and is typically used in high risk commercial, government, defence, CNI, and laboratory applications.
In this case the functional features were of utmost importance, but the Obexion also meets the aesthetic requirements with styling that is sympathetic to leading-edge architecture.
Global Delivery & Installation
Having a network of international clients, Charter Global are well versed in transporting their products around the globe and the shutters were transported in specially treated wooden cases to ensure they arrived in their best condition and survived any rapid temperature fluctuations during transit.
Protecting culture with certified security.
Our Obexion range provides discreet, high-security shutters designed to safeguard heritage artefacts while respecting architectural integrity. For more info on our product ranges or to discuss a project, contact us:
