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Kais Al-Rawi
Facade systems of various transparent and opaque materials and systems are increasingly becoming integrated components of modularized facade solutions. These solutions involve substantial shop-fabrication of the facade which contributes to tighter tolerances, higher quality, and more rapid installation. This paper will compare and contrast various modularization solutions which include aluminum, steel, or concrete framing and a variety of enclosure materials, and discuss the opportunities and limitations of such approaches, in comparison to traditional stick-built assemblies. The paper will discuss aesthetic, sustainability, performance, and cost considerations and discuss applications where modularized solutions can be most effective.
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Mayine Yu • Cooper Schilling • Jessica Young
Case study of the recently opened John A. Paulson Center for New York University in Manhattan reviews design solutions of façade depth and scale to break down the city-block building in response to the permitted building massing, student and program visibility, and university identity. The Paulson Center is an urban vertical campus building located at the south end of NYU’s Greenwich Village main campus and is truly a four-sided building with multiple entries on all facades. Transparency and deep connections to the streetscape were identified as key goals of NYU and the design team and became critical drivers for development of the exterior.
The Paulson Center facade responds to the academic and social program of the building, NYU’s diverse identity, and the character and vitality of the neighborhood. Interior lobbies and light-filled perimeter circulation, stairs, and lounges engage the vibrancy of the NYU community, creating a conversation between interior activity and urban campus streetscape. Transparency, daylight, and views are optimized and balanced with multiple design, technical, and performance criteria.
The design of the envelope embodies the spirit of an urban university campus building. The wedge units, inset sloped spandrel panels, and entry canopies are painted a deep aubergine color and when in direct sun are reminiscent of the NYU Violet color, while in shade the color recedes to an abstract dark tone. The glazing incorporates custom ceramic frit in a pattern designed to minimize bird strike, a concern for building facades in the urban context, complementing the environmentally responsible design goals of the project.
Presentation by architects and curtain wall consultant to fully narrate design, engineering, and construction methods.
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Joshua Zabel
The conventional approach to specifying dimensional tolerances in architecture and construction is inadequate in the theater of premanufacturing large, complex architectural components. A new mindset, approach, and set of tools to design for construction is necessary to efficiently coordinate, fabricate, measure, and install unusual architectural geometries and implement modern methods of measurement such as laser trackers. Furthermore, considerations for actual installed conditions is crucial for some components where orientation, temperature, and lighting conditions can be much different in the manufacturing environment where parts are validated compared to the actual conditions components are exposed to once installed on a building. This is especially relevant for work requiring a tight fit, or high standards for alignment and fairness. Solutions to these challenges can be adapted from existing manufacturing practices such as Advanced Product Quality Planning, the system of Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing, and process/product validation with statistical analysis.
Fabrication of large, complex composite facade panels exposes many of these challenges. This study follows the process of fabricating such panels for a recent construction project with extremely high demands for dimensional tolerances, color matching, and installed fit. The disconnect between a traditional dimensional architectural specification (+/- dimensioning) and modern means of measuring and analysis (laser trackers) will be highlighted. Statistical analysis was performed to study process capability, and pave the way for targeted retooling and rethinking such as specialized positioners for holding work in "building position", reinterpreting the dimensional tolerances, and analytical color models for verifying color beyond just meeting the spec. This topic is relevant across the AEC pipeline starting with the architect who writes the specification, the fabricator who builds accordingly, and the installer who confronts the final tolerance stack-up and ultimate aesthetic evaluation of the outcome.
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Jeremy Simmonds
The Utah State Capitol North Building, currently under construction, features 80,000 SF of classically designed cubic granite detailing, including fifty-two Ionic capitals at the top of 48’ registered prefabricated pilasters with full entasis. The project’s detailed facade and stringent seismic specifications presented several challenges which were overcome through the innovative engineering methods utilized during the collaborative design-build phase. The original project facade was designed so that the stones were individually hand-set, but the concept of pre-fabricating stone onto panels off-site and then installing the panels onto the building was explored during the design-build process. Because the project’s originally designed structure would not support the weight of the heavy cubic stone panels, KEPCO+ worked with the design team to engineer a fully integrated gravity-stacked panelized facade system. Movement connections were used between the panels and the building to meet seismic specifications. The revised system allows 70% of the stonework to be panelized, reducing the overall installation schedule and increasing the quality of the facade. More than 400 panels, ranging in weight from 3000 pounds to 12,000 pounds with individual stones spanning up to 12” thick were engineered.
Mock-ups and 3D modeling technologies were utilized to ensure the heavy cubic detailing met the aesthetic specifications prior to stone fabrication. Each column capital design was created in foam with the use of a C&C machine. Once the design was approved by the architects, the foam models were sent to the stone fabricator in Italy to replicate. Additionally, the column and pilaster entasis presented challenges when panelizing and were mocked-up for review. To accommodate the entasis tapering, the original designs incorporated 6” thick cubic stone with joint returns, but the mock-ups did not meet the architect’s aesthetic desires. Additional mock-ups were created with 2” epoxied mitered corners which hid the joints and achieved the desired aesthetics. Facade installation began in February of 2024 and is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2025.
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