It was a project full of challenges and hurdles, but in the end, the EFCO
Series 5800 curtainwall provided efficient solutions for the recently completed
Children’s Center in San Francisco. The five buildings that comprise the center are
organized around the circular forms of the enclosed antique carousel and the inverted
conical space of the Children’s Place lobby. These features, along with an ice
skating rink, provided challenges for both architects and builders.
Designers had to find a curtainwall system that could accommodate both the inverted slope
and the asymmetrical glazing shapes created by that slope. The answer was found in
EFCO’s curtainwall system with prefabricated silicone gaskets. These have integral
corners capable of plus or minus five degrees from nominal angularity, allowing for the
structure’s irregular glazing shapes.
For stable internal temperatures that would maintain the rink’s ice year-round, while
providing natural light during the day, designers wanted to use 2.75-inch translucent
glazing panels in addition to 1-inch insulated glass. The Series 5800 system could
accommodate both thickness in a single system, while assuring zero water and air
infiltration.
When it was time for the Anaheim Convention Center to undergo major
expansion, including the addition of 100,000 square-feet of curtainwall, project
organizers turned to Wausau Window and Wall Systems. The expanded Convention Center will
include sections of curtainwall that are almost 100 feet tall and topped with another 60
feet of a different curtainwall system. This requires many of the units to be crane- or
winch-lifted into place from outside the building. The Convention Center will combine six
different curtainwall systems into what Wausau describes as an “intriguing
serpentine-shape structure.”
Using computer modeling and calculations, the building team learned it would need to
create an extensive subsystem to support the structural frame of the building and meet
wind load requirements. Using a 100- by 60-foot mockup, Wausau’s products were tested
to meet the industry’s most stringent requirements for air infiltration, water
resistance and structural integrity.
“By working closely with Wausau, we’ve shaved nearly half a million dollars off
materials and labor, and we’re almost six weeks ahead of schedule,” said Gary
Case, project manager for Model Glass Company who has been stationed on site since
November 1998.
Pilkington of Toledo, OH, offers PLANAR T.S., an integrated glass wall and back-up structure. The new design has a custom-designed tension structure support system and it can be used vertically, horizontally and on any angle. The system can support structural glass using various types of components, including lightweight stainless steel rods or painted steel tubes to form a structural grid. The company offers its standard 12-year warranty on the system.
Pittco Architectural Metals, based in Elk Grove, IL, says it plans to introduce another innovative advantage to its EMS 114 and TMS 114 storefront systems. According to the company, the gravity set interlocking Sub-Sill design will provide increased performance, which translates into labor saving installation costs. Product features will include specially designed extruded snap-in fillers, incorporated with the standard high performance Sub-Sill flashing. This will eliminate the need for a secondary fastener and blind seal, according to the company.
The latest curtainwall product introduced by U.S. Aluminum of Waxahachie,
TX, was designed specifically for low to mid-rise applications where interior glazing is
desirable. The Series 4250 two piece horizontals and die cast shear blocks allow concealed
joinery without exposed fasteners, according to the company. Additionally, injection
molded end dams and vertical mullion enclosure plates ensure optimum water infiltration
performance.
The Series 4250 curtainwall is designed to meet demands for energy conservation and
features Poly-Aluminizer™ and Struct-Link™ thermal break technology. Combined
with insulating glass units, the company says this technology greatly improves the thermal
performance of the glazing system.
The Series 4250 is available in clear and bronze anodized finish as well as a variety of
factory applied standard or custom-painted coatings. The company offers a ten-year
warranty on all its thermally broken framing systems.
USG
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