Project: University of San Francisco, John Lo Schiavo, S.J. Center for Science and Innovation
Location: San Francisco
Architect: NBBJ
Glass: Pilkington Profilit™ translucent channel glass system with Lumira® aerogel insulation
Glass Supplier: Technical Glass Products
The University of San Francisco’s new John Lo Schiavo Center for Science and Innovation (CSI) brings science to the forefront of academic life. Its glossy, three-story exterior invites students into the facility, and then flows sleekly down into the hillside where below-grade laboratories and classrooms make efficient use of space on the landlocked campus.
For NBBJ architects, the inspiration for the new building came from the faculty’s desire to bring passion to the study of science within the USF academic curriculum. “A key driver behind the CSI was to put science on display and create buzz within the student body,” says Lilian Asperin-Clyman, principal at NBBJ.
To meet functional demands and generate the desired interest in the science facility, the design team looked to high-performance materials. A curtain wall with fritted glass and flexible shades provides students with views to informal learning areas and outdoor spaces to encourage scientific discovery.
Skylights and glazed teaching walls with a writable surface and visual connectivity help bathe lower, “garden level” education areas in sunlight to blur the boundary between above- and below-grade. Sloped walkways promote seamless circulation between the building’s main campus and garden-level spaces.
Glazed channel glass corridor uses borrowed light. Photo: Technical Glass Products/NBBJ
In implementing the design vision, one challenge was to create an attention-grabbing, garden-level façade that satisfies acoustic and thermal performance demands. NBBJ found their solution with Pilkington Profilit™ channel glass from Technical Glass Products (TGP).
The linear, “U”-shaped, cast-glass channels are self-supporting and mounted in an extruded metal perimeter frame. In the case of CSI, they were installed vertically, forming tight radii as they animate and follow the curve of the building’s adjacent walkway. The combination of raked and curved channel glass heads and sills make the size and positioning of each channel glass piece unique, and allow the façade to transition between curved and straight sections. The lighting strategy where channel glass is used creates a dramatic “lantern” effect that contributes to the character of the exterior spaces after dark.
At the CSI’s main-level entrance, a second layer of channel glass mirrors a portion of the exterior channel glass façade to create a glazed corridor. Its clear channel glass interior and translucent channel glass exterior combine to create what San Francisco Chronicle architecture critic John King hailed as the building’s “most potent architectural treat.”
“The glazed hallway adds dynamism to the building by highlighting the silhouette of students walking inside,” adds Asperin-Clyman. “It also improves safety on campus by allowing borrowed light to spill out from the building on to an area frequently traversed by students, faculty and visitors.” The sloped walkway complies with ADA accessibility requirements and connects the entrance lobby to the entry to the main lecture hall.
Both the exterior façade and glazed channel glass hallway help the design team meet thermal and acoustic performance goals. The design incorporates clear channel glass with a low-emissivity coating in a custom painted thermally improved frame with head receptor. In select locations, the use of Lumira® aerogel in the enclosed space between the channels helps enhance energy performance and reduce sound transmission.
“By using unique, structurally sound and high-performing materials like Pilkington Profilit channel glass, we were able to experiment with geometry, layering and lighting to create spaces that not only attract students, but also satisfy the facility’s highest functional requirements,” concludes Asperin-Clyman.
Today, the innovative CSI building embodies the university’s mission to bring science and discovery into the everyday lives of students. It is designed to LEED Gold standards.
For more information on Pilkington Profilit, along with TGP’s other specialty architectural glass and framing products, visit tgpamerica.com.
Technical Glass Products
800.426.0279
800.451.9857 – fax
sales@tgpamerica.com
tgpamerica.com
Related Stories
| Jul 17, 2014
22 land questions to decide if your build site works
When you’re ready to build, land needs a serious amount of attention. Since it can singlehandedly shift your building plans, land must be investigated, questioned, and eyed from every angle. SPONSORED CONTENT
| Jul 16, 2014
Mergers and acquisitions of AE firms on track for strong year in 2014
Through the first six months of 2014, Morrissey Goodale tracked 101 sales of U.S.-based architecture and engineering firms, roughly the same amount as during the first six months of 2013.
| Jul 16, 2014
Ware Malcomb announces New Jersey office expansion
Architecture and design firm also honored for commercial real estate projects in New Jersey.
| Jul 16, 2014
Learning design fundamentals in the digital age – How to balance learning and technology
My colleague and I were once asked an insightful question by a Civil Engineering Professor that sparked an interesting conversation. He’d been told about our software by some of his students who had used it during their summer internship. SPONSORED CONTENT
| Jul 16, 2014
Check out this tree-like skyscraper concept for vertical farming
Aprilli Design Studio has stepped forward with a new idea for a vertical farm, which is intended to resemble a giant tree. It uses lightweight decks as outdoor growing space, adding up to about 25 acres of space.
| Jul 16, 2014
User input on aquatics center keeps students in the swim [2014 Building Team Awards]
Collaborative spirit abounds in the expansion and renovation of a high school pool facility in suburban Chicago.
| Jul 16, 2014
Nonresidential construction starts up 34% in June
Construction starts for nonresidential work saw a surge in June, rising more than a third compared with the previous month, according to Reed Construction Data.
| Jul 16, 2014
ASHRAE, IAQA team up to improve resources on indoor air quality
Indoor Air Quality Association will become part of the ASHRAE organization while maintaining its own brand and board; HQ will relocate to Atlanta.
| Jul 15, 2014
Michael Graves talks with Washington Post about new design eye from life in a wheelchair
Celebrated American architect Michael Graves sits with the Washington Post to talk about how being on a wheelchair changed the way he focuses on design.
| Jul 15, 2014
A look into the history of modular construction
Modular construction is more than a century old, and throughout its lifespan, the methods have been readapted to meet specific needs of different eras.
