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
| Feb 6, 2012
FMI releases 2012 Construction Productivity Report
Downsizing has resulted in retaining the most experienced and best-trained personnel who are the most capable of working more efficiently and harder.
| Feb 6, 2012
Kirchhoff-Consigli begins Phase 2 renovations at FDR Presidential Library and Museum
EYP Architecture & Engineering is architect for the $35 million National Archives Administration project.
| Feb 6, 2012
Batson-Cook announces the appointment of Hall as president
Hall will manage and direct all aspects of the firm’s day-to-day operations. He will be based in Batson-Cook’s Atlanta office.
| Feb 6, 2012
Siemens gifts Worcester Polytechnic Institute $100,000 for fire protection lab renovation
Siemens support is earmarked for the school’s Fire Protection Engineering Lab, a facility that has been forwarding engineering and other advanced degrees, graduating fire protection engineers since 1979.
| Feb 2, 2012
Call for Entries: 2012 Building Team Awards. Deadline March 2, 2012
Winning projects will be featured in the May issue of BD+C.
| Feb 2, 2012
VLK Architects selected for new Cypress, Texas elementary school
The Bridgeland Elementary School will be a new prototype school for the District. Designed to meet the requirements of The Collaborative for High Performance Schools.
| Feb 2, 2012
Mortenson Construction to build 2.4 MW solar project in North Carolina
Located on a 12 acre site in the Sandhills region, the 2.4 megawatt (MW) system is expected to generate approximately 3.5 million kilowatt hours (kWhs) of clean electricity on an annual basis.
| Feb 2, 2012
Shawmut Design and Construction launches sports venues division
Expansion caps year of growth for Shawmut.
| Feb 2, 2012
Fire rated glazing helps historic university preserve its past
When the University embarked on its first major addition since the opening of Hutchins Hall in 1933, preserving the Collegiate Gothic-style architecture was of utmost importance.
| Feb 2, 2012
Delk joins Gilbane Building Co.
Delk to focus on healthcare construction programs and highly complex higher education facilities for Gilbane Building Company’s Southwest region.