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 11, 2011
Apartment complex caters to University of Minnesota students
Twin Cities firm Elness Swenson Graham Architects designed the new Stadium Village Flats, in the University of Minnesota’s East Bank Campus, with students in mind. The $30 million, six-story residential/retail complex will include 120 furnished apartments with fitness rooms and lounges on each floor. More than 5,000 sf of first-floor retail space and two levels of below-ground parking will complete the complex. Opus AE Group Inc., based in Minneapolis, will provide structural engineering services.
| Feb 11, 2011
Four-story library at Salem State will hold half a million—get this—books!
Salem State University in Massachusetts broke ground on a new library and learning center in December. The new four-story library will include instructional labs, group study rooms, and a testing center. The modern, 124,000-sf design by Boston-based Shepley Bulfinch includes space for 500,000 books and study space for up to a thousand students. Sustainable features include geothermal heating and cooling, rainwater harvesting, and low-flow plumbing fixtures.
| Feb 11, 2011
Green design, white snow at Egyptian desert retail complex
The Mall of Egypt will be a 135,000-sm retail and entertainment complex in Cairo’s modern 6th of October district. The two-story center is divided into three themed zones—The City, which is arranged as a series of streets lined with retail and public spaces; The Desert Valley, which contains upscale department stores, international retailers, and a central courtyard for music and other cultural events; and The Crystal, which will include leisure and entertainment venues, including a cinema and indoor snow park. RTKL is designing the massive complex to LEED Silver standards.
| Feb 10, 2011
7 Things to Know About Impact Glazing and Fire-rated Glass
Back-to-basics answers to seven common questions about impact glazing and fire-rated glass.
| Feb 10, 2011
Medical Data Center Sets High Bar for BIM Design Team
The construction of a new data center becomes a test case for BIM’s ability to enhance project delivery across an entire medical campus.
| Feb 10, 2011
Zero Energy Buildings: When Do They Pay Off in a Hot and Humid Climate?
There’s lots of talk about zero energy as the next big milestone in green building. Realistically, how close are we to this ambitious goal? At this point, the strategies required to get to zero energy are relatively expensive. Only a few buildings, most of them 6,000 sf or less, mostly located in California and similar moderate climates, have hit the mark. What about larger buildings, commercial buildings, more problematic climates? Given the constraints of current technology and the comfort demands of building users, is zero energy a worthwhile investment for buildings in, for example, a warm, humid climate?
| Feb 9, 2011
Hospital Construction in the Age of Obamacare
The recession has hurt even the usually vibrant healthcare segment. Nearly three out of four hospital systems have put the brakes on capital projects. We asked five capital expenditure insiders for their advice on how Building Teams can still succeed in this highly competitive sector.
| Feb 9, 2011
Businesses make bigger, bolder sustainability commitments
In 2010, U.S. corporations continued to enhance their sustainable business efforts by making bigger, bolder, longer-term sustainability commitments. GreenBiz issued its 4th annual State of Green Business report, a free downloadable report that measures the progress of U.S. business and the economy from an environmental perspective, and highlights key trends in corporate culture in regard to the environment.
| Feb 8, 2011
AIA names 104 members to College of Fellows
The Fellowship program was developed to elevate those architects who have made a significant contribution to architecture and society and who have achieved a standard of excellence in the profession. Election to fellowship not only recognizes the achievements of architects as individuals, but also their significant contribution to architecture and society on a national level.
| Feb 4, 2011
President Obama: 20% improvement in energy efficiency will save $40 billion
President Obama’s Better Buildings Initiative, announced February 3, 2011, aims to achieve a 20% improvement in energy efficiency in commercial buildings by 2020, improvements that will save American businesses $40 billion a year.
