Multi-disciplinary engineering firm Buro Happold is providing structural engineering services for the Beach and Howe mixed-use tower in Vancouver. Buro Happold is design engineer, working in collaboration with local engineer of record, Glotman Simpson.
The structure meets the challenge of stabilizing a tall building whose mass is at its top – and making it safe in a high seismic zone. The 49-story building, designed by BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, combines 653,890-sf of residential, retail, and commercial space in an urban complex at the entrance to the Granville Street Bridge.
Typically, the mass of a building is at its base. In response to the constricted urban site, the mass of the Beach and Howe tower is inverted. The tower’s small triangular base curves away from the bridge to allow light and air to enter lower apartments. As it rises, the building’s shape transforms into larger, rectangular floorplates that culminate in a square top. The designers describe the tower’s shape “as a curtain being drawn aside, welcoming people as they enter the city from the bridge.”
Buro Happold designed a concrete core with post-tensioned walls, which can protect against damage in case of an earthquake and also improve performance. This creative solution meets the tower’s structural and seismic requirements. BD+C
Related Stories
| Dec 27, 2014
'Core-first' construction technique cuts costs, saves time on NYC high-rise project
When Plaza Construction first introduced the concept of "core first" in managing the construction of a major office building, the procedure of pouring concrete prior to erecting a steel frame had never been done in New York City.
| Dec 23, 2014
5 tech trends transforming BIM/VDC
From energy modeling on the fly to prefabrication of building systems, these advancements are potential game changers for AEC firms that are serious about building information modeling.
| Dec 22, 2014
What Building Teams can learn from home builders' travails
Commercial and residential construction can be as different as night and day. But as one who covered the housing industry for nearly a decade, I firmly believe AEC firms can learn some valuable lessons from the trials and tribulations that home builders experienced during the Great Recession, writes BD+C's John Caulfield.
| Dec 22, 2014
Skanska to build Miami’s Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science
Designed by Grimshaw Architects, the 250,000-sf museum will serve as an economic engine and cultural anchor for Miami’s fast-growing urban core.
| Dec 22, 2014
Studio Gang to design Chicago’s third-tallest skyscraper
The first U.S. real-estate investment by The Wanda Group, owned by China’s richest man, will be an 88-story, 1,148-ft-tall mixed-use tower designed by Jeanne Gang.
| Dec 19, 2014
Zaha Hadid unveils dune-shaped HQ for Emirati environmental management company
Zaha Hadid Architects released designs for the new headquarters of Emirati environmental management company Bee’ah, revealing a structure that references the shape and motion of a sand dune.
| Dec 19, 2014
Chicago Architecture Biennial to hold 'Lakefront Kiosk Competition'
The first Chicago Architecture Biennial will take place from October 2015-January 2016, with a theme of "The State of the Art of Architecture."
| Dec 18, 2014
Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West to be recreated—with LEGO
Containing more than 180,000 LEGO bricks in 11 colors and 120 different shapes, the model measures eight by four feet and is made entirely of standard LEGO parts.
| Dec 18, 2014
11 new highs for tall buildings: CTBUH recaps the year's top moments in skyscraper construction
The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat cherrypicked the top moments from 2014, including a record concrete pour, a cautionary note about high-rise development, and two men's daring feat.
| Dec 18, 2014
International Parking Institute and Green Parking Council collaborate with GBCI
The new collaboration recognizes importance of sustainable parking facility design and management to the built environment.
