Thornton Tomasetti, the international engineering firm, announces that two projects for which it provided structural engineering services – Palazzo Lombardia in Milan, Italy, and the Solar Canopy/EV Dock in Chicago, Ill. – have received the coveted International Architecture Awards. The projects were among 80 chosen for the honor.
The awards, presented by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture Design, the European Center for Architecture Art Design, and Urban Studies and Metropolitan Arts Press, Ltd., recognize excellence in architecture and urban planning.
The 40-story Palazzo Lombardia is the tallest building in Italy upon its completion in 2011. The building serves as headquarters for the Lombardy Regional Government. Thornton Tomasetti provided structural engineering services to Pei Cobb Freed and Partners.
Palazzo Lombardia includes a nine-story curvilinear podium composed of six independent buildings separated by expansion joints, and a large public plaza enclosed by an arched tubular lamella roof clad with an ETFE pillow membrane.
The Solar Canopy/EV Dock, a prototype structure completed in 2011, is designed to harvest solar energy for powering electric/hybrid vehicles. The dock is used by the City of Chicago to charge its stock of cars.
Thornton Tomasetti was responsible for the structural design and detailing of steel and connections for Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture. The 11-foot tall structure has a steel superstructure and concrete foundation with a 300-SF canopy. Attached photovoltaic panels provide space for two cars. The unit can function singularly or linked with other canopies. +
Related Stories
| Oct 15, 2014
Drones may soon assist code inspectors for construction in the UAE
The United Arab Emirates’ Ministry of Labour announced that they will start using drones to help inspectors record when construction sites are breaking laws.
| Oct 15, 2014
Harvard launches ‘design-centric’ center for green buildings and cities
The impetus behind Harvard's Center for Green Buildings and Cities is what the design school’s dean, Mohsen Mostafavi, describes as a “rapidly urbanizing global economy,” in which cities are building new structures “on a massive scale.”
| Oct 15, 2014
Final touches make 432 Park Avenue tower second tallest in New York City
Concrete has been poured for the final floors of the residential high-rise at 432 Park Avenue in New York City, making it the city’s second-tallest building and the tallest residential tower in the Western Hemisphere.
| Oct 14, 2014
Slash energy consumption in data centers with liquid-based ‘immersive-cooling’ technology
A new technology promises to push the limits of data center energy efficiency by using liquid instead of air to cool the servers.
Sponsored | | Oct 14, 2014
3 color trends drive new commercial exterior color collections
Collectively as a society, we help create color trends, which shape our businesses, recreational facilities, healthcare centers, and civic buildings. These iconic colors are now appearing in Valspar's new color collections. SPONSORED CONTENT
| Oct 14, 2014
Get inspired with the top 10 TED talks about cities
The TED talks, none of which are longer than 20 minutes, feature speakers such as architect Moshe Safdie, Rio de Janeiro Major Eduardo Paes, and animal behaviorist Amanda Burden.
| Oct 14, 2014
Proven 6-step approach to treating historic windows
This course provides step-by-step prescriptive advice to architects, engineers, and contractors on when it makes sense to repair or rehabilitate existing windows, and when they should advise their building owner clients to consider replacement.
| Oct 14, 2014
Richard Meier unveils design for his first tower in Taiwan
Taiwan will soon have its first Richard Meier building, a 535-foot apartment tower in Taichung City, the country’s third-largest city.
| Oct 13, 2014
The mindful workplace: How employees can manage stress at the office
I have spent the last several months writing about healthy workplaces. My research lately has focused on stress—how we get stressed and ways to manage it through meditation and other mindful practices, writes HOK's Leigh Stringer.
| Oct 13, 2014
Debunking the 5 myths of health data and sustainable design
The path to more extensive use of health data in green building is blocked by certain myths that have to be debunked before such data can be successfully incorporated into the project delivery process.
