Building Envelopes That Go Beyond Aesthetics
Date Posted: February 19, 2018
Posted In: Ideas,
From Facility Executive: For many people, the term “modern commercial architecture” brings to mind grand structures veiled in steel, glass and concrete. And while gleaming curtain walls and sweeping composite shells can garner attention, it’s often the finer detail—the function over the aesthetics—that makes a building facade work for its occupants.
For facility managers, this is vitally important. A building with a stunning street presence is great, but beauty, as they say, is only skin deep. A building’s envelope should not sacrifice its performance—and need not with today’s design technologies. When it comes to a building’s exterior, we advise our clients to consider three key aspects that will factor into its long-term operation: maintenance, energy conservation and comfort. How a facade responds to those three factors will ultimately determine whether its architecture transcends simple aesthetics and provides truly exceptional design.
Minimizing Maintenance
Every building, whether a modest 1,200-square-foot home or a large corporate headquarters, requires steady maintenance to prolong its state of originality and intended performance. Yet maintenance can be costly, leading building owners of all stripes to seek solutions that require the least amount of upkeep.
As architects, one of the first things we want to help clients define is the true life expectancy of a building. Armed with that knowledge, we can begin to develop a facade design that minimizes maintenance costs over the entire scope of the building’s life. This is especially important for buildings designed to have an intended use over numerous decades (even centuries) as the long-term maintenance savings for these projects can be substantial.
One simple technique for minimizing exterior maintenance is to use gaskets or flashings for exterior fittings and connections instead of sealants that harden over time and must be replaced. To ensure longevity of a sealant joint, strict guidelines must be followed from the manufacturer. These guidelines require stringent QAQC and replacement will become necessary if guidelines are not properly adhered.
Using gaskets eliminates this concern. Durable, corrosive-resistant materials—while initially costlier than other products—can also provide significant maintenance savings in areas where the exterior of a building is prone for abuse, such as along walkways and near loading docks.
At Centene Corporation’s new headquarters in St. Louis, MO, for example, black granite envelops the building anywhere it meets a sidewalk. In other projects, we use corrosive-resistant materials, such as stainless steel, to fortify and prolong exterior quality. These design techniques lead to facades that retain their original beauty while enduring the daily battle with external forces and reducing long-term operating costs.