Facciata a cellule (EWT-2 & EWT-3 | >9.600 m²):

Il sistema principale è una facciata a cellule con vetrocamera ad alte prestazioni (IGU – Insulated Glass Units).
Composizione del vetro: le IGU sono composte da una lastra esterna in vetro laminato low-iron 3/8”+3/8” (10+10 mm) e da una lastra interna in vetro laminato temperato low-iron 1/4”+1/4” (6+6 mm).

Trattamenti: un rivestimento basso emissivo ad alte prestazioni (Ipasol neutral 70/37) applicato in faccia 4 massimizza l’efficienza termica e il comfort degli occupanti.

Finiture: tutti i profili in alluminio esterni hanno una finitura personalizzata grigio RAL 9006 conforme allo standard AAMA 2605 per garantire la massima durabilità, mentre i profili interni sono stati trattati con finitura AAMA 2603.

Pannelli in GFRC integrati:
Un elemento distintivo della facciata continua è l’integrazione senza soluzione di continuità di pannelli in GFRC personalizzati all’interno dei telai unitizzati.
I pannelli presentano una finitura lucida color pastello blu su misura e sono stati realizzati in varie geometrie (rigati, curvi con falsi giunti e piani) per creare una facciata dinamica e materica.
Ogni pannello è fissato tramite un sistema a scomparsa completamente ingegnerizzato, composto da ancoraggi sottosquadro e staffe in alluminio personalizzate, anodizzate nere per ridurre al minimo l’impatto visivo attraverso i giunti aperti tra i pannelli.

Engineering & Design Highlights

Close collaboration with the architectural teams was critical to resolving the project's complexities. Key engineering achievements include:

• Custom ADA-Compliant Hardware: Operable vents were engineered with a custom hardware system to meet stringent ADA accessibility requirements, including a maximum 5-pound opening force.
• Advanced Structural Solutions: Hot-dipped galvanized steel outriggers were designed to support projecting GFRC corner panels, and the entire soffit system was engineered for seismic events.
• Weatherproofing Performance: Custom-sloped GFRC coping panels were designed with a precise 7-degree slope to prevent ice and snow accumulation, ensuring long-term building envelope integrity.

The successful delivery of this complex façade underscores our firm's expertise in executing world-class architectural projects. The result is a durable, high-performance, and visually striking building envelope that fulfills the architects' design intent and serves the Columbia University community.

Performance Mock-Up & Validation Testing

To ensure compliance with the project's stringent performance criteria, a full-scale mock-up was constructed and subjected to a comprehensive testing regime at the Intertek-ATI laboratory. The mock-up replicated a representative portion of the building's façade, allowing for the validation of its performance under simulated environmental and structural loads.

He was born in Genoa in 1937 into a family of builders. He graduated in 1964 from the Polytechnic of Milan. He is among the world best known and active architects i, winner of the Pritzker been delivered by U.S. President Bill Clinton at the White House in 1998. He also won other prestigious awards including: Imperial Award 1995, Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement in 2000 and the Sonning Prize in 2008. In 1971, he set up the “Piano & Rogers” office in London together with Richard Rogers, with whom he won the competition for the Centre Pompidou. From the early 1970s to the 1990s he worked with the engineer Peter Rice, sharing the Atelier Piano & Rice. In 1981 The “Renzo Piano Building Workshop” was established, with 150 staff and offices in Paris, Genoa and New York. In 1994 he won the international competition for the new Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome, inaugurated in 2002. In 2004 he fulfills the Church of Padre Pio in San Giovanni Rotondo. In 2006 he became the first Italian posted by TIME in the list of 100 most influential people in the world and among the ten most important in the world in the category of art and entertainment. In 2008, after nearly ten years of design and work, it’s inaugurated the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, one of the most sustainable buildings in the world for the high quality of the selected building materials.

Founded by Principals John Cetra, FAIA and Nancy J. Ruddy, and led by a core group of distinguished principals, the firm operates on the commitment to creating inspiring environments that both add to the urban landscape in a meaningful way and inspire the experience of home. It works throughout the United States and abroad at varied scales and across typologies including multifamily housing, hospitality, education, cultural and commercial projects. An award-winning firm that has transformed several important New York buildings into desirable places of residence, always seeking out the story behind each building site, their deep historical context, and fresh opportunities to craft innovative solutions and lead clients on their journeys toward building a new legacy.