Pedestrian Tunnel Adds Active Wall System

Philadelphia’s multi-phased, $59.65 million SEPTA Downtown Link features an innovative glass block “active” wall system. This past summer, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) completed the first phase of the Downtown Link, its Center City concourse improvement program to upgrade the underground pedestrian tunnel network. Significant architectural enhancements were made during this phase including an innovative, backlit, glass block “active” wall system. The Downtown Link connects six subway stations, two regional rail systems, and provides access to many businesses, offices, historical points of interest and other destinations.“O

Advances

Stone/Masonry

Are you a Blockhead?

Precision-manufactured Comfort Block concrete masonry units fit together so tightly they can be assembled into walls using masonry adhesive, rather than mortar. When paired with matching EPS inserts, they also create a highly efficient wall system with an estimated effective R-value of up to 30 or higher.

Case Study

Stone/Masonry

College Hits High Note with Acoustics

Mesa Community College’s re-dedication to music and the arts gave birth to a new performing arts center, acoustically fine-tuned with an inner and outer shell of sound-reflective masonry. The transformation of the Mesa Community College (MCC) Performing Arts Center began when the college purchased the Harkins Movie Theatre, a vacant movie house built in 1979, to drive student interest in the arts and offer a broad range of musical, dance and theatrical performances. Designed by Jones Studio of Phoenix, the $10.3 million, multi-purpose facility, opened as the MCC Performing Arts Center in 2014. This rebirth and rededication into the arts found the center in need of some acoustic fine-tuning,

Advances

Glass Walls/Partitions

The Sliding Glass Door Solution

In order to bring light deep into the floorplate, AZ TV, Arizona’s channel 7 selected floor-to-ceiling sliding glass door solutions. Enabling the full office to experience the buzz of the news room in these open, yet enclosed spaces, a strip of frosted glass runs across the glass panels to both lend a nice aesthetic and ensure safety.

Case Study

Exterior Panels/Cladding

Team Effort at Practice Facility

The Advocate Center, the new practice home to the Chicago Bulls, needed a resilient envelope due to Chicago’s seasonal weather changes. The metal panels chosen feature high-performance thermal efficiency and moisture control. After holding practices in Deerfield, Ill. since 1992, the Chicago Bulls moved into their new Advocate Center practice facility in downtown Chicago in early 2015. Situated directly next door to the United Center—where the Bulls play their home games—the new practice facility eliminated what had previously been a half-hour commute for the players, coaches and team staff . Features such as two full-length basketball courts, media and weight rooms, a mini

Advances

Plumbing Fixtures

All-in-one WashBar Elevates Washroom Design

Bradley’s WashBar featuring touchless clean+rinse+dry hand washing technology is changing the trajectory of commercial restroom design. Comprised of a single piece of stainless steel housing all hand washing elements, the WashBar captures the user’s attention while its ease and functionality refreshes their hand washing experience.With LED lighting and easy-to-identify icons, the WashBar keeps soap, water and dryer in close reach. The dryer and bowl work in tandem to keep water from splashing outside the basin. Its cohesive design enhances the user's experience while adding sophistication to any restroom.The WashBar is available with Bradley’s strea

AP ProductWire

February 13, 2019 by Megan Mazzocco

Shifting Sands

As we quickly approach the third decade of this still new, yet rapidly changing, tech-driven century, Architectural Products Magazine is excited to announce the re-launch of its website www.arch-products.com. Taking to heart an old journalistic principle, the “KISS” credo—Keep it Simple, Stupid—the new site elegantly delivers what we feel readers want the most from our enterprise: product information and products in application—with an abundance of inspiring imagery. To make it easy to find what is relevant to your work, we’ve tagged each item with its category, be it related to resiliency, health + well-being, energy efficiency or materiality—the same icons used in the magazine to denote AIA’s priority focus categories. Or you may simply search by keyword. Our goal, in the end, is to provide a user-friendly place to visit, to easily find specific product information or just casually browse to see what’s new or interesting. Here is a sampling of latest products from the new site and one sneak peek from the forthcoming March issue.

Advances

Surfaces/Finishes

Not Just Another Brick in the Wall

Brick’s clean-lined traditionalism is enjoying a bit of a resurgence, especially when paired with more contemporary gray-toned palettes. Clean Brick cast-brick veneer was designed to meet this evolving demand. Shown in Chalk, it is also available in a Slate Gray finish.

Case Study

Glass & Curtainwall

Dining Center Mimics Northern Lights

The Wood Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks expanded its dining facility, creating a campus destination through visually interesting elements, which included a glazing system that mimicked the Aurora Borealis. The Univ. of Alaska Fairbanks planned a 34,000-sq.-ft. addition to, and renovation of, the Wood Center to expand the dining facility and create a campus destination. Architect Perkins+Will wanted to create a building that was visually interesting and inviting to passersby while so comfortable, occupants were happy to stay put, regardless of the season. The original building did little of either. Mentioning its few small, punched windows, Devin Kleiner, project architect, asso

Advances

Metal Fabrications

Interior Steel Framing with Firestopping Capabilities

BlazeFrame is an innovative steel framing fire stop system that features an integrated intumescent strip affixed to steel profiles that simultaneously frames, fire stops, and sound seals both dynamic and static joints. When exposed to heat above 375 degrees Fahrenheit, the intumescent material expands up to 35 times its size. This provides protection from heat and flame passage during a fire event.

Architectural Products

Pedestrian Tunnel Adds Active Wall System

Read the Digital Edition

Jan/Feb ’19

Are you a Blockhead?

College Hits High Note with Acoustics

The Sliding Glass Door Solution

Team Effort at Practice Facility

All-in-one WashBar Elevates Washroom Design

AP ProductWire

Shifting Sands

Not Just Another Brick in the Wall

Dining Center Mimics Northern Lights

Interior Steel Framing with Firestopping Capabilities