Rising from the slope of a large bluff on the foothills of Utahās imposing Wasatch Mountains, Brigham Young Universityās new Life Sciences Building reveals the inspiration of its remarkable setting.
Multiple facets and elevations climb dramatically as if shaped by the same tectonic and erosional forces that have created massive escarpments and deeply incised canyons on the surrounding landscape. From inside, the expansive windows reveal that landscape while flooding learning, meeting and research spaces with natural light.
Itās a perfect metaphor for the College of Life Scienceās mission to reveal the natural world to the human intellect.
This video gives a good sense of all the building has to offer. The camera āfliesā through varied interior spaces ā including teaching and research labs, auditoriums, corridors and common areas, a rooftop greenhouse and a massive central atrium. Exterior shots show how the complexly terraced profile echoes the mountainous landscape overlooking the BYU campus. From both inside and outside the building, you can see a prominent āspineā rising in stages through the center of the building, much like a ridgeline defining the center of a mountainās mass.
Architectural Nexus, the firm selected to design the building, asked LCG FaƧades to get involved in the project early, providing design engineering expertise for the glass curtain wall and metal panel systems that would serve as the building envelope.
Ted Derby, business development manager at LCG FaƧades, says that a strong, lightweight cladding material was needed to meet the buildingās seismic requirements: The massive Wasatch Fault that created the rugged setting is still active today. At the same time, a pressure-equalized rainscreen was required due to Utahās adoption of the 2012 IBC Building Code.
To meet these needs, LCG FaƧades designed its exclusive SL-2200 rainscreen system and chose ALPOLICĀ® aluminum composite materials, fabricated at LCGās 40,000 square-foot facility in Salt Lake City.
One of the key factors in achieving the projectās budgetary and quality goals, Derby says, was that āWe could control most of the materials that were going on the job through our fabrication facility that allows us to fabricate curtain wall systems as well as metal composite panel systems.ā
The central āspineā towers above like an alpine peak.
ALPOLICĀ® materials are most visible on the buildingās āspine,ā rising in a stepped fashion to tower above lower elevations on either side. Here, panels finished in a silver mica evoke the great blue limestone formation that caps the spine of the Wasatch Mountains. The same fire-retardant ACM panels in a custom blue mica bring hues of a summer sky to window openings and other reveals.
If you canāt be hiking or skiing the Wasatch, studying their flora and fauna in this evocative building may be the next best thing. In the new BYU Life Sciences Building, ALPOLICĀ® materials are truly helping to do nature proud.
Contact Information:
Phone Number:Ā 1.800.422.7270
Fax Number:Ā 757.436.1896
Email:Ā info@ALPOLIC.com
Website:Ā www.alpolic-americas.com
Related Stories
Cladding and Facade Systems | Jun 5, 2023
27 important questions about faƧade leakage
Walter P Mooreās Darek Brandt discusses the key questions building owners and property managers should be asking to determine the health of their building's faƧade. Ā
AEC Tech | May 9, 2023
4 insights on building product manufacturers getting āsmartā
Overall, half of building product manufacturers plan to invest in one or more areas of technology in the next three years.
Building Technology | May 4, 2023
3D printing for construction advances in Germany
The largest 3D-printed building in Europe will have a much lower carbon footprint.
Mass Timber | May 3, 2023
Gensler-designed mid-rise will be Houstonās first mass timber commercial office building
A Houston project plans to achieve two firsts: the cityās first mass timber commercial office project, and the state of Texasās first commercial office building targeting net zero energy operational carbon upon completion next year. Framework @ Block 10 is owned and managed by Hicks Ventures, a Houston-based development company.
3D Printing | Apr 11, 2023
University of Michiganās DART Laboratory unveils Shell Wallāa concrete wall thatās lightweight and freeform 3D printedĀ
The University of Michiganās DART Laboratory has unveiled a new product called Shell Wallāwhich the organization describes as the first lightweight, freeform 3D printed and structurally reinforced concrete wall. The innovative product leverages DART Laboratoryās research and development on the use of 3D-printing technology to build structures that require less concrete.Ā
Student Housing | Mar 13, 2023
University of Oklahoma,Ā Missouri S&T addĀ storm-safeĀ spaces in student housing buildings for tornado protection
More universities are incorporating reinforced rooms in student housing designs to provide an extra layer of protection for students. Storm shelters have been included in recent KWK Architects-designed university projects in the Great Plains where there is a high incidence of tornadoes. Projects include Headington and Dunham Residential Colleges at the University of Oklahoma and the University Commons residential complex at Missouri S&T.
AEC Innovators | Mar 3, 2023
Meet BD+C's 2023 AEC Innovators
More than ever, AEC firms and their suppliers are wedding innovation with corporate responsibility. How they are addressing climate change usually gets the headlines. But as the following articles in our AEC Innovators package chronicle, companies are attempting to make an impact as well on the integrity of their supply chains, the reduction of construction waste, and answering calls for more affordable housing and homeless shelters. As often as not, these companies are partnering with municipalities and nonprofit interest groups to help guide their production.
Codes | Mar 2, 2023
Biden Administrationās proposed building materials rules increase domestic requirements
The Biden Administrationās proposal on building materials rules used on federal construction and federally funded state and local buildings would significantly boost the made-in-America mandate. In the past, products could qualify as domestically made if at least 55% of the value of their components were from the U.S.Ā
AEC Innovators | Mar 2, 2023
Turner Construction extends its ESG commitment to thwarting forced labor in its supply chain
Turner Construction joins a growing AEC industry movement, inspired by the Design for Freedom initiative, to eliminate forced labor and child labor from the production and distribution of building products.Ā
AEC Innovators | Feb 28, 2023
Meet the 'urban miner' who is rethinking how we deconstruct and reuse buildings
New Horizon Urban Mining, a demolition firm in the Netherlands, has hitched its business model to construction materials recycling. It's plan: deconstruct buildings and infrastructure and sell the building products for reuse in new construction. New Horizon and its Founder Michel Baars have been named 2023 AEC Innovators by Building Design+Construction editors.