Bold bricks
Bricks for exterior and interior surfaces, including walls and fireplaces are made in a unique process that presses the moisture out of the bricks, eliminating the typical 24- to 48-hour drying time. Available in four different textures and a variety of bold colors as well as the traditional red, brown, tan, and gray hues. Bricks are lightweight and can be installed on panels.
Stone Mountain Brick Co.
Reader Service No. 202
Â
Create a new old look
Clay pavers are made to look centuries old by being fed through a large tumbler that rounds the edges while maintaining consistency of strength and size. Best application is for a building with historic main street theme. Rumbled bricks can be installed on a flexible sand base and are available in five colors.
Pine Hall Brick Co.
Reader Service No. 203
Re-set masonry
Wall tie used to stabilize masonry in a renovation project is performed in a dry set procedure. Helical Wall Ties work by driving a stainless steel tie through the masonry, via a small pilot hole that recesses into the face of the masonry.Wall ties are engineered from stainless steel, which helps them withstand wind loadings, while also allowing sufficient flexibility to accommodate normal wall movement. Wall tiles are available in 4.5-mm, 6.0-mm, 8.0 mm and 10.0-mm diameters. Procedure has been used in high-rise and commercial applications throughout the world.
Blok-Lok.
Reader Service No. 204
Block the leak
The Kansas City (Mo.) Power and Light (KCPL) Johnson County Services Center, was designed by local firm Helix Architecture & Design using concrete blocks because of its cost effectiveness. Because concrete block is permeable, the BlockNet drainage system was installed around the entire perimeter of the building, to channel water out of the building’s exterior walls and through the integrated drainage tabs. The system is a 3 3/8-inch deep stainless steel drainage strip with integrated drip edge, adhered drainage mesh and rear water dam, plus a separate 7 X 7-inch vertical mesh element. When water enters the wall, it flows down the inside face of the block, through the vertical mesh piece and onto horizontal stainless steel flashing and out the building. The system was installed in the KCPL in just 15 minutes. General contracting services were provided by local firm Fogel Anderson.
Mortar Net.
Reader Service No. 205
Is that brick?
Lightweight stone installs like brick, offering its same durability, but at less expense, says its maker. Three-inches thick, the Liberty Classic Stone weighs 18 lbs. per square foot, compared to 45 lbs. for quarried stone. The stone comes with a 30-year limited warranty. Available in natural, mist, copper, autumn, smoke, and marble colors.
Boral Bricks, Inc.
Reader Service No. 206
Magic bricks
Automatic brick dimensioning program allows Building Team members to calculate exact dimensions of a brick building. Delphi-cad analyses the profile of the building, and returns a fully hatched, insulated, and dimensioned cavity wall plans, true to the brick dimensions. The program works with any C.A.D. package and any size bricks, saving time for designers.
Delphi Design.
Reader Service No. 207
Color the walls with brick
Bricks for interior and exterior walls, floors, paths, and walkways are available in various glazed colors and are made with kiln-fired clay that won’t discolor or fade, says the maker. ThinkBricks are 5/8-inch thin veneer bricks and are one-eighth the width of standard brick. Premixed mortar mastic can be used for most installations.
Castaic Brick.
Reader Service No. 208
MISCELLANEOUS:
Animal elevator
The Wheat Ridge Animal Hospital in Wheat Ridge, Colo., installed a two-stop EcoSpace Elevator to its two-story, 12,000-sf building, as part of its basement remodeling project. Architects designed the surgery and radiology suites as well as a CAT scan for the basement, so the elevator helps transport patients from surgery to first-floor recovery area safely and quietly. All control and logic systems are inside the gearless traction elevator’s hoist way. No machine room required. Hoisting ropes are controlled by a microprocessor-based VVVF system, which according to the manufacturer, means 50 to 75% less vertical and horizontal vibration than a hydraulic elevator.
KONE.
Reader Service No. 300
Hands-free
Electronic faucets are available in four models, are ADA compliant, and designed to meet high volume demands, reduced maintenance time, and costs. Equipped with two automatic, adjustable shutoff sensors, FreeHand faucets control water flow for maximum water and energy savings. Ideal for washrooms, locker rooms, and other public lavatories, the faucets are made from vandal-resistant brass and water-resistant. Low-profile electronic enclosures are standard features.
Moen.
Reader Service No. 301
Shopping in comfort
Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Center, which encompasses over 2 million-sf of retail space, 210 stores, and a six-story office tower, recently remodeled its HVAC system. The system includes 11 Voyager packaged rooftop units, with two-stage heating and cooling agents, and five smaller Voyager Precedent units, featuring dual compressors, allowing rapid cool down and longer duty cycles at lower cooling levels. The units were directly ducted to the floors below, with ceiling diffusers for distribution of air. A Tracer Summit building automation system was also added to control the rooftop units. The manufacturer estimates that the new system is saving the shopping center nearly $120,000 per year.
Trane.
Reader Service No. 302
Tech center reclad
The Jefferson College Technology Center in Hillsboro, Mo., needed to replace 13,000-sf of cementicious wall panels and integrated windows. The demolition and recladding had a tight, three-month window for completion before the start of school. “This project was originally designed around an ACM product and a separate window manufacturer,” said Gary Mays of Mays-Maune & Associates, Inc., St. Louis. “But, the time constraint presented a big challenge for us.” So, the Formawall Dimension Series Factory Foamed Metal Panels and Formavue 200 Integrated Windows were designed by the same manufacturer to fit together and be installed in one summer.
Centria.
Reader Service No. 303
The joy of reading
The Seattle Public Library houses revolutionary custom-built shelving including stationary cantilever bookshelves in its main lobby, featuring acrylic tops and end panels, with several bookshelves fanned out at skewed angles. In the Friends of the library shop, the mobile shelving system, which allows the shop to close up and lock down easily. The book spiral at the center of the library (pictured above) allows library patrons to flow from the sixth to the ninth floor while viewing a collection of books and the Seattle skyline. Powered mobile systems maximize shelving capacity by eliminating multiple aisles to allow space for the library’s book collection to eventually grow into the millions.
Spacesaver.
Reader Service No. 304
Door to the outside
Wood doors available with 20- to 90-minute fire ratings meet code requirements for commercial buildings and can be custom-built with specific fire ratings, allowing designers to match project specifications. The stain-grade wood doors come in 12 wood species and unlimited sizing options. The doors can be specified to create split finishes, combining stain-grade wood on one side with paint-grade on the other.
TruStile Doors.
Reader Service No. 305
Solid as a rock
Emergency light made from die-cast aluminum with a vandal resistant polycarbonate shield to provide maximum performance against rain, moisture, cold, corrosives, and dust in the most severe environments. The Uel Nema 4X emergency light is secure with four torx head tamperproof screws with center-pin reject providing additional vandal-proof security. The series is available in silver, black, or white and is best for food processing facilities, outdoor parking garages, walk-in freezers.
Sure-Lites/Cooper Lighting.
Reader Service No. 306
I see the light
New family of transparent, solar-control glazing sheets reduces solar transmission while offering high levels of light transmission, saving on energy costs for cooling and lighting buildings. The Lexan Exell multi-wall product and the Lexan Thermoclear Solar Control IR sheet are ideal for roof domes, skylights, walkways, conservatories, and other building applications where high levels of light are needed, but where excess heat is needed in minimum. Lexan sheets are transparent with a green tint, which blocks near-infrared heat but lets in high levels of light. According to the maker, the Lexan sheet can reduce interior heat buildup by 40% for lower energy usage, while increasing light transmission by as much as 60% compared to other glazing products.
GE Advanced Materials.
Reader Service No. 307
