An emerging trend in Denver, and across the country, involves retrofitting older office buildings to make them more marketable to tenants, as well as more energy efficient and sustainable. One example transformed the Larimer Corporate Plaza, a 205,000-sf office building located in downtown Denver’s financial district. The project involved redesigning and reconstructing the eight-story building’s façade and remodeling all the common areas, along with making extensive upgrades to the building’s mechanical systems.
The Building Team of 17th & Larimer LLC (owner), Klipp Architects, and J.E. Dunn Construction (general contractor) selected Centria's Formawall Dimension Series to help achieve the retrofit project's goals of improved aesthetics, sustainability, and energy efficiency. “The goal was to give a facelift to a 1970s-style building,” said David Villella, Metal Walls Manager at A-1 Glass Inc., a Centria dealer/installer. “The addition of the Centria panels, along with new color and how these both complemented the glass on the structure, brought this building into the 21st century.”
The Building Team used 12,850 sf of the Formawall system on the facade, resulting in a fresh, welcoming, and modern aesthetic. Formawall is the only wall system that provides Centria's patented advanced thermal and moisture protection (ATMP) in a single panelized component. Compared to traditional multi-component wall construction, the Formawall Dimension Series is manufactured as one component.
“The existing precast façade was to remain, so the design team needed a new façade that was lightweight, so as not to exceed the capacity of the existing structure,” added Villella. “Metal was the perfect choice because of its design flexibility and light weight.” +
Related Stories
| Jul 23, 2013
Paul Bertram to speak at ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency
Paul Bertram, FCSI, CDT, LEED AP and director of environment and sustainability for Kingspan Insulated Panels N.A., will present a white paper during the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) 2013 Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Industry.
High-rise Construction | Jul 9, 2013
5 innovations in high-rise building design
KONE's carbon-fiber hoisting technology and the Broad Group's prefab construction process are among the breakthroughs named 2013 Innovation Award winners by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.
| Jun 28, 2013
Calculating the ROI of building enclosure commissioning
A researcher at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory calls building enclosure commissioning “the single-most cost-effective strategy for reducing energy, costs, and greenhouse gas emissions in buildings today.”
| Jun 27, 2013
Thermal, solar control designs can impact cooling loads by 200%, heating loads by 30%
Underestimating thermal bridging can greatly undermine a building’s performance contributing to heating load variances of up to 30% and cooling load variances of up to 200%, says the MMM Group.
| May 17, 2013
5 things AEC pros need to know about low-e glass
Low-emissivity glasses are critical to making today’s buildings brighter, more energy-efficient, and more sustainable. Here are five tips to help AEC professionals understand the differences among low-e glasses and their impact on building performance.
| May 14, 2013
Easy net-zero energy buildings [infographic]
"Be a Zero Hero" infographic educates building industry professionals on ultra energy-efficient structural insulated panel construction
| May 8, 2013
Preventable curtain wall failures - AIA/CES course
In many cases, curtain wall failures are caused by fairly simple errors that occur during the fabrication and installation process. This presentation will highlight common errors and when they typically occur.
| Apr 16, 2013
5 projects that profited from insulated metal panels
From an orchid-shaped visitor center to California’s largest public works project, each of these projects benefited from IMP technology.
| Apr 10, 2013
23 things you need to know about charter schools
Charter schools are growing like Topsy. But don’t jump on board unless you know what you’re getting into.
