Pilkington Planar creates 10-storey façade on Massachusetts Avenue

A 10-storey, almost 35 metre tall glass façade, created using the Pilkington Planar point-supported glazing system, has been specified for the landmark 601 Massachusetts Avenue project in downtown Washington DC. 

601 Massachusetts Avenue is a multi-million dollar development which will feature 44,000 square metres of office space. 

The scheme has received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification, which demonstrates its environmental responsibility across the design, construction, operation and maintenance of the building. 

The project’s developer Boston Properties and architect Duda Paine Architects selected the glazing to create a wall of glass which would deliver maximum transparency, with minimum vertical elements, to give the entire atrium an outdoor-effect. 

By specifying Pilkington Planar, a point-supported glazing system, the building could support panes of up to 1.5m by close to 3.5m of 12mm Pilkington Optiwhite true low-iron glass, for a series of 26-metre-wide one-piece horizontal trusses spanning the atrium.

A total of 970 sq m of glass was used, weighing around 29 tonnes, with additional vertical support provided by low-profile stainless steel tension rods.

The low iron content of Pilkington Optiwhite means it does not contain the pale green tint present in standard float glass. 

To further ensure exceptional clarity, the glass was manufactured within extremely tight tolerances in terms of roller-wave distortion. This allowed for a perfectly flat surface that would deliver undistorted reflections of the building’s surroundings.

Contact:

Pilkington United Kingdom Limited,
Greengate Works,
Sherdley Road,
St. Helens,
Merseyside,
United Kingdom,
WA9 5 DZ

Phone: 01744 692000
Fax: 01744 692569

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