Owner
General Services Administration
Architect
Richard Meier & Partners Architects
Engineer
Englekirk & Sabol Consulting Structural Engineers
Construction Manager
Jacobs Project Management Group
Facade Consultant
Curtainwall Design Consulting
GC
Hensel Phelps Construction
Completion
2012
Contract Value
30m
Program
16-stories; 467,000 sqft
Building Type
Courthouse
Technology Type
Blast-Resistant Facades, Design-Build, Government Projects, Operable Windows, Skylights, Sunshading
Facade
Nearly 300,000 sqft of facade, including: oversized 19-by-9 ft IGUs (featuring various combinations of bullet resistant glass, terracotta, oversized sunshades, louvers and sunscreens), perforated metal panels, soffits, aluminum metal panels (flat & curved), curved glass, sliding and swing doors
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San Diego’s new federal courthouse will cover 2.6 urban acres upon completion with a build program that links new and existing federal buildings. Enclos is acting as facade contractor for the new 16-story structure that will include six district courtrooms and an initial build-out of 12 chambers.
Architect Richard Meier’s design calls for the tower to stand in contrast to its surrounding cityscape with a maritime terracotta and glass cladding scheme. Glass material in combination with minimal supports streams natural daylight throughout the structure's east elevation, showcasing the courthouse’s public half with a metaphorically transparent skin. The west elevation houses private offices and therefore must limit transparency. Here a largely terracotta clad wall system uses glass to systematically distribute natural lighting throughout the tower while maintaining both privacy and security. Both elevations work in unison to contribute to the project's green agenda of minimizing artificial lighting while also offering sprawling views of the surrounding city and bay area below. Additional wall systems include a transparent glass clad lobby and mezzaine, both of which filter daylight throughout the structure.
Drawings indicated handset systems for many of the materials used throughout the podium level, which is composed of 80,000 square feet of facade. Enclos’ design strategy was to try and unitize systems throughout the project as much as possible to ease installation. Unitized systems were eventually developed for the glass, terracotta, soffit and canopy systems, including oversized 19-by-9 foot insulated glass units featuring various combinations of sunshades, louvers, sunscreens and perforated metal panels. Strignent blast requirements contributed greatly to the unitized system's members, anchors and connections.
With multiple crews working simultaneously on different elevations throughout the installation phase, the exterior enclosure package will delivered in as expedited process. The courthouse contributes significantly to the local San Diego workforce through stringent Small Business Requirements. Enclos’ scope of work with the local contracting community complies with these project specific goals.
Construction cost is estimated to reach $300 million by completion. |
