Transcript Pushing the Envelope

Pushing the
Envelope
The Seattle Central
Library
Background
• In 1890, The Seattle Public Library was introduced by
the Seattle city government.
• On January 2, 1901, an early morning fire destroyed the
Yesler Mansion, where the library was located.
• The community pleaded for funds to rebuild the library at
a new and permanent location. Andrew Carnegie, whom
helped construct libraries across the country, donated
$220,000 for the new building.
• In 1902, the city purchased an undeveloped downtown
block for $100,000 to become the new site of the library.
• In August 1903, the city selected P.J. Weber of Chicago
to design the building.
• Construction began in 1905 and it opened in 1906.
Background
• In 1956, the city began setting the stage for a new library
to replace the “unsightly and inadequate” Central Library
Carnegie.
• The second Central Library opened on March 26, 1960.
• By the 1990s, planning for library improvements were
under way.
• In November 1998, Seattle voters overwhelmingly
approved a $196.4 million “Libraries for All” bond to build
a new Central Library.
• The Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas was chosen to
design the latest Seattle Central Library
• The Seattle Central Library’s goal was “to
redefine/reinvent the library as an institution no
longer exclusively devoted to the book - as an
information store, where all media, new and old,
are presented under a regime of new equalities.
In an age when information can be accessed
anywhere, it is the
simultaneity of all media
and the professionalism of
their presentation and
interaction, that will make
the library new.”
-Rem Koolhaas, Architect
An International Collaboration
• Office for Metropolitan Architecture
(Netherlands)
• LMN Architects of Seattle
• Arup Offices (Los Angeles, London, San
Francisco, and New York)
• Magnusson Klemenic Associates (Seattle)
Quick Facts
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Opened May 23, 2004
12 Story Structure
covering 412,000 square feet
Divided into 5 overlapping platforms
$165.5 million project
Features a Glass-covered atrium
One of the largest structures certified by the US
Green Building Council’s Leadership Energy and
Environmental Design program
How the
Design
Evolved
The Five Platforms
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The architects took into consideration the distinct
functions and areas of the library and created these five
platforms as boxes stacked upon each other:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
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The boxes were repositioned to provide better views and
more light.
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Parking
Public Spaces
Information
Collections
Administration and Staff
The administration section: east to face 5th Ave. & Mt. Rainer,
other main boxes: north to give views of Elliot Bay from the
reading rooms.
Moving the upper floors created more natural light for the
lower floors.
The Grid
• Lateral force resisting system
• In the early design the engineers attempted to create a
column-free design to maximize space.
• The grid was developed to make this possible. The
mullions of the grid would be able to support the force of
the structure.
• During testing the grid showed very good in-plane
strength to seismic forces.
• This column-free design would have been very
expensive so the final design called for several large
columns between the platforms located behind the grid.
The Megatrusses
• Protect the platforms from lateral
movement by transferring gravity to the
perimeter columns or internal trusses.
• Because the seismic and gravity systems
were separated into the grid and
megatrusses, it enabled engineers to
create a greater number of unobstructed
views and maximize the amount of
daylight.
The Footing
• The building is founded upon spread footing
of 30 square feet x 7.5 feet thick.
• It is able to hold a pressure up to 10,000
pounds per square foot.
• Under the stairway core there is a mat
foundation of 44 feet x 65 feet. It descends
the full height of the building.
• There is a 28 feet wide combined footing
that supports two shear walls and a column.
The Use of Glass
• Engineers tried to find a glass that had a
maximum transparency and balanced with
occupants comfort levels with outside light.
• They decided to use a high performance glazing
on the sunlit facades to improve energy efficiency.
A more transparent glazing was used on shaded
facades to create more natural light.
• The glazing system includes metal mesh in
between two planes of glass.
• 140,000 square feet of transparency glazing and
skylights.
Energy Saving Benefits
• To extract the full benefits of energy savings
from the design the building’s light control
system was designed with photocells that
automatically shut off artificial lighting when the
natural light level is adequate.
• High velocity jet nozzles distribute conditioned
air directly onto the buildings glazing to offset the
facades heat gains and losses.
• There are carbon-dioxide monitoring systems
that shut off the air ventilation system when
occupancy is low to save energy consumption.
Energy Saving Benefits
• An atrium economizer cycle draws air from
throughout the building to the top of the atrium to
the outside. Thermal energy will be extracted
and recovered through this cycle and used to
precondition the atrium.
• To conserve water the library is installed with low
flow plumbing fixtures, a system for collecting
storm water, and a landscape architecture
program that emphasizes drought-tolerant plants
and trees.
• Rain water is collected from the roof, treated,
and used to irrigate the buildings landscape.
Tour
• For a virtual tour
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/news/local/library/
Questions?
Thank You
Julianne Abe
&
Brandon Estrella
Happy Holidays