Commercial Architecture June 2018 - 58

PROJECT

windows
To achieve the goal of an upscale, modern look with improved
performance, the building was going to need a major overhaul, including a curtainwall retrofit. The consensus was to choose a glass provider that would deliver a complete package of dependable service and
quality product. As Loper explained, "We interviewed several glass
companies and heard good reports on Viracon [Viracon Inc., Owatonna, MN, viracon.com], regarding the quality of their products and
service reputation."
A SOLUTION

With a long history of providing glass for projects throughout Florida, the Viracon team was ready to provide technical consultation
from the design phase through completion of the retrofit. Understanding the challenges of the project, the team focused on the four
critical requirements for the glass solution: energy efficiency to save
the building owners and tenants on HVAC costs, solar management
of the intense Florida sun, the need to upgrade the overall aesthetics to attract top-tier tenants and improve lease rates, and hurricane
resistance to meet current-day standards.
After assessing the relatively extreme project requirements, Viracon recommended VUE-30, a high-performance solar coating for
glass, as an optimal solution. Engineered to meet the increased market
demand for low-emissivity coating glass, VUE-30 helped the Ganot
Plaza project exceed domestic energy-code requirements. The glass
also offered the transparent appearance requested for the project. The
glass is visually pleasing from the exterior of a building, and offers
optimal rates of visible light transmittance (31% VLT) into the building while reducing glare and solar heat gain (18% SHGC). With the
coating selected, the team designed the final insulating glass unit, with
a laminated layer for hurricane resistance.
To attain the appropriate level of hurricane resistance, the company delivered the glass units to a local Florida glazier firm that used
Pro-Tech 7SG, a 7-in., 4-sided, structurally glazed curtainwall system
approved by Miami-Dade County and State of Florida building requirements.
The original stucco exterior was stripped and replaced with a
sleek-looking curtainwall system that incorporates the benefits of insulating, laminated, and spandrel glass, giving Ganot Plaza the modern curbside appeal the owners desired. In addition, renovations to
some of the interior spaces and upgrades to the roof insulation and the
HVAC system were made. By choosing to renovate rather than rebuild, Ganot Capital limited the environmental impact of the upgrade while still meeting all the project goals.
Reports Loper, "No matter how bright the sun is, when you look
outside it feels like you're wearing sunglasses." CA
Top. VUE-30, a high-performance solar
coating for glass, helped the Ganot Plaza renovation project exceed domestic
energy-code requirements.
Above. The building's original stucco
exterior (shown) was stripped and replaced with a sleek-looking curtainwall
system that incorporates the benefits of
insulating, laminated, and spandrel glass,
providing a modern curbside appeal (top).

resulting in a depressed look that the owners believed was affecting
their ability to attract quality tenants.
Owners Ganot Capital LLC had to decide whether to tear down
and rebuild or to renovate the 63,342-sq.-ft., six-story mid-rise office
building. Although worn in appearance and in need of a betterperforming window system, its structure was solid. However, it was
built before hurricane-resistant construction practices were standard,
so the curtainwall was not designed for impact resistance. After evaluating options, project manager David Loper and his team at Ganot
Capital decided that an exterior façade renovation was the most fiscally and environmentally responsible choice.

COMMERCI A L A RCHI T EC T URE

JUNE 2018

commercialarchitecturemagazine.com

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Commercial Architecture June 2018