Possible Facade Options

Appaloosa Branch Library, Scottsdale, Ariz.

Different Angles, Different Colors
As you approach the Appaloosa Branch Library in Scottsdale, the building’s metal skin— 20,000 square feet (1,858 m2) of wall cladding from Morin, Fontana, Calif.—changes colors.“

It’s primarily silver-gray straight on, and then as you get off to an angle you see a grayish green,” Jones explained. “As you get flatter to it, it goes dark green or a purplish color. As you’re driving up to it some of the walls look bright pink and some look bright green,creating the mirage effect.”

The effect is created through the first commercial use in the U.S. of Pittsburgh based PPG Industries’ Duranar VARI-Cool iridescent coating on the metal cladding. The coating is composed of mica chips in a clear base, creating colors by light interference patterns—like the scales of a hummingbird,Jones added.

Thomas McKay, product manager, coil and extrusion coatings, for PPG, said the fleeting mirage fashioned by the “Kaleidoscope”colored coating harmonizes with the color shifting desert setting—the light-gray-green tint, for instance, matches surrounding plants … and symbolizes the library’s delicate environmental footprint.

Architect: DWL Architects + Planners Inc.,
Phoenix, and Douglas Sydnor Architect and Associates, Scottsdale
Construction manager: Haydon Building Corp., Phoenix
Metal skin/cladding installer: Total Metals LLC, Chandler, Ariz.
Roofing contractor: Progressive Roofing, Phoenix
Glass subcontractor: Milam Glass Co., Phoenix
Curtainwall/storefront: Kawneer Co. Inc., Norcross, Ga., www.kawneer.com
Iridescent coating & curtainwall/storefront glass: PPG Industries, Pittsburgh, www.ppg.com
Metal skin/cladding: Morin, Fontana, Calif., www.kingspanpanels.us
Photovoltaic panels: BP Solar, Frederick, Md., www.bp.com
Roofing system: Firestone Building Products, Indianapolis, www.firestonebpco.com
Steel roof decking: Verco Manufacturing, Phoenix, www.vercodeck.com









Project: Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Location: Cincinnati, OH

Completed in August 2009, Cambridge Architectural supplied curved, intersecting woven metal fabric panels that uniquely and securely adorn the exterior of the new parking garage. The architectural mesh system clads the garage in a revoluationary basket weave design to provide aesthetics, durability and security for the structure. The first design of its find by Cambridge, it features both longitudinal and latitudinal curves of woven metal fabric resulting in an eye-catching building facade that gives the parking garage a unique and experimental look.

System: Parkade
Attachment Method: Eclipse
Metal Fabric Pattern: Stripe and Mid-Balance
Architect: DNK Architects, Inc. - Cincinnati, OH
Construction Manager: Al. Neyer, Inc. - Cincinnati, OH
Installer: ProCLAD, Inc. - Noblesville, IN
Facility End Use: Parking Garage
Completion Date: August 2009

What is Metal Fabric?

Metal fabric, also known as architectural mesh, metal mesh or wire mesh, is a woven metal material used for various interior and exterior applications including cladding, space division (dividing or sculpting space), ventilation, solar shading, infill and a variety of other uses.

Woven metal fabrics are designed and engineered specifically for architectural purposes, and are fastened to a structure with attachment hardware designed for each type of metal fabric application. Metal fabric varies in rigidity and flexibility, ranging from a completely closed, rigid metal, to a flexible weave with varying degrees of open area. Specific patterns of metal fabric are specified for different purposes, depending on the application. Metal fabric also varies in translucency and weight.

The options for incorporating metal fabric into building design are truly limitless, as the unique material lends itself to the architect’s imagination. Metal fabrics are commonly woven in stainless steel, but can also be woven from copper, bronze, brass and other alloys. For unique aesthetic appeal and supreme functionality, consider metal fabric.