Proj Overview

PROJECT OVERVIEW

Brandywine 6 is a speculative office building located in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. The building's form is a 110' wide kinked rectangular plan which is pointed at the south most corner. The entrance, which is located in the center of the southern facade is distinguished by a two-story curtain wall enclosing an atrium connecting the second and third floors poised on a tripod column.

The project's budget was directly tied to a predetermined leasing agreement. The project would not have been possible unless the core & shell cost was under $83/sq. ft. Due to the project's budget, the most sensible construction method was steel framing with a precast concrete exterior. The biggest challenge for the design team was to demonstrate that good design can be achieved at a very low price point.

The architectural precast panels pull inspiration from the local context which to was typical residential vinyl siding. Most interesting about vinyl siding is its plasticity, resulting in the subtle play of sunlight and shadow on blank facades. Similarly, the precast panels of Brandywine 6 are comprised of horizontal bands pulled forward at various locations across the length of the panel - as if someone were to lift the bottom edge of vinyl siding with their finger. What the design team referred to as "peaks" created a dynamic range of shadows and subtle highlights across the facade throughout the day. In an effort to keep the panels as affordable as possible, all 68 of the panels needed to be identical. This presented a patterning challenge to eliminate any obvious seems at the ends of each panel. The design team worked closely with Universal Concrete to perfect the panel design and fabrication.

PRECAST SOLUTION

The resulting building is a 68,000-square-foot speculative office building built as originally intended, with a 110-foot-wide kinked rectangular plan pointed at the southmost corner. The entrance, located in the center of the southern façade, is distinguished by a two-story curtain wall that encloses an atrium and connects the second and third floors poised on a tripod column. The design team worked closely with Universal Concrete to perfect panel design and fabrication. The exterior design’s undulating ripples mimic vinyl siding being pulled forward in a much more sustainable and durable solution. Through the innovative use of precast concrete and close collaboration with the construction team, the final result is a picturesque, budget-friendly, and gorgeous office building despite tight limitations with both money and time.

 

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Project Team

Architect

L2 Partridge

Engineer

MacIntosh Engineering

Contractor

Norwood Construction

Precaster

Universal Concrete Products

PCI Certified Erector

EE Marr Erectors

Key Project Attributes

  • The office building features 98 panels, 68 of which were designed to be identical for economical reuse across the façade. While panel repetition maximized project economy, the interplay of light with the panel undulations provides a dynamic façade.
  • The biggest challenge for the design team was to demonstrate that superior design can be achieved at a reasonable price point and still meet challenging budget requirements.

Project/Precast Scope

  • (98) 7' x 30' panels, 16,500 sq. ft. total
  • Speed of erection, economy, and repetition all contributed to the success of this project.