Innovative materials reduce energy costs on Chicago skyscraper

Using advanced concrete cladding and the angles of the sun, US architecture and design firm Studio Gang has built Solstice on the Park, a skyscraper that saves vast amounts of energy.

Built in Chicago – the city known as the home of skyscrapers – the apartment tower rises 26 storeys above the city’s Hyde Park neighbourhood.

GALLERY  

Studio Gang named its creation Solstice on the Park because on the day of the solstice the sun is at 72 degrees, which is the same angle of the building’s glass indents on the south side. The sun’s heat is therefore not able to penetrate the building at the hottest time of the year, meaning residents can save on electricity to cool their homes. The angles of the glass mean the opposite is true in winter, when the sunlight can reach through into living rooms and cut down heating costs.

The energy-efficient cladding, from Rieder, has been installed in 13-millimetre-thin panels made of non-combustible glassfibre reinforced concrete (GRC), covering pre-stressed reinforced concrete.

In total, the skyscraper is covered in over 4000 square metres of dark grey and beige-coloured panelling, to complement the wooden and concrete finishes of the interiors.

According to the firm, the building “proves that the fusion of a highrise building and climate-friendly construction is possible.”

“Solstice on the Park perfectly combines the aspirations of the most innovative and current architecture and design studio with Rieder’s company philosophy of consistently viewing innovation, sustainability and design as one entity and providing designers with materials to extend their fields of action and to shoulder the diverse requirements of present and future,” Studio Gang’s website reads.

Solstice on the Park has 250 rental units – though the original plan was for 113 larger condominium units. Inside the ground floor sits a library, a resident lounge, game room, additional seating areas, access to the building’s fitness center and an outdoor deck.

The tower had been in the works since 2006 but was delayed due to the Recession and didn’t begin construction until 2017.

Images courtesy of Studio Gang

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