VISIONWALLProject Profile

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Tower

Featuring VISIONWALL High Performance

Window and Curtain Wall Systems

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Location:

Owner:

Architect:

Installer & Dealer:

Product Information:

Des Moines, IowaEMC Insurance Companies

Brooks Borg Skiles ArchitectureEngineering

Architectural WallSystems

VISIONWALL 4 Element system withSeries 200 frame6mm Clear (low-e) glass litesBone White Kynar finish (exterior)Bone White Duracron Enamel (interior)

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Overall Window U-Value=0.15 Btu/hr-ft - fShading Coefficient=0.28Sound Transmission Class (STC) = 0.40

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EMCInsurance

Company

EMC Insurance Company Tower

Visionwall Corporation17915 - 118 Avenue

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T5S 1L6

Tel: 780-451-4000 Fax: 780-451-4745

E-Mail: marketing@visionwall.com

WWW.VISIONWALL.COM

Your VISIONWALL contact is:

Insurance Company Builds Landmark Office Tower

Rising three hundred and fifty (350)

feet above street level in downtownDes Moines, Iowa, this new officetower for EMC Insurance Companiesis a dramatic and innovative additionto the city skyline. Designed by thefirm of Brooks Borg SkilesArchitecture Engineering of DesMoines, this unique structure bringsmany of the EMC property, casualtyand life insurance operations intoone building.

From its inception, the building wasdesigned to reflect the owner’sinterest in safety, occupant comfort,energy efficiency and reducedmaintenance and operating costs.All involved with the project werewilling to look at design and productissues with a focus of building for thefuture and providing EMC with a “100year plus” structure. This emphasisled them to consider the use ofVISIONWALL high performance

windows early in the

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designprocess.

Working with the in-house mechanical

engineering group of Brooks Borg Skiles,Visionwall Corporation and their local Dealer,Mike Cunningham of Architectural WallSystems, were able to demonstrate the HVACsavings inherent in using high performancewindows. Despite Des Moines’ cold winters(ASHRAE wintertime design temperature of -10F), they were able to eliminate perimeterheating systems and use a smaller mechanicalsystem to save approximately $400,000.00.Significant operating savings were estimated toprovide a payback on using high performancewindows of less than two (2) years.

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The EMC Tower is part of Des

Moines’ extensive downtownenclosed walkway system.Three (3) “Sky Bridges” connectthe EMC building to this networkacross busy city streets. Thesewere designed using VISIONWALLsystems in both the vertical walls aswell as the sloped roof. With itsexcellent sound attenuationfeatures and high thermalperformance, pedestrians can walkfrom building to building in quietand comfort.

Utilizing over 50,000 square feet ofhigh performance windows inindividual punched, strip windowand sloped glazing configurations,the goal of making Des Moines’newest high rise building its mostenergy efficient was realized.

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VISIONWALL windows also contributed to two

additional distinctive aspects of the building’sdesign. Upon the architects’ recommendation,the building owner decided to use pressureequalized “rain screen” principles in the designof the building’s exterior envelope. AllVISIONWALL windows are manufacturedutilizing these concepts to eliminate air and waterpenetration, and were therefore totallycompatible with the open -joint aluminum panelsystem used on the exterior.

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100 Year+ Structure

Eliminate Perimeter Heating

“Sky Bridges”

“Rain Screen” Principles

J098 Printed in Canada 2004/11/29