LEVER HOUSE - NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORKGORDON BUNSHAFT WITH SKIDMORE, OWINGS, AND MERRILCONSTRUCTED 1952, CURTAIN WALL RESTORED 2002

CURTAIN WALL AS CONSTRUCTED 1952

VIEW FROM PLAZA LEVEL THROUGH COURTYARD RESTORED CURTAIN WALL

ORIGINAL OFFICE SPACE IN TOWER

UPDATED LOBBY IN 2003

LIZ KUTSCHKE & LAUREN ALVAREZ

LEVER HOUSE - NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORKGORDON BUNSHAFT WITH SKIDMORE, OWINGS, AND MERRIL

LEVER HOUSE - NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORKGORDON BUNSHAFT WITH SKIDMORE, OWINGS, AND MERRIL

PLAZA LEVEL PLAN WITH SYSTEMS

CIRCULATION

STRUCTURE

ENVELOPE

PLUMBING

LIGHTING

CIRCULATION

STRUCTURE

ENVELOPE

PLUMBING

LIGHTING

FIRST LEVEL PLAN WITH SYSTEMS

CIRCULATION

STRUCTURE

ENVELOPE

PLUMBING

LIGHTING

SECOND LEVEL PLAN WITH SYSTEMS

CIRCULATION

STRUCTURE

ENVELOPE

PLUMBING

LIGHTING

TYPICAL TOWER PLAN WITH SYSTEMS

CIRCULATION

STRUCTURE

ENVELOPE

PLUMBING

LIGHTING

KEY

BASIC SYSTEMS LAYOUTSCIRCULATION

STRUCTURE

ENVELOPE

PLUMBING

LIGHTING

BUILDING SECTION WITH SYSTEMSCIRCULATION

STRUCTURE

ENVELOPE

PLUMBING

LIGHTING

DROP CEILING BELOW PLENUM SPACE HOUSING VENTS, RETURNS, AND RECESSED LIGHTING

FLOOR TO FLOOR SECTION WITH SYSTEMS SKETCH MODEL

THIS MODEL DEMONSTRATES THE BASIC STRUCTURAL SYSTEM OF THE LEVER HOUSE. THE SYSTEM CONSISTS OF A STEEL FRAME, METAL DECK FLOORS, AND CONCRETE CORES. THE CORES, WHICH STABILIZE THE BUILDING AGAINST LATERAL FORCES, ARE LOCATED ON ONE SIDE OF THE BUILDING. THIS CREATES AN UNBALANCED SYSTEM, WHICH IS COMPENSATED FOR BY MOMENT CONNECTIONS BETWEEN STEEL MEMBERS. THIS ALLOWS THE STEEL STRUCTURE TO CARRY GRAVITY LOADS AND RESIST LATERAL LOADS.

BECAUSE OF THE MINIMAL DIMENSIONS OF THE STEEL STRUCTURAL SYSTEM, ELECTRICAL WIRING AND PIPES ARE INTEGRATED INTO THE CELLULAR METAL FLOOR DECK AND LARGER ELEMENTS ARE HUNG BELOW THE DECK AND CONCEALED BY A SUSPENDED CEILING.

COURTYARD GROUND LEVEL GROUND LEVEL

LEVER HOUSE - NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORKGORDON BUNSHAFT WITH SKIDMORE, OWINGS, AND MERRIL

LEVER HOUSE - NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORKGORDON BUNSHAFT WITH SKIDMORE, OWINGS, AND MERRIL

INTEGRATION - BUILDING SCALEINTEGRATION - BUILDING SCALE

TOP THREE FLOORS OF TOWER HOUSE MECHANICAL SPACE WITH EVAPORATION UNITS AND COOLING TOWERS. THIS LOCATION SATISFIES THE REQUIREMENTS OF FRESH AIR AND HEADROOM FOR THE A/C PLANT. THE FACADE IS CONTINUOUS OVER THESE THREE FLOORS, WITH ONLY A SLIGHT CHANGE IN GLASS PATTERN TO HINT AT THE PROGRAM CHANGE.

CONTINUOUS FACADE

PROGRAM SPACE

INTEGRATION - ROOM SCALEINTEGRATION - ROOM SCALE

INTEGRATION OF STRUCTURE AND FACADE CHANGES BETWEEN THE TOP LEVEL OF THE PODIUM AND THE BOTTOM LEVEL OF THE TOWER. AT THE TOP OF THE PODIUM, THE CURTAIN WALL MOVES INSIDE THE COLUMNS TO VISUALLY SEPARATE THE TOWER, AND GIVE THE APPEARANCE OF A LIGHT AND FLOATING MASS. IN THE TOWER FLOORS, THE COLUMNS ARE MOVED INSIDE THE CURTAIN WALL TO ENHANCE THE SEAMLESS AND THIN APPEARANCE OF THE CURTAIN WALL. THIS INTEGRATION IS BASED IN AESTHETIC INTENT.

THE CORES OF THE BUILDINGARE CENTRALLY LOCATED ATTHE GROUND LEVEL, WHERETHE FLOORPLATE IS LARGEST, BUT ARE ORIENTED MORE TO ONESIDE AT THE TOWER,WHERE THE FLOORPLATEIS SMALLEST.

THIS EDGE HELPS PREVENT WATER FROM ENTERING THE ACTUAL POINT OF CONNECTION TO THE GLASS BY REDIRECTING IT DOWNWARD.

THE SLOT TO THE RIGHT ALLOWS FOR CONDENSATION FROM INSIDE THE WALL TO ESCAPE INSTEAD OF COLLECTING AND AFFECTING THE STEEL.

THE ORIGINAL STEEL USED FOR THE CURTAIN WALL EVENTUALLY RUSTEDAND CAUSED SHIFTING IN THE GLASS OF THE CURTAIN WALL. IT WAS THEN REPLACED IN 2002.

LEVER HOUSE - NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORKGORDON BUNSHAFT WITH SKIDMORE, OWINGS, AND MERRIL

LEVER HOUSE - NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORKGORDON BUNSHAFT WITH SKIDMORE, OWINGS, AND MERRIL

INTEGRATION - DETAIL SCALE

FIRE BLOCK WALLS SIT APPROXIMATELY 3” BEHIND THE SPANDREL PANELS. THIS SPACE SERVES SEVERAL FUNCTIONS: DISSAPPATE HEAT TO AVOID HEAT BUILD UP IN GLASS, HIDE FLOOR SLABS, HIDE RADIATORS, HIDE SUSPENDED CEILING WITH MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS

CURTAIN WALL MULLION ASSEMBLYVISION GLASS

SPANDREL GLASS

SUSPENDED CEILING WITH VENTS, RETURNS AND RECESSED LIGHTING

ALUMINIUM EXTRUSION

INTEGRATION - DETAIL SCALE

RECESSED LIGHTING, AS WELL AS THE DUCT SYSTEM, IS RUN THROUGH SYSTEMS ABOVE THE DROP CEILING. THIS IN PARTICULAR IS THE RECESSED LIGHTING WIRING.

ADDITIONAL WIRES ARE RUN THROUGH THE BEAMS IN THE CEILING AS WELL.

DROP CEILING PANELS HIDE THE ENTIRE SYSTEM, GIVING THE ACTUAL OFFICE SPACES A CLEAN LOOK.

TheLeverHouseisknownasthefirstskyscraperbuildingtoeveruseacurtainwalldesign.However,theLeverHousewasnotthefirsttimeBunshaftandSOMusedsomeoftheconceptideasthatwentintothedesignoftheNewYorkBuilding.Inthe1939VenezuelanPavilionfortheWorld’sFair,Bunshafttoyedwiththeideaofcreatingaspacewithenormousamountsoftransparency.WhilenotnearlytothescaleoftheLeverHouse,theVenezuelanPavilionalsoexhibitedglasswalls,andasenseoftransparencypresentintheofficespacesoftheLeverHouse.ShortlybeforetheconstructionoftheLeverHouse,BunshaftmetwithLudwigMiesVanDerRoheanddiscussedideasforidealspaces.ItisnosurprisethatveryshortlyaftertheLeverHousewasbuilt,theSeagramwasconstructedinasimilarmannerexactlykiddie-cornerfromitslot. Thecurtainwallconstructionworkedquitewell,intheory,butthebuildingunfortunatelydidenduphavingsomecomplicationsduetoitsconstructionoveritslifetime.Thesealantsusedbetweenthespacesintheglasswallwereunfortunatelynotquiteuptothechallengeneededinordertokeepthesteelsupportsdry.Asaresult,thesteelbarsrusted,expandingandpoppingoutsomeofthewindowsofthebuilding.Afterthebuildingwasresoldin2002,thenewownersputinthemoneytohavethecurtainwallre-done.Fortunately,withtheadvancementsintechnologyatthispoint,thewallwassuccessfullyrecreated. OtherfactorsinvolvedintheLeverHouse’sconstructionincludedtheplacementofthemechanicalspacesandcirculationcores.BecauseBunshaftsoughttoutilizeasmuchsunlightwithintheofficespacesaspossible,thecoreswerelocatedtothenorthwestsideofthebuilding.Thisisalsotheonlywallofthebuildingnotconstructedwithglasscurtainwall.Thisparticularportionofthebuildingisthestrongestbecauseofthis,butBunshaftchosetofocusprimarilyontheaestheticsandtheexperienceofthebuildingasopposedtomakingitthemoststructurallyefficient.Thecolumnsplacedthroughoutthebuildinghelptosupportitatitsmorevulnerablestate,andthebeamsplacedabovethedropceilinghelptodistributetheloadevenlythroughoutthesecolumns.Thecoresthemselvesareeffectivelylocatedclosetothecenterofthebuildingatthelowerlevels,andaremorelocatedtowardoneendthroughoutthetower,duetothesmallsizeofthefloorplatesasonegoesup.Theverytopthreefloorsarealsomechanicalspaces,servingtheentirebuildingaswell.

InthesetopthreefloorsarecoolingtowersandvariousotherHVACfunctions.Theairfromthesetowersisdispersedthroughlargeductslocatedatthetopofthebuilding’sdropceiling.Thewiringfortherecessedlightingaswellasotherelectronicsisalsorunabovethedropceiling,givingtheofficespacesacleanandclearlook.

LEVER HOUSE - NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORKGORDON BUNSHAFT WITH SKIDMORE, OWINGS, AND MERRIL

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Adams, Nicholas. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill: SOM since 1936. Milan: Electa Architecture ;, 2007. Print.

Adams, Nicholas. "How the Leopard Got Its Spots: Lever House as a Skyscraper." SOM Journal 7 (2010): 177-86. Print.

Danz, Ernst, and Ernst Haagen. Architecture of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, 1950-1962. London: Architectural, 1963. Print.

"Exterior Enclosure Replacement." SOM Journal 3 (2003): 91-99. Print.

Lonsway, Brian, Amira Joelson, Melanie Loui, and David Williams. "Lever House - Technical Report." Columbia University. 1 Jan. 2005. Web. 29 Sept. 2014. <http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/bt/lever/report.html>.

Woodward, Christopher. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill;. London: Thames & Hudson, 1970. Print.