The University of California needed to seismically retrofit the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, but determined it would negatively affect exhibit space. Needing a new home for the museum, the university chose a downtown Berkeley...
The original museum opened in Golden Gate Park in 1895. Damaged beyond repair by the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, the building was demolished in 2000 to make way for a new 292,000 sq ft building containing 116,000 sq ft of gallery and...
Southcoast Hospitals Group was looking to update Charlton Memorial Hospital, which was constructed in the early 1980s. They undertook a project to improve energy efficiency, reduce air leakage through the enclosure, and update the hospital’...
Frank Gehry designed the four-story, cement plaster-clad building as the headquarters for the Rouse Company. The building, which opened in 1974, features several tiered terraces with wooden trellises. As part of renovation project to...
Loyola Marymount University wanted a new science building with modern appearances and facilities within an open design to foster collaboration. The 110,000 sq ft Life Sciences Building houses chemistry, biology, and natural sciences...
The granite-clad Medical Center building, built in the 1970s, is nine stories tall. The building houses the university teaching hospital, the medical school, and clinical research laboratories. SGH led an investigation of the stone...
The Grand Stair is the processional entrance to the Cultural Education Center from the Empire State Plaza and serves as seating during plaza events. SGH evaluated long-term water leaks under the staircase and designed repairs. Following our work...
Montgomery College was contemplating upcoming renovation work and wanted an evaluation of the building enclosure systems on several of their campus buildings. SGH investigated the exterior wall cladding systems, associated facade elements,...
Led by NADAAA, the renovation of an existing 1930s home transformed the traditional masonry structure into a contemporary residence with a vertical addition. SGH was the structural engineer for the project and consulted on the building...
Designed by Claud Beelman, the thirteen-story Eastern Columbia Building with its turquoise terra-cotta and gold leaf exterior exemplifies the Art Deco Zigzag Moderne movement. SGH investigated cracked and spalled cladding and developed a...
Thin brick veneer is an exterior cladding system of brick from 3/8 to 3/4 in. thick attached to a substrate, used to imitate standard size brick veneer walls. There are three basic types of adhered installations with many variations within each...
Abstract: Designers have long been aware of the need to separate dissimilar metals. This requirement frequently appears in project specifications for sheet metal and other trades, but industry references for galvanic corrosion are inadequate for...
Abstract: Portland cement plaster, also known as stucco, is a popular and common exterior wall cladding finish. One concern of this otherwise excellent material is its inherent cracking--not only causing visual blemish, but also leading to...
Abstract: Providing for ventilation airflow behind wall claddings has been shown to reduce the risk of condensation due to sun-driven moisture when rain wets an absorptive exterior surface and solar radiation subsequently drives this moisture...
One of the most challenging details facing structural designers is the support of a building façade. The complexity of this attachment is not to be overlooked, and the entire design team should be engaged in developing a strategy for supporting...
Abstract: Many wall systems in North America incorporate a drained and vented air cavity behind the cladding. The purpose of this air cavity is to help control the flow of moisture through the wall system. Providing ventilation airflow through...
Abstract: Architectural terra cotta is a common 20th century building material found in many urban areas throughout the United States. Terra cotta's use in varied climates, its special material characteristics, its integration with a building...
Abstract: Despite well-intended laboratory testing of individual materials and components, unanticipated and severe durability failures of building wall systems can occur when the system design does not adequately integrate the various materials...