sustanaible architecture with stainless steel

Sustainable Architecture with Stainless Steel

Esko Miettinen, Architect SAFA, Stelos Oy, Helsinki

Presentation on the occasion of the conferenceCreative Architecture with Stainless Steeljointly organised by Euro Inox, Brussels, Belgium and Cedinox, Madrid, Spain, on 12th March 2002 in Barcelona

S U S T A I N A B L E A R C H I T E C T U R E W I T H S T A I N L E S S S T E E L

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Stainless steel

Stainless steel is the common name for all steelgrades that contain at least 10.5% chromium.Chromium improves the corrosion resistance ofstainless steels. In addition to iron and chromium,stainless steels contain other alloying metals, ofwhich the most important ones are nickel andmolybdenum. The combination of chromium andoxygen leads to the formation of a chromium-richpassive layer on the surface of the steel. Thislayer protects the steel, and reforms over time, ifdamaged.

Development

The first stainless steel grades were developed inthe 1910s. Thus, the first austenitic and marten-sitic stainless steels were developed just beforethe First World War. The industrial manufacture ofstainless steel started in the 1920s.Most of the standard stainless steel alloys in usetoday were developed between 1913 and 1935 inBritain, Germany, the United States and France.With the introduction of standard alloys, it waspossible to concentrate on more economical pro-duction methods and on promoting the use ofstainless steel.The extremely strong and corrosion-resistant mo-lybdenum alloyed stainless steel grades were firstdeveloped in the 1970s.

Long-term durability

Provided stainless steel structures are carefully de-signed and the steel is correctly selected, treatedand maintained, the theoretical service life ofstainless steel structures is hundreds of years. Arough estimate of the successful design and dura-bility of the structure can be made after just a fewyears. A good rule of thumb is that, if there are norust stains during the first years, the probability ofcorrosion later is low.

Stainless steel raw materials

Scrap metal Cr

Ni

(Mo)

Environmental properties

The environmental impact of the manufacture anduse of materials and products can be measured by the amounts of, e.g. various emissions and their environmental impact, as well as by energydemand. The values and the decision-making pro-cess of consumers and business partners today arebased not only on the traditional values, but alsoon environmental impact. An environmentallyfriendly product is valued highly in selection situa-tions. Legislation in recent years has also empha-sised environmental values more than before.Stainless steel is mainly manufactured from re-cycled stainless and carbon steel. The utilisation of recycled raw material reduces the energy de-mand of the manufacturing process, as well asthe amount of waste and emissions.

Stainless steel itself is 100% recyclable. Thanks tothe excellent long-term durability of the material,however, the service lives of the products are ex-tremely long. This reduces the relative consump-tion of natural resources and energy during theservice life of products made of stainless steel, incomparison with products made of materials thatdeteriorate faster and need to be replaced.


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ChryslerBuilding,New York, 1930,architect WilliamVan Alen.Stainless steelcladding on thetop part of thebuilding.

Stainless steel in construction and

architecture

Stainless steel was patented at the beginning ofthe 20th century by the German company Krupp. At the same time stainless steel was developed in England. At first, it was mainly used in the engi-neering industry in the manufacture of machinesand equipment, and medical instruments, etc.Then it was gradually introduced into the construc-tion industry.

Chrysler Building, New York, 1930

The Chrysler Building in New York is one of thesignificant buildings of the 1920s and 1930s, inwhich stainless steel plays a visible role. Whencompleted in 1930, it was the tallest building inthe world and made the designer, architect WilliamVan Alen, a celebrity overnight. Today, it is one ofthe landmarks of New York. The Chrysler Building is an entity representing pure, well-implemented art deco. The good imageof the building, however, is really based on the ex-pressive art deco realisation of the top part, whichis covered with stainless steel.

Arne Jacobsen, 1950s and 1960s

The architecture of the Dane Arne Jacobsen is cha-racterised by how he creates the entire surround-ings of the buildings in one single style. Jacobsen’soffice also designed all the furniture and small ob-jects for the buildings, all representing the small-scale design so typical of his larger projects, aswell.Arne Jacobsen used stainless steel in many of hiswell known designs, such as cutlery, coffee potsetc., as well as in the interior of the buildings, e.g.in stair rails, and to some extent also in externalcladding elements. The furniture and small objectsoriginally designed for architectural entities havestarted to live a life of their own outside the build-ings. They are essential ingredients of the classicmodernism of the 1950s and 1960s, and most ofthem are still being sold in different parts of theworld.

Small stainlesssteel objectsdesigned by ArneJacobsen forvarious projectsin the 1950s and1960s, still beingsold today.

Arne Jacobsen,SAS Hotel,Copenhagen,1956-61.Stainless steelhas been used inthe shell con-struction to alimited extent.


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Lloyd’s of London, 1970s

The Lloyd’s of London building was realised on thebasis of the English architect Richard Rogers’ win-ning entry in an invitational competition. The mainphilosophy of the design was to locate the stair-cases and the building systems on the outside ofthe building, in order to produce clarity in the in-terior spaces. Stainless steel has been used ascladding on the technical units. The buildingblends excellently into the townscape of the City.

Lloyd’s of London, 1984,architect Richard Rogers.Stainless steel used as acladding material playsa significant role in thetownscape.

At close range, it creates an effective contrast tothe surrounding blocks. The controlled, plasticshapes of the technical parts of the building makean unforgettable sight in the enclosed urbanspace.Stainless steel is clearly a significant material inthe external architecture of Lloyd’s of London. Theframe of the building is made of reinforced con-crete, built using prefabricated parts.


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National Library of France, 1990s

The new National Library of France (BibliothèqueNationale de France), which was designed byarchitect Dominique Perrault on the basis of awinning competition entry, was completed in Parisin 1995. It was one of the significant constructionprojects during François Mitterrand’s presidency.The building was widely acclaimed in the pressall over the world. Reports highlighted the spaceconcept, form language and connections withclassic modernism, e.g. Mies van der Rohe’s archi-tecture during his stay in America. Another focusof interest was the technological character of thebuilding, such as the methods of transferringbooks from the storerooms in the towers to thereading rooms.The library may also be reviewed on the basis ofmaterials used and the selected implementationmethods. The reinforced concrete frame of thebuilding has been realised in a very high-qualitymanner. The shell structure consists mostly oftropical wood, glass and a higher alloyed stainlesssteel. Stainless steel is very visibly present also in

the interior spaces, with, e.g. woven metal on thewalls and ceilings, combined with natural-colourreinforced concrete, textiles (e.g. the red wall-to-wall carpeting in the entrance lobby) and reddishtropical wood.The external shell of the library is logically realisedwith three materials. One of them is stainlesssteel, used in its various finishes as matte surfaceplates and woven lattices. The building mass alsoencompasses trees and bushes, surrounded byframes made of stainless steel wire. A small wood-ed area forms the central external space of thebuilding, with the main entrance passage openinginto it and the tall public facilities of the librarygrouped round it. The consistency of high-qualitymaterials in the external shell and the mass divi-sion of the building lend credibility to the externalspace.

Bibliothèque Nationale de France,the National Library of France, Paris, 1995, architect Dominique Perrault. Pedestrian level.

National Library of France,Paris, interior views.Interior materials includereinforced concrete, wood,stainless steel and carpet-ing.


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Ludwig-Erhard-Haus, Berlin

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the StockExchange Building, designed in 1994-1998 as thecommunication and service centre of the commer-cial and industrial circles of Berlin, is located in thewestern centre of the town, the Charlottenburgarea. The building was designed by architect NicholasGrimshaw on the basis of the winning entry in aninvitational competition. The basic idea of the design was a low-rise solution that would supportthe townscape, and a suspended structure of thecentral building mass. The building combines thetraditional modern architecture of the office sec-tion with the strongly structural organic expressionand the requirements of ecology.The stainless steel used in the external shell ofthe building and in the cast cladding of the steelarches at ground level gives the building yet an-other dimension.The design work was based on adapting the requi-rements of new technology and the diverse opera-tions as well as the eye-catching architecture to theexisting old environment. The load-bearing struc-ture of the building comprises 15 steel arches, fromwhich the top nine floors are suspended. This hasmaximised the free space. The elliptical steel archeswere prefabricated at a factory. The street façade is aseparate, light structure supported on steel arches.This makes the central mass of the building resem-ble a suspension bridge structure.The building is equipped with natural ventilation.The atriums serve as regulators of ventilation in theworkspaces. The solar control system incorporatedin the façades reduces the need for artificial lighting.

Ludwig-Erhard-Haus, Berlin, 1998, architectNicholas Grimshaw. The external cladding con-sists exclusively of mattesurface stainless steel.


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Sony Center, Berlin

In recent years, quite a few office complexes de-signed by renowned architects, displaying inte-resting applications of stainless steel, have risenin Berlin. The Sony Center, completed in 2000 indowntown Berlin on Potsdamer Platz, containsnot only offices but also commercial premises.The mass division of the building complex de-signed by Helmut Jahn is an example of space diversity. The façades of the building block are

mostly of stainless steel-glass construction, withstainless steel used as sections, plates, corruga-ted sheets and woven surfaces. The Charlemagnebuilding in Brussels, designed by the same office,can be described as a much more enclosed admi-nistrative building in spirit, while the Sony Centerin Berlin opens up in many directions, making itan easy-to-access block with a versatile spacesolution.

Sony Center,façade mainly ofstainless steel andglass.

Sony Center, Berlin, 2000,architect Helmut Jahn.Translucent roof of thecentral courtyard.

In addition, stainless steel has become a materialfor load-bearing structures, e.g. stainless steelframes and concrete reinforcement bars. Stainlesssteel surfaces have traditionally been bright, eitherground or polished. Matte surface stainless steel,however, is gaining in popularity in shell structures.Woven stainless steel surfaces in the interior andexterior spaces of buildings are a completely newphenomenon. In external spaces, they are mainlyused in cold structures such as wind shields and


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Diversification of stainless steel applications

The examples of stainless steel applications inarchitecture are also reflective of the widening ofapplications in construction. The use of stainlesssteel has increased considerably and the applica-tions of the material have become more diversi-fied in significant European building projects inthe 1990s. Many of the applications involve shellstructures, such as façades and façade components.

sunscreens. Lately, façade components have alsobeen realised as cast stainless steel structures. An example of this is the Ludwig-Erhard-Haus, theStock Exchange building, completed in Berlin inlate 1990s, which has a prefabricated steel frameand a stainless steel envelope.Less than one hundred years after its invention,the properties of stainless steel are being utilisedin all building parts, from cladding to load-bearingand supplementary structures.

Nokia Head Office, Espoo, Finland, 1996, architect Pekka Helin. The double façade struc-ture is consistently reali-sed with stainless steel.

The Petronas Towers, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia,1997, architect Cesar Pelli.The stainless steel façadestructures on the headoffice of the oil companyalso serve as sunscreens.The doubletower of thebuilding rises to a heightof 452 m.

Real Estate Company viinikantu 47,computer house Nixdorf, Tampere,Finland, 1990, architect Antti Katajamäkj. Façade cladding consists of stain-less steel cassettes.


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Public building

The use of stainless steel in the structures andbuildings of public transport services started inthe 1960s and 1970s. The long service life andease of maintenance make stainless steel an idealmaterial in structures that serve large crowds ofpeople, such as railway and metro stations, busstops, ship terminals, and airports, etc.

Helsinki Metro

The planning of Helsinki Metro started towards theend of the 1960s, and metro traffic began in 1982.The Helsinki City Metro Office was established forthe planning and construction of the metro system,and teams of various architectural and engineeringoffices were responsible for the design of the sta-tions. The design work also covered the design ofso-called continuous structures, such as the signsand fixtures as well as the metro trains, all of whichwere repeated in similar design throughout themetro system. The selection of molybdenum (Mo)containing stainless steel for, e.g. the stations’external doors, lifts, column shields, fixtures andsigns was based on issues related to maintenanceand the corrosive urban atmosphere.

Metro sign madeof acrylic resinand stainlesssteel, architectEsko Miettinen,late 1980s.

Ruoholahtimetro station,ArchitectsKontio - Kilpiä - Valjento - Oy.Station hall.

Herttoniemimetro station,Kaupunkisuun-nit-Oy, archi-tects JaakkoYlinen, JarmoMaunula.Station plattform.

The signs of Helsinki Metroare integrated into a con-sistent system, which ispart of the station architec-ture. The sign system wasdesigned by architectsOla Laiho, Esko Miettinen,Esa Piironen, 1970-82.

Rautatientori metro station,total design OyCity Consult Ab,ArchitectsBjörkstam - Heino- Kostiainen Ky.


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Extension of AvestaPolarit head office

Tornio, Finland, 1996Architect Eero Eskelinen

In the summer of 1992, planning work was startedfor the extension and façade renovation of theFinnish stainless steel producer’s head office builtin the late 1960s. Owing to the loose industrialplan, the extent of additional building and the massdivision could be determined as desired. The trafficroutes in the area act as natural limits to the build-ing area. The new narrow-framed extension, a littleover 1,000 m2 in size and three storeys in height,is connected in a straight angle to the existing two-storey office building, which is almost 100 m long.The straight-angle layout allows for two more ex-tension units of similar size to be added later.A spacious, two-storey high lobby connects the oldand the new building, with a rather narrow bridge-like access ramp between the buildings on the firstfloor level. The panorama lift in the extension partopens up into this entrance lobby. In the steppedeastern side of the building the room division isalmost fixed. The size of the office rooms on thewestern side, on the other hand, can be altered.The central mass rising above the second floor actsas a collecting core of the building mass, with theeastern side opening up through a continuousupper window to the central passage of the second

Plan drawing, connectionbetween old and newbuilding parts.

floor. The floodlight mast, which is intended forillumination of external areas, is connected withthe building and its architecture. The extensionpart is located on the south side of the old office,partly on top of it by the main entrance on thenorth side. The entrance has been made prominentwith a new protruding vestibule and a canopy onthe north side, which also tie the architectural fea-tures of the old and new part together using theform language, materials and details of the newbuilding.

Western elevation.

Site plan.


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The main façade material in the new building isMo-containing stainless steel (EN 1.4401).The tall central core mass of the new part is coveredwith composite panels, in which two thin-gaugestainless steel sheets have been joined togetherusing a stiffening intermediate material. The ex-ternal surface is 0.8 mm Mo-containing steel with a ground surface finish and an embossed pattern.The cladding on the outer façade surfaces consistsof 150 mm high, 1.0 mm thick profiled type 1.4401stainless steel panels. The panels have a groundsurface finish.The windows on the southeastern side of the build-ing are protected with suspended inclined sun-screen gratings made of stainless steel. The suns-creens on the western side are a little over 12mhigh stainless steel grating walls with foundationsin the ground. The spacing and the mesh of thegrating walls follow the basic room module.The floodlight tower of lattice construction, at thesouth end of the building, is covered with perfora-ted Mo-containing sheets. Vertical luminaire rowsare mounted in the inside corners of the tower,making it appear as a vertical light beam in thedark.

Eastern elevation. Section.

The building seenfrom the south.

Nokia Head Office

Keilalahti, Espoo Finland, 1996Architect Pekka Helin

The office building is located at a junction of Länsi-väylä arterial road and Ring Road I, some 8 kmfrom the centre of Helsinki and 2 km from the re-gional centre of Tapiola and from the Otaniemiarea. The sea surrounds most of the building. Thelarge total volume has been organised using hu-man scale and proportions, and the building ischaracterised by lightness, airiness and careful de-tails, which together with the space solution createa modern and original working environment.

Space solution

The facilities reserved for offices and product deve-lopment can be altered. The room division can bebased on combi-offices or individual offices, or alandscape office. The working and service facilitieswind round two large atriums. The ground floorcontains common service facilities: a restaurant, acafeteria, conference and meeting rooms, an audi-torium, exhibition space, as well as a gym, dres-sing rooms and washrooms, etc.


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Site plan.

Section.

Main entrance,the stainless steelfaçade reflectsdaylight.


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Steel structures

In addition to their functional purpose, the visiblesteel structures influence the architectural appea-rance of the building considerably. The double faç-ade, the first one in Finland, is supported on a fra-me structure that consists of (grade EN 1.4401)stainless steel profiles. The frame structure itself isfixed to the concrete façade and suspended fromthe canopy structures on the roof of the building.The aluminium maintenance grilles on each floorare also supported by the frame structure. The ad-ditional glass surface and the auxiliary structuresof the double façade reduce the consumption ofcooling and heating energy. In addition to theseecological functions, it also acts as an architecturalelement.

Plan drawings.

Western views.Façades made of

steel and glass.


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Sanomatalo Publishing House building

Helsinki, 1999ArchitectsAntti-Matti Siikala, Professor Jan Söderlund

In 1995, Sanoma Osakeyhtiö arranged an invita-tion competition for the design of a new buildingfor their newspaper publishing house in down-town Helsinki in the Töölönlahti area, near theParliament House and the railway station. The 9-storey building houses, e.g. the editorial officesof Helsingin Sanomat, Ilta-Sanomat and Talous-Sanomat. The ground floor and the first floor arereserved for shops, galleries and restaurant facili-ties, which can be accessed from the pedestrianpassages. All in all, the building is the work placeof some 1,000 people. The base plan of the Sanomatalo building is asquare, diagonally divided by two public pede-strian passages. The space between the passa-ges, on the northern side of the building, is for-med into a full-height town space, the MediaMarket, which opens up to Töölönlahti throughthe 35-m tall glass wall. The open character of the building is emphasisedby the extensive use of glass on the external faça-des, realised as double façades on the sectionscontaining the office facilities. A second façade

Northern elevation

Western elevation

Northern view.


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consisting of single-glass panes is mounted at adistance of 90 cm from the actual glass façade, toserve as weather protection. This solution makes iteasier to control the indoor air quality. The externalfaçade structures are made of glass-bead blastedstainless steel, grade EN 1.4401, mainly selectedfor the low maintenance demand of the material.Brown oxidised corrugated and plain coppersheeting are also used on the surface cladding. The inside glass walls of the double glass façadesare made of floor-height 2.7-m wide glass unitswith steel frames, prefabricated at the factory. Theoutermost glass panes are supported from theedge of the intermediate floor slab on each floor,using stainless steel structures. The outermostglass wall continues as a cantilevered wall on thecorners and on the roof terrace of the building. Thesteel frame of the inside façade elements and thestainless support structures of the outermost glasspanes are all made of welded profiles.

Gross area 43,000 m2

Volume 231,000 m3

Plan drawing, 1st floor

Plan drawing, ground floor

The façade struc-tures are locatedon the outside ofthe glass wall.

Ruohoparkki Car Park

Helsinki, 1999Architect VP Tuominen

At the turn of 1994-1995, a design and biddingcompetition was arranged to build a multi-storeycar park in the Ruoholahti area of Helsinki.The competition proved difficult, as the car parkis exceptionally large, with 10-11 storeys required.The location of the car park in the new town sec-tion of Ruoholahti, which would later be filled upby office blocks not yet planned or built at thattime, at the end of the western radial road leadingto Helsinki, specified great requirements on thearchitecture, façade materials and preliminarylayout of the building.The building was realised using thin-gauge stain-less steel sheet as well as thin plastered, groundand painted concrete in the façade structures. Theobjective of this solution was to create a whole but


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The façade reactssensetivley to variationsin lightning conditions.

Elevation toward Itämerenkatu Street.

Elevation toward Porkkalankatu Street.

still versatile entity into the townscape. The proper-ties of the chosen façade materials made it possi-ble to use a simple form language that contains allthe necessary functional, economical and technicalcharacteristics.The steel façade parts are made of stainless steelsheet, 1.25 mm in thickness, perforated and profi-led as a stiff structure. The profiled sections arefixed on the raised horizontal stainless steel stripsof the intermediate floors. The perforated sectionsact as windows and replacement air vents. Onfaçades, stainless steel is a low maintenancematerial in urban surroundings and marine atmos-phere.

Floor area 25,300 m2

Volume 74,000 m3

Parking spaces 790


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Plan drawing

Section

Elevation towardPorkkalankatu Street

Villa Inox – Single family house

Tuusula Housing Fair 2000, FinlandArchitect Esko Miettinen

The central theme of Villa Inox is space, the relation-ship between internal and external space, for exam-ple. The plan is of semi-open type, with spacesdesigned for family get-togethers, but also privatespaces for every family member. Moving outdoorsfrom the inside has been made as easy as possible.Each room has its own outdoor extension space,which on the ground floor is part of the courtyardand on the upper floor a balcony. The surroundingnature has been brought inside the house, e.g.through the floor-level windows in the living roomand in the vestibule.

Structure

The main mass of the house is built on a columnframe. The frame columns are almost completelyvisible in the two-storey tall living room. The load-bearing frames are made of stainless steel and theintermediate floor of the two-storey main mass issupported on the beams of the stainless steelframes. The walls in the single-storey part of thehouse are load-bearing.The external walls are of Termo purlin constructionand the load-bearing frame is a heated structure.The partition walls have steel frames. The load-bearing frame of the car shelter is made of stain-less steel as a cold structure. The Termo purlinelement structure is covered with half-lap boardingfixed on battens. The building frame and the wallelements mounted on the frame were prefabricated.The frame structure and the construction methodbased on elements allowed for a short buildingtime, only some three months.


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The stainless steelframe is visible in the internal spaces.

Site plan


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Materials

The load-bearing column frames of the house aremade of stainless steel. The surface finish of thesteel is in internal spaces mostly ground whilepickled steel is used in the garage. The vestibule atthe main entrance, the balconies and the staircaseare also made of stainless steel.The internal cladding of the element walls consistsof painted gypsum board. Flooring is beech par-quet and ceramic tile. At the request of the lady ofthe house, the worktops in the kitchen and in thelaundry room were mainly made of stainless steel.The uniform impression of the internal spaces isemphasised, e.g. by the identical pull handles andskirting structures, all made of stainless steel.The roofing and the window sills are made of cop-per. The downpipes, the fence posts and the fra-mes of the external staircases are made of stain-less steel. Part of the external cladding is alsostainless steel.4 rooms, kitchen, laundry room, sauna section, carshelter, storeroom, technical space

Gross area 178 m2 Net apartment area 159 m2 Plot area 722 m2

Plan drawing, ground floor

Plan drawing, 1st floor

Eastern elevation

Northern elevation

Southern elevation

Western elevation

sustanaible architecture with stainless steel

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