IT'S GOT STORES BUT IT'S MUCH MORE
THAN A MALL
Palisades Center
 complex designed to
meet the challenge of creating a regional shopping mall with a true spirit of
local community. There are approximately 240 stores, including a home building
center, 1,000-seat food court, restaurants, an IMAX and multi-screen theater
and an indoor community ice arena. Palisades offers exciting amenities and
atmosphere. "We wanted to create an industrial character with utilitarian
finishes," says Ed Benjamin of Dal Pos Architect, P.C. "But we really set out
to create a lively shopping atmosphere." It has been achieved within a backdrop
reminiscent of a circus big top complete with a massive indoor ferris wheel,
carousel and abstract graphic roller coaster.
Exciting storefronts,
innovative interiors, extensive use of neon graphics and natural lighting are
all a part of what makes Palisades Center so attractive and distinctive. To
bring daylight into the 3.4 million-square-foot, 4-level building, an
85,000-square-foot translucent skylight from Structures Unlimited, Inc. of
Manchester, New Hampshire, covers the entire mall.
"The Structures
Unlimited skylight system contributes to the natural light flow throughout the
mall concourse," states Benjamin. "As a result, all storefronts receive natural
light during the day which impacts the overall scheme." Structures Unlimited
combines pre-engineered rigid frame aluminum box beams to clear spans up to 100
feet and more with Kalwall® translucent sandwich panels. Kalwall's
diffuse-light properties deliver usable natural daylight, filtering out harmful
ultraviolet rays and eliminating harsh glare, hot spots and shadows often
associated with traditional glazing. With Kalwall, the cost of electric
lighting is reduced. Even on cloudy days an even balance of usable natural
light fills the interior.
The mall concourse flows horizontally and
vertically with the openness provided by the central floor openings through
which light descends from the skylight. "The skylight system helps to create a
bright and inviting place," says Mike Reilly of Palisades Center. "It's
wonderful to have so much natural light flow through the mall."
"With
the use of various translucent panels, such as clear and crystal, we get
various light levels and shading," explains Benjamin. Structures Unlimited
panels offer light transmission ranges from 2% to as much as 75% sunlight and
shading coefficients from 1.0 to under 0.04. In Palisades Center, the Kalwall
panels have light transmissions of 81% and 30%, and shading coefficients of
0.34 and 1.00. The side panels are clear, crystal and Sunwall®, a version
of the Kalwall translucent panel with proven "water clear," high solar
transmission faces.
"When selecting the skylight material, energy saving
factors were very important," says Benjamin. Energy efficiency is inherent to
Structures Unlimited systems. The translucent sandwich panels can be infilled
during the manufacturing process with various densities of translucent
insulation. In the standard 2-3/4 inches (70 mm) panel, "U" factor options
range from .53 to .18; in its new thermally broken panel, performance can be as
low as .10, as tested and/or computer modeled according to NFRC-100 Attachment
A procedures as endorsed by the Department of Energy for maximum energy
efficiency and reliability. "U" factors of .29 and .53 were specified for the
Palisades Center and the system is listed with Underwriters Laboratory for
Class A Roof Unit fire performance!
"We chose Structures Unlimited
because single-source responsibility was a primary concern," says Benjamin.
Structures Unlimited assures total responsibility from design through
installation. "They have been very competitive on all of our projects,"
concludes Benjamin. Dal Pos Architect has designed other malls featuring
Structures Unlimited translucent systems. "The Structures Unlimited system is
sound, it works, and it does the job that is intended."
Palisades Center
is located near the Tappan Zee Bridge. "We are striving to make Palisades a
total entertainment experience," concludes Reilly. "It's a beautiful mall and
we're making the most of it!"
Palisades Center, West Nyack, New
York
Architect: Dal Pos Architect, P.C. |
|
