San Francisco Airport Control Tower in California by Fentress Architects

Article source: Fentress Architects

A new, environmentally friendly airport traffic control tower has opened at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) designed by Fentress Architects of Denver in association with HNTB Architects of San Francisco.

San Francisco International Airport (SFO), the “gateway to the Pacific”, is a world-class airport serving tens of millions of domestic and international passengers annually.  Committed to maintaining a competitive facility, the Replacement Airport Traffic Control Tower and Integrated Facilities project provides a new Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airport Traffic Control Tower, including a new Integrated Facility base building for offices, support and other airport functions.

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

• Architects: Fentress Architects
• Project: San Francisco Airport Control Tower
• Location: California, USA

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Given its prominent location and high visibility, the tower is the first image arriving passengers will see, whether by land or air.  The design of the tower is both symbolic of the airport and the city, reflecting the cosmopolitan character and sophistication of the City of San Francisco.  The tower’s twisting façade design was informed by the color, massing and materials of the passenger terminal.  The roof of the cab is cantilevered from the rear.  Glazing for the cab is clear, laminated and butt glazed to maximize views for Air Traffic Controllers.  The integrated facility’s glass atrium provides a unique opportunity for direct and visual interaction with the tower for passengers using the non-secure corridor.

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

The design of San Francisco International Airport’s new airport traffic control tower not only focused on functional goals – including withstanding a magnitude 8.0 earthquake, offering maximum sightlines and accommodating state-of-the-art electronics – it also needed to serve as an iconic airport symbol.  The resulting 221-foot-tall 5,652-square-foot shimmering-metal tower features a geometrically complex design resembling a sweeping torch that is topped with an offset control cab – the latter providing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) air traffic controllers with an unobstructed 270-degree view of airport runways and taxiways. The tower is the tallest vertical self-centering post tension concrete structure in the United States and is designed to achieve LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

There are a few unusual conditions under which the tower was built.  One is that the FAA and the airport shared the cost of the project; the FAA paid for the costs associated with building of the tower, while SFO paid for integrating the tower into the existing airport complex, as well as the facility’s striking design features.

This is also the first FAA-approved control tower built under a design-build delivery method. Fentress worked hand-in-hand with Hensel Phelps, the construction management firm.

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

A third important aspect of this structure is that it is designed and engineered to very high seismic standards, not surprising for the airport of San Francisco. The new tower is designed to withstand a magnitude 8.0 earthquake.

Located between Terminals 1 and 2, the tower features a 147 foot-tall ribbon of glass running down the middle of the structure. The glass reflects sunlight during the day and is illuminated by interior lighting at night.

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

The project includes a three-story, 44,000 square-foot base building, which houses computer equipment, a backup generator, and secure corridors that allow passengers to transit between terminals without affording access to the tower.  It also provides administrative offices for the air traffic controllers that feature an unusually open plan, a courtyard and a green roof where staff can rest between shifts at what is considered one of the world’s most stressful occupations. (SFO is the nation’s 11^th busiest airport in 2015 with about 430,000 takeoffs and landings.)

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

A host of green environmental features earned the project LEED Gold status, including solar panels installed on a nearby building roof; natural daylight in offices and the public lobby; a roof garden and reflective roofing, which reduce heat gain from the roof; low-flow plumbing fixtures; recycled building materials; an electric vehicle charging station; and energy efficient mechanical and electrical equipment.

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Image Courtesy © Fentress Architects

Tags: California, USA

Categories: Airport, Control Centre, Information Tower, Tower

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