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PPG glass for Bullitt Center, world’s ‘greenest’ office building

PPG Solarban 60 is used in Bullitt Center, a six-story Seattle office building widely regarded as the ‘greenest’ structure of its kind in the world. The Center was designed to be completely self-sustaining, with integrated building management systems that enable 100% of its energy and water harvesting, water treatment and waste processing to be conducted on-site.

PPG Industries has announced that the Bullitt Center, a six-story Seattle office building widely regarded as the ‘greenest’ structure of its kind in the world, was constructed with Solarban® 60 solar control, low-emissivity (low-E) glass and Starphire® ultra-clear glass.
The Bullitt Center was designed by the Miller Hull Partnership, Seattle, to be completely self-sustaining, with integrated building management systems that enable 100% of its energy and water harvesting, water treatment and waste processing to be conducted on-site. Architect Jim Hanford and design architect Brian Court, working with glazing contractor Goldfinch Brothers, Everett, Wash., said they specified Solarban 60 glass for most of the building because it provided the best balance of thermal, solar control and daylighting performance to meet the needs of the project.
“To allow daylighting deep into the floor plate, we knew we would need large glass areas with high visible light transmittance,” Hanford explained. “To offset the heating load penalty of the large glass areas, we wanted to get the lowest possible heat loss rate,” he said, and that meant using a product such as Solarban 60 glass with argon fill in the insulating glass units (IGUs).
Solarban 60 glass is part of a high-performance curtain wall system designed by Schuco USA, Newington, Conn., and fabricated by Northwestern Industries, Seattle. The system integrates triple-glazed IGUs with a maximum fenestration U-value of 0.25, along with manual and motor-controlled openings that facilitate passive cooling and natural ventilation. The system also has retractable external blinds to help block solar heat. The large windows, together with high ceilings, enable the Bullitt Center to draw 82% of its lighting needs from the sun.
In addition, Solarban 60 glass was used to fabricate the entrance and terrace doors, operable windows and skylights, which were reinforced with a translucent laminated interior lite.
The building’s signature design element, the “irresistible stairwell” that entices occupants to climb steps instead of riding the elevator by providing panoramic external views, is encased in Starphire glass by PPG – the most transparent architectural glass available.
The Bullitt Center is seeking to become the first office building to earn certification through the Living Building Challenge, the world’s most difficult and advanced sustainability standard for buildings.

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