coppertalk

By Larry Peters, Copper Development Association Project Manager & Architectural Applications Specialist

Are you part of a building project that used copper in a unique way? I invite you to enter our North American Copper in Architecture Awards, in which the Copper Development Association recognizes the outstanding use of architectural copper and copper alloys in North American building projects.

The submission process for the 2010 awards now is open. Go here for the submission form. We encourage you to join us in celebrating uses of copper that are innovative, functional and beautiful. Because we specialize in copper, we’re so proud of its use that we want to show it to the world.

To enter, your project must be located in the United States or Canada and completed in the last three years. The project must feature a significant application of architectural copper alloys and the copper manufacturer must be located in North America. The deadline to submit your entry is Jan. 31, 2010. To view last year’s winners, click here.

A 2009 winner, the objective for the Blessings Golf Clubhouse in Fayettville, Ark., was to develop a contemporary structure, unique to the Ozark Mountain region that resists the prevailing historicist precedents most commonly represented as an antebellum home or a hunting lodge. Materials for the building exterior were chosen to provide a timeless palate that will age gracefully with little maintenance. The second-story volume, a multi-textured copper tube in pre-fabricated standing-seam and flush seam copper panels, sets up views primarily to the golf course through large glass-window walls and porches. The copper volume, in shifts and cantilevers, establishes a detached relationship to its stone base.

By Larry Peters, Copper Development Association Project Manager & Architectural Applications Specialist

Larry Peters, Architectural Applications Specialist, has worked with the Copper Development Association (CDA) for 10 years, consulting on the use of copper sheet metal – roofing, flashing, gutters and wall cladding. He has an engineering background from the US Military Academy (West Point). Larry was an Army officer and has worked in the construction field for the last 15 years. He’s always had a great interest in architecture.

In my opinion, there’s no comparison when it comes to copper. Copper is generally the best metal option and arguably the easiest metal to work with, too.

At the CDA, I’m part of our building construction team. We often deal with the end user, the building designer, contractor or architect. We arrange installation training for sheet metal contractors. Other times we get calls from building owners who need advice. We’ve addressed questions from universities, governments, even an archdiocese. We get calls from homeowners, too. A lot of them are considering copper for a roof or a wall. They’ve heard about using metal wall cladding or they’re thinking about siding and have seen some pictures of buildings with copper walls. They ask us how they can achieve a certain kind of look on a building – and the pluses and minuses. There are a wide range of questions.

We help them as much as we can. We also have an online Design Handbook that has a lot of information on copper’s properties and uses. It’s the best place to search for answers to sheet copper detailing questions.

Over the past few years, I’ve answered questions from an architectural firm regarding an antebellum house in Alabama. It’s a challenging project because the mansion was constructed over a number of years in phases. There was little regard to the proper function of the roof system. The architect felt more comfortable by requiring the sheet metal contractor have hands on training to help their crew learn traditional copper installation skills.

It’s rewarding to see copper used well in architecture. There’s a beautiful sense of place when you’re around a well-designed, interesting-looking and lasting building that can sustain the elements and continue to do so over time.

Richard Lucassian,  Builder/Contractor/Plumber

I happened to come across this blog and also checked out the copper website and figured I’d offer my thoughts on copper since I work with it and like it.  I’ve been in the building, remodeling and contracting business for 21 years in the south-eastern Michigan area.  My company is specialized in electrical, plumbing, roofing and gutters.   When it comes to using copper in construction it’s not just the norm, for me it’s the best material. 

In the past per my plumbing customer’s request I tried other materials.  I found CPVC to be too flexible, especially with high water pressure homes.  Not to mention if the CPVC was exposed the sun’s UV rays and outdoor elements it didn’t hold up.  Imagine plastic in Michigan’s ice cold temperatures.   I’ve also tried Pex, a cross-linked polyethylene.  Well, the mandatory tool kit to work with the material is expensive and you still have to terminate each line at a brass or copper fitting.  So if you’re terminating with copper why not do the entire project with the material.  It easily flares to fittings and it’s forgiving with great connectivity. 

In addition to plumbing and electrical fittings many of my clients have added copper gutters and copulas to their homes.  They love the patina look and the longevity.  I’ve also used copper for roof and shingle repairs.   After making repairs caused by mold and moss damage, I run a strip of #6 copper wire to prevent any additional growth on the shingles. 

Overall, my only complaint with using copper is the price.  But, I do take advantage of its ability to be recycled.  If I pull out old wiring, I can recycle the material and put it towards an updated application.

Early yesterday morning, 136,000 pounds of copper left Rio Tinto’s Kennecott refinery in Magna, Utah, on the first leg of a 2,900-mile heavy metal tour that will culminate a year from now at the site of the new Utah Museum of Natural History in Salt Lake City.

After having been extracted at Bingham Canyon Mine and processed at Kennecott, the new copper cathodes will travel across the country, stopping in Mesa, Arizona, and Buffalo, New York, for further processing into sheets. The finished copper will reach its final destination to become the shell of the new museum.

The entire project is being documented on the museum’s Web site, giving the public in Utah and beyond a rare opportunity to observe the copper’s journey, from blasted rock, through the fabrication process, to the construction of a brand new copper-sheathed museum complex that will be named the Utah Museum of Natural History at the Rio Tinto Center.

The copper is part of a $15 million donation by Rio Tinto, the parent company of Kennecott Utah Copper. “Kennecott’s support for the museum dates back 30 years,” noted museum director Sarah George. “Its financial donations for special events, exhibits, and educational programming have provided learning opportunities to tens of thousands of visitors annually.” The Utah State Legislature provided additional funding.

Copper was selected as the ideal material for the building’s façade because of its timelessness, durability, and strong local significance. The copper bands that will comprise the façade will be enriched with two types of copper-zinc alloy that will enhance the subtle variegation in the copper’s natural patina. Over time, the façade will go from being as bright as a penny to a dark brown, and finally, to a beautiful variegated verde finish.

“The copper façade roots the museum to the Utah landscape by virtue of both the material’s origin and its design expression as a natural form,” said John Branson, principal, GSBS Architects. “The copper will be integral to the museum’s unique identity and become a recognizable feature of one of the state’s most loved and admired institutions.”

The present Utah Museum of Natural History houses more than 1.5 million objects, providing unique natural history experiences to Utah residents through exhibits, special events, and programs, and a variety of outreach activities with communities and schools. The new facility will expand the museum’s services to include eight themed exhibitions, a children’s gallery, a large changing exhibits gallery, a cafe, and a museum store.

A press event was held at the Kennecott refinery to announce the new museum project and kick off the cross-country tour. Commemorative Heavy Metal Tour posters and earplugs were distributed to the crowds of copper fans and local media that came to witness the big send-off.

The public can follow the copper’s fabrication process over the next several months by:

• joining the museum’s Heavy Metal Tour Facebook group;
• following the museum on Twitter @UMNHnewmuseum;
• visiting the museum’s website at www.umnh.utah.edu/newmuseum.

The 2009 winners of the North American Copper in Architecture  (NACIA) Awards were announced this month and they do not disappoint. Twelve outstanding projects – nine from the United States and three from Canada – made the cut. They represent the best in both new construction and renovation, and include a Native American-inspired residential compound, an Ontario health center, a major New Jersey boat terminal, a visual arts complex in western Michigan, an Arizona golf facility, and a historic New York courthouse.

The NACIA Awards program, sponsored by the Copper Development Association (CDA) and the Canadian Copper & Brass Development Association (CCBDA), recognizes North American building projects that demonstrate an outstanding use of architectural copper and copper alloys.

Each of the 2009 finalists was selected for its excellence in craftsmanship, attention to detail, and architectural vision. Seen together, they show the amazing range of color, texture, finish, and form that is possible with copper. Over time, they will prove with their durability and timeless beauty the wisdom of choosing this most versatile natural resource.

The CDA has posted a slide show and project description for each of the 2009 winners.

Would you like to nominate an outstanding copper building project? The call for entries for the 2010 North American Copper in Architecture Awards is now open. Submissions will be accepted through January 31, 2010.

In 1920s New York, when your sweetheart said, “Meet me under the clock”, you knew to head over to the Astor Hotel, a favored gathering place for the F. Scott Fitzgerald crowd and other Jazz Age glitterati. If said rendezvous was taking place in the 1930s, the two of you might duck into the Biltmore to sip martinis, lift a toast to the repeal of prohibition, and hobnob with the fortunate few not laid low by the Great Depression. Clocks have always made great landmarks.

These days, “under the clock” is more likely to refer to the big brass one in New York’s Grand Central Terminal, where it commands the central spot on the vaulted main concourse, perched above the marble and brass information booth. Perhaps the most recognizable icon in the Beaux Arts terminal, it has four faces, each made from opal, and has been valued by both Sotheby’s and Christie’s at between $10 and $20 million.

Unveiled in 1913 when the terminal opened, the brass beauty has been a character in countless Hollywood films. It was captured at interesting angles for the 1942 B-movie, Grand Central Murder, by the cinematographer George Folsey, who later went on to shoot Meet Me in St. Louis and Ziegfeld Follies.

It provided the big city backdrop as Bing Crosby and a cast of hundreds sang “Going to Hollywood” in That’s Entertainment, and Cary Grant made his heart-thumping getaway from a band of spies in Alfred Hitchcock’s North By NorthWest. Since then, it has appeared in The Cotton Club, The French Connection, Midnight Run, The Godfather, The Fisher King, Superman, and Men in Black, among many others.

Contrary to popular belief, the seminal scene between Judy Garland and Robert Walker in Vincente Minnelli’s much loved 1945 film, The Clock, actually takes place on an MGM Studios sound stage built to look like New York’s Pennsylvania Station, a mile across town.

Thanks to the beauty and durability of brass, a classic copper alloy – and to a more vigilant and informed New York citizenry, which in the 1990s saved Grand Central Terminal from the sad fate of the original Penn Station – the clock will inspire proud New Yorkers, bustling commuters, and starry-eyed lovers for many years to come.