Officially opened in April 2018, HAECO Americas’ hangar at Piedmont Triad International (PTI) Airport in Greensboro, North Carolina, set a new standard in airport hangar design. Contributing to the project’s aesthetic, performance and sustainability goals, Exterior Technologies (EXTECH), engineered, fabricated and installed an energy-efficient, translucent, daylighting system on the hangar.
This is the fifth hangar at PTI operated by HAECO, one of PTI’s largest employers. Demonstrating its commitment to efficiency and sustainability, the new hangar is pursuing certification through the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED rating system.
New benchmark in hangar design
To create its newest hangar, HAECO Americas says they partnered with Ghafari Associates on the conceptual design and contractor selection. To bring the project to life, the design-build team included BRPH as the architect of record and BE&K Building Group as the design-build contractor, working with EXTECH on the daylighting solution.
The design-build team’s collaborative efforts began in Aug. 2016. “We’re good partners. We brought our expertise in hangar design and BE&K brought its expertise in hangar (design-build) construction. Plus, BE&K had done previous work at PTI,” said BRPH’s regional director and principal, Francisco Alvarado, AIA, NCARB.
“HAECO wanted to create a new benchmark in hangar facility design,” Alvarado emphasized. “From the earliest stages, we knew it was important that this would be a state-of-the-art showcase hangar. This was not the traditional, plain metal building. We broke that precedent and set a new one.”
He continued, “On every project, aesthetics and performance must be balanced with cost. Too often, daylighting systems are value-engineered out of the final design. On this hangar, the owner made it a priority to bring natural light into the space.”
After evaluating several product options, the design-build team selected EXTECH’s LIGHTWALL 3440 interlocking polycarbonate translucent wall system. The hangar incorporates the system as part of the building envelope’s upper portion as clerestory sections, at its corners and on its three massive doors.
Natural light, economical solution
“EXTECH’s LIGHTWALL provides high light transmission, thermal efficiency, fast-track installation and reliable operation. It’s an attractive, modern appearance maintained with minimal effort,” said EXTECH Director of Product Application and Development Kevin Smith, R.A. “As our most popular product, LIGHTWALL 3440 offers a beautiful, durable and economical solution for building envelopes. The flexibility of this system works especially well for the project’s hangar doors.”
The high light transmission of EXTECH’s system allows HAECO to capitalize on naturally available daylight to reduce the demand, and associated costs, of electric lighting fixtures and use. The highly insulating LIGHTWALL 3440 system provides diffuse daylighting, while reducing solar heat gain to keep people comfortable within the building envelope. Thermal comfort and access to daylight has shown to positively affect the productivity, accuracy and job satisfaction of workers – important benefits for aircraft maintenance personnel.
Viewed from the exterior, the diffusing characteristics of the LIGHTWALL 3440 system’s cellular polycarbonate glazing also reduce light pollution emanating from the building.
“Cellular polycarbonate glazing is more prevalent in Europe, and still relatively new in the U.S.,” observed Smith. “Compared with the older, less pleasing look of fiberglass and metal systems seen on aging aircraft hangars, our system’s polycarbonate material is co-extruded with a layer to resi
st nearly 99 percent of harmful UV radiation and eliminate yellowing.”
Functional, Sustainable
EXTECH engineered, fabricated and installed more than 26,600 square feet of the LIGHTWALL 3440 system. The 40mm, opal color, structural, cellular polycarbonate glazing panels are supported with aluminum framing. “Our LIGHTWALL 3440 does not require framing members within the field of the glazing, which allows for a clean, modern architectural aesthetic,” added Smith.
The LIGHTWALL 3440 system meets demanding performance specifications, including high wind loads, impact resistance, fire rating, air infiltration, water penetration, thermal (0.25 U-Factor) and structural performance. Smith noted, “LIGHTWALL 3440 possesses some of the highest performance numbers in the industry due to its advanced framing. Because it is a dry-glazed system, VOC emissions also are reduced. These attributes support energy efficiency and sustainability goals, conforming to LEED requirements.” Additionally, the cellular polycarbonate glazing and aluminum of EXTECH’s system are 100 percent recyclable should the need to replace arise.
“We are delighted to bring the new hangar online. This gives us capacity to maintain larger aircraft, such as the Boeing 777 and Airbus A-350,” said HAECO Americas CEO Richard Kendall. “Our business is rooted in Greensboro beginning more than 25 years ago. This grows our footprint in the Triad as a significant player in the rising aerospace sector here.”