Designer Francisco Gonzalez-Pulido created Veer’s public spaces and lobbies, which showcase commissioned works by Richard Long and an abundance of natural light flowing through floor-to-ceiling windows.

“Arguably the most striking residential building in the world, Veer Towers is a masterful work of contemporary architecture offering buyers an immersive, artful lifestyle set within the urban mosaic of CityCenter,” said Tony Dennis, executive vice president, CityCenter residential division.

Each Veer Tower is home to approximately 335 contemporary condominium residences ranging from approximately 500 to 3,300 square feet. Residential options include studios; deluxe studios; one-, two- and three-bedroom flats; and penthouses.

Affirming its commitment to deliver a new level of environmental consciousness to the Las Vegas Strip, Veer Towers earned CityCenter’s sixth LEED® Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The accomplishment marks the highest LEED achievement by any hotel, retail district or residential development in Las Vegas. The 18-million-square-foot metropolis is one of the world’s largest private sustainable communities.

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The project is organized around a central nucleus created by a theater of 300 seats. Its peripheral envelope is lifted above the hall to reveal the inside spaces and circulation. Trapezoidal windows are placed on the whole surrounding of the building avoiding the traditional “black box” effect of a theater located in the middle of an urban environment. According to Serero, “In opposition with the unique window used by [architect] F. Pouillon for all the housing of the district, we conceived a system of free formed windows, the geometry of which is derived from the canopy of trees.”

According to Serero, this project is conceived from the inside out, resulting in the manipulation of the ground and the roof which delimit spaces. The building cantilevers above the reception hall, protecting a large glazed surface from the sun and rain. All the spaces of circulation and reception are widely bathed in natural light, either by the curtainwall of the reception hall, or by the sheds on the roof of the studios. The variation in the size of wall aperture and windows gives a quality of foliage to the bright atmosphere, the firm adds.

Illumination inside the main hall changes throughout the day. Offices and working spaces are lit by multiple window apertures of free forms, which allow every work space to have one or two views of the outdoor and landscaped spaces.

The building is clad in an architectonic skin of white concrete which will integrate bits of gravel and limestone of Meudon in its composition. Conceived as a performative skin, the roof is an important element of this project and integrates devices for controlling the internal light and thermal atmosphere of the building. On the south side, photovoltaic panels will be installed to harvest part of the electrical energy consumed by the building.

The $700 million convention center, due to open March 2011, is expected to be the largest state-funded project ever. This renovation will expand the center’s total square footage to 1 million square feet, of which 541,000 will be reserved for exhibit space.

“This type of project is a perfect economy booster. It has provided hundreds of jobs in the construction phase and will continue to support the local economy well after completion. These are projects we are proud of and excel at,” says Robert Price, director of sales at JEB.

According to the company, Lamberts channel glass features up to 40 percent post-consumer material contributing to the overall sustainability of the project and its target of LEED Gold certification. From the safety standpoint, Lamberts channel glass is tempered, heat soak tested and certified by the Safety Glazing Certification Council. Installation of the channel glass was handled by Corona Aluminum.

To design the new Cancer Center, Sacred Heart Health Systems selected Pensacola-based architects, Caldwell Associates. The firm has collaborated with Sacred Heart on previous projects including the Sacred Heart Hospital on the Emerald Coast and the Sacred Heart Medical Office Building and Conference Center. Pensacola-based Merritt Glass Company was selected to fabricate and glaze the project, as well as help meet on-site challenges. The company brought in Kawneer to provide curtainwall, storefront framing and entrances for the facility, as well as architectural and engineering expertise.

Although the new Center itself is relatively straightforward in design, it features a unique egg-shaped structure. Caldwell Associates (teaming with HKS as design consultants) designed the aluminum and glass “Egg”as it became known, which is elevated so that cars could travel underneath. At the tip of the Egg is a 70-foot high concrete, glass and aluminum stairwell, which is jokingly known as the “Yolk.”

For the project team, the biggest challenge was the initial layout of the Egg.

“The Egg is a true ellipse,” says John Schang with Caldwell Associates. “And because the ellipse of the building has multiple radii, creating a smooth curvature was challenging. The splay portion of the curtain wall left little room for error.”

Local building codes proved to be another challenge that the design and construction team faced. Sacred Heart Cancer Center is located in one of Florida’s vulnerable coastline cities, which requires additional measures for hurricane and wind protection.

The Egg and Yolk were constructed using approximately 50,000 pounds of glass. Supporting that weight, while still elevating the Egg, required precise engineering.

In order to construct the Egg, a template was created to demonstrate where the roof and Kawneer’s 1600 Wall System®1 IR (Impact Resistant) curtainwall would meet. The template was also used as a measurement for each vertical mullion to keep the height of all of the mullions consistent with the roof. Several custom splayed shapes were required, as well as a custom-drop in the horizontal mullion. Structural engineers from Kawneer worked closely with the design and installation team to ensure that strict statewide building standards were met.

The impact resistant version of the 1600 Wall System®1 and IR 501 storefront framing system, with insulating laminated 1 5/16-inch impact resistant glazing, were used to help meet building standards. Kawneer’s IR 501 Framing is Large Missile Impact (LMI) resistant. In addition, the company’s 350 IR Entrances were utilized in the building to provide extra strength for applications where more stringent code requirements inclucall for windborne debris protection. The 350 IR Entrances used laminated 9/16-inch impact resistant glazing infill with square glass stops and an interior silicone seal.

The 3.8-million-square-foot glass and steel ARIA Resort & Casino is located in the heart of CityCenter. The 4,000-room tower was designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and stands as the firm’s first casino project, as well as its first Las Vegas project.

“ARIA was [CityCenter’s] centerpiece and the owners wanted it to announce itself on the skyline of Las Vegas,” says Gregg Jones, the project’s design team leader with Pelli Clarke Pelli.

And announce itself the tower indeed does. Not only does it feature floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall glass, but also massive glass canopies and structural, point-supported wall systems. In addition to its aesthetics, the tower also announces itself as a beacon of sustainable design, having earned Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design® (LEED) gold certification. In fact, owners and developers approached the entire CityCenter project with an eye toward green as it is the first hotel, retail district or residential development in Las Vegas to earn LEED Gold certification—not just one, but a total of six Gold certifications.

In 2004 MGM approached Pelli Clarke Pelli to discuss the CityCenter project, which they were contemplating at the time, and explained the extraordinary scope, as Jones describes it.

“We were not particularly interested in doing a themed architectural structure; luckily MGM was not either,” says Jones. “The theme that they wanted was good design. So it was very easy to say yes because all of our intentions and goals [were in sync].”

And while the architectural firm, which has designed such well-known structures as the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur and the International Finance Center in Hong King, had done casino studies, this project would be it’s first casino project.

“And up until that time we had done hotels, 200 or 300 keys; this was 4,000 keys. So this project was several first for us,” adds Jones.

Included in the design of ARIA is a massive, high-performance curtainwall system that was created to allow in natural daylight while blocking the sun’s rays. Enclos served as the contract glazier for the tower, which features Viracon’s VRE -138 1 1/8-inch, insulating, low-E glass in the vision and spandrel areas. Working through a joint venture with Baker Metal Products, Enclos provided design, engineering, fabrication and assembly and erection of 1.2 million square feet of curtainwall—the company’s largest curtainwall project. Installation took 22 months, from April 2, 2007 to January 30, 2009.

“From an aerial view of the site the building geometry is very unique. Two overlapping arc segments create its footprint,” says Bobby Zammetti, senior project manager with Enclos. “But one of the most unique features of the curtainwall are the corner units. There are roughly 3,300 of these, all of which are designed without a corner mullion that you would have in a conventional curtainwall unit.”

In addition to the curtainwall system, glass was also used in other ways throughout the ARIA project. Two massive canopy systems, as well as structural walls in the entrance areas are also defining elements of the project.

Speaking of the canopies, Jones says, “[We thought] it would be nice to not be under a dark cantilever and instead have the Las Vegas sun and ambient daylight, which would have a real glow while still achieving both weather protection and solar protection. So we used a fairly dense, 60-70 percent ceramic frit, which provides a constant ambient glow as well as protection from the direct sun and the weather.”

Novum Structures manufactured and supplied a number of these glazing systems, while installation was subcontracted to the Las Vegas branch of Giroux Glass. This work included a 37, 200–square-foot canopy located at the front entrance, and the front entry vestibule, which features stainless steel elliptical structural columns and swing doors. On the Harmon Avenue entrance, the company built a similar 18,400-square foot canopy and also a three-story, curved and inclined 32,000-square-foot wall.

“This wall is comprised of suspended steel fins with a machined groove in them and the glass is edge clamped,” says Ian Collins, president and chief executive officer of Novum. “The wall includes several vestibules and doorways, which use elliptical stainless steel profiles.”

Sanxin Glass from China was Novum’s glass supplier for the entrance and canopy portion of the project. The canopies are constructed of laminated glass with a white frit.

Installation took Giroux glass about one year to complete and Jonathan Schuyler, a Giroux preconstruction executive and partner, says toward the end they had about 120 people on the job at one time.

“It was very dramatic the way it all came together in the end,” says Schuyler.

The ARIA project provided many firsts for all of those involved and it now stands as an example of that hard work and dedication. It was a project that also proved to be a learning experience for everyone involved. Jones says it wasn’t just any one thing he learned, but hundreds of things. Excellent communication made the project a success.

“And that’s something that not a lot of firms do well, not a lot of contractors do well and not a lot of architects do well. It’s something we make a concerted effort at and it’s extremely important to communicate your intentions and stay in constant contact and to have partners in a process who want to be partners and share ideas. Without that intellectual climate this project would not have happened, especially given the complex scope and the astoundingly compressed time line,” says Jones.

Don’t miss the March-April issue of the Architects’ Guide to Glass & Metal to read a detailed, in-depth feature on constructing the ARIA tower.

“These are the projects that redefine communities, reinvent neighborhoods and remind us that anything is possible given the right mix of craft, skill and commitment,” says J. Doug Pruitt, AGC’s president. “Despite the toughest conditions in decades, these companies found ways to awe and amaze.”

Pruitt said Linbeck was named both the Construction Management New and the Grand Award winner for its work on the new opera house. The building is wrapped in a red glass enclosure and covered by a three-acre, aluminum-clad, steel solar canopy.

Other winners were Texas Division of McCarthy Building Companies for construction of that Dallas’ AT&T Performance Arts Center Wyly Theatre; Chicago’s Pepper Construction Group for converting Chicago’s Power House building into the Charles H. Shaw Technology & Learning Center; Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based Jans Corporation for building the Sioux Falls Seminary; Walsh Brothers Incorporated of Boston for renovating the Grand Dome of MIT’s Building 10; and St. Louis, Missouri’s BSI Constructors Inc. for building that city’s new Citygarden complex.

The building will receive awards for its ornamental metal and glass railing work in the Simone McDonough Atrium and Lohrfink Auditorium completed by Tate Ornamental; the woodwork in the atrium, auditorium, and caserooms completed by Fetzer; the Terrazzo floor and steps in the atrium completed by David Allen; and the paining and wall covering work throughout the building completed by Precision Walltech.

The Craftsmanship Awards recognize the outstanding skill and achievement of individual craftsmen in the local construction community. This year, the Washington Building Congress received 314 nominations this year for awards in 10 categories. The awards will be given during a banquet on Friday, March 26.

The Rafik B. Hariri Building at Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business is a 179,000 square foot structure that opened in June 2009. It houses all of the school’s business education programs. Major gifts from alumni funded the design and construction of the $82.5 million facility.