Bay Area Rapid Transit Parking Structure, Pleasanton, Calif.
Posted
10/1/2009
Cambridge
Architectural supplied a metal fabric system of expansive panels of
architectural mesh to add style and function to the parking garage
serving the Bay Area Rapid Transit Dublin/Pleasanton Station in
Pleasanton, Calif. The station is one of 43 BART stations that
facilitate travel to and from downtown San Francisco, the East Bay
and the San Francisco International Airport. Featuring a number of
local and regional bus connections, the station is an important
transportation hub. Because the station is architecturally unique,
the planscalled for the adjacent parking structure to be modern and
memorable.
Cambridge Architectural's Parkade architectural mesh system clads
the 1,200-space parking structure by covering large expanses of
open area, including the main stairwell, and artistically blending
its exterior with that of the Dublin/ Pleasanton station. The
resulting streamlined and sophisticated building brings
eye-catching detail and style to its utilitarian purpose.
The project team
found architectural mesh to be the perfect material for their
design needs and performance expectations. Cambridge's attachment
system allowed it to cover large gaps in several different garage
levels without necessitating a great number of reinforcements or
building protrusions. Visually,this allowed the mesh to be
incorporated seamlessly and allowed the material's beauty to
elevate the building's overall look.
"We needed a material that could cover vast expanses of area and
carry on a visual dialogue with the existing BART station," said
Raju Nandwana, vice president of International Parking Design Inc.,
the project architect. "Cambridge's stainless-steel mesh provided a
large-scale cladding solution with aesthetic intrigue-reflecting
the serpentine titanium roof of the station."
The physical make-up of woven metal fabric permits it to act as a
durable building shell without sacrificing transparency-an
important safety and security consideration in parking structures.
The mesh acts as a barrier, but does not block views from the
inside out or outside in.
The Parkade metal fabric panels were specifically engineered to fit
the building's open areas, including the stairwell, to ensure an
issue-free installation.
Completed in
October 2007, the Parkade system was fabricated with mesh in
Cambridge's Braid pattern, featuring flexible open weaves that
shade and screen structures, and was installed with Cambridge's
Talon tension attachment. The Talon hardware grips a reinforced rod
at the top and bottom edges, while intermediate brackets at
required intervals maintain the stability and alignment of the
mesh.
Architect: International Parking Design Inc., Alameda, Calif.
Contractor/installer: Romak Iron Works, Benecia, Calif.
Metal mesh: Cambridge Architectural, Cambridge, Md.
www.cambridgearchitectural.com