Calvert Masonry, Inc.

General Contractor:

Clark Construction

Scope Of Work

This project consists of an eight-story above grade research and teaching center, nestled within three existing student dormitories on the GWU main campus.  Calvert Masonry furnished and installed approximately 34,300 square feet of terra cotta rain screen which serves as borders and surrounds for the curtain wall window system.  The terra cotta tiles (1’ x 5 ‘) consists of three types of finishes and textures, arranged in a random pattern which provided a beautiful contrast in appearance over large areas of the building.  Our scope included metal sub-framing, soffit and baguette features, as well as pre-finished metal closures and perforated panels. 

Given the confined site area and access for this location adjacent to the Foggy Bottom/GWU metro station and the university hospital, along with the logistics of manufacturer and delivery of materials produced in Germany, and with exacting design requirements, the terra cotta rain screen scope for this project met many challenges.

Engineering and Shop Drawing Phase

• Design specifications required all shop drawings to have current background details of other systems and manufacturer’s work that was adjacent to and/or integrated with the terra cotta system, all of which were being developed concurrently with the terra cotta submittals.
• Horizontal joints and features in terra cotta tile piers had to align with the adjacent curtain wall system head trim and with terra cotta spandrel features attached to and pre-installed in the unitized curtain wall system.  The curtain wall and terra cotta rain screen systems each had different deflection characteristics – Calvert developed trim details at the window heads to allow for some of these variances.

Manufacturing Phase

• The sandblast textured terra cotta tiles were required to be sent through the kiln twice (once before sandblasting, once after) in order to match a prior project at the University of Wisconsin, produced three years prior to this project.  Several iterations of sample preparation and submission were performed to meet desired color and texture.
• The specifications included considerably tighter manufacturing tolerances than the manufacturer standards – to address this, additional tile was produced, and field installers constantly inspected and adjusted and/or replaced tiles.

 

Installation Phase

• There was little to no laydown area available on site or in the parking garage.  Calvert stored, inventoried, organized and packaged tile areas and sequences off site at our yard, then shipped areas just prior to installation.
• Most of the terra cotta rain screen started at 28 (+) feet above grade, and a number of areas were not accessible to grade.  Calvert employed a combination of mast climbing, swing, crank up and tube scaffolding to meet project needs.
• The terra cotta rain screen scope of work could not proceed until exterior sheathing, air barrier and curtain wall elements had been completed in a given area or elevation, and these preceding elements required multiple sequences and considerable time to accommodate tight air infiltration requirements and testing.   Calvert Masonry had a tight schedule window for rain screen and trim installation after the above preceding work elements, and before site hardscape installations scheduled to meet turnover dates to the University.  Calvert implemented several sections of scaffold at the same time, worked overtime for several weeks, and used multiple installation crews to meet schedule goals.