L.A. Live Tower & Residences

The L.A. Live Tower & Residences represent the first skyscraper to be built in downtown Los Angeles in nearly two decades, located in tight quarters between two major freeways, the Los Angeles Convention Center and Staples Center arena.

Working closely with Gensler early in the design phase of the project, the Enclos design team provided design-assist services for the structural glass facades and custom curtainwall systems. The facade program was large and complex, including 540,000 square feet of unitized curtainwall and 20,000 square feet of structural glass facade. Enclos ultimately provided comprehensive design/build services for these elements and others, including AESS truss and canopy fabrication, louver systems, doors and skylights.

There are 34 different types of glass employed in the various facades ranging from opaque to transparent, with a range of colors used as a unique design element. The custom curtainwall units incorporate unique elements such as integrated 8˝ sunshades, and special units have integrated vertical lighting pockets to house a system intended to illuminate areas of the facade. Air vents are designed into horizontal framing members, providing fresh air into the fan coil units as required to heat or cool the interior. The curtainwall system includes three wall types, one of which is 4-side captured and the other two with the vertical sides structurally glazed (Los Angeles building codes require mechanical capture of glass). An upper level pool deck features a 14´ tall glass windscreen, and a high-transparency point-fixed structural glass facade encloses the podium retail level of the complex.

A 3-story mockup was tested at the nearby Smith-Emery testing lab. The mockup incorporated the three wall types designed for the project. Water penetration and air infiltration tests were conducted over the course of several days, with results confirming the expected performance of the curtainwall. In addition to this quite common form of curtainwall testing, Enclos also conducted unprecedented acoustical testing. While the glass that comprises the majority of the facade area is of known performance, the framing system itself had not been subjected to the same level of testing. The testing resulted in acoustical enhancements that were used in the residential units facing the nearby freeway.

Enclos was able to provide value to the developer and build team through the use of its global supply chain. The firm has invested heavily through the years in developing and qualifying a network of vendor-partners that work to a demanding set of quality systems and performance criteria put in place by Enclos. The result has been a significant increase in capacity and the consistent delivery of top-quality product at optimum economy. In this project, extruded aluminum framing components were fabricated in Thailand and shipped to an Enclos assembly plant in Southern California. The components were then assembled into frames and the various cladding elements were installed.

Densely urban job sites are no strangers to the Enclos operations teams; such have been their playing fields for numerous successful building project matchups. The difficult logistics presented by such a context are second nature to them, and they possess a wide range of tools and techniques to deal with the challenges. Units at L.A. Live were installed during the nightshift to ease site congestion, using two tower cranes located at opposite ends of the job site. The custom unitized design effectively enclosed two full floors per row, significantly reducing installation time.

The JW Marriott Los Angeles at L.A. Live achieved LEED Silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

Enclos also completed the adjoining 4-story, 232,000 square foot L.A. Live Conference Center in 2010.

Year:

2010

Facade Area:

585,000 sq ft

Location:

Los Angeles, CA

Market:

hospitality, mixed use, residential

Height:

660 ft

Owner:

Anschutz Entertainment Group

General Contractor:

Webcor Builders

Architect:

Gensler

Engineer:

Nabih Youssef Associates

Facade Consultant:

JA Weir Associates

Awards:

 
Best Tall Buildings 2010: Nominee
Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, 2010

Excellence in Commercial Exterior
Marble Institute of America, 2010

Global Award for Excellence
Urban Land Institute, 2010

Mixed-Use Design Concept Award
L.A. Architectural Awards, 2010



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