A new land of urban innovation: Smart, economical and sustainable
About 2 million square metre "green" space in the heart of Manhattan. This is the monumental project, called Hudson Yards, that has emerged from the ground in New York in recent years along the Hudson River, between 34th Street and 30th Street, a few blocks from the Empire State building. It consists of office skyscrapers, hotels, residential spaces, shopping centres, restaurants and a huge public park.
There is no height record for these skyscrapers, but there are many technological innovations: the complex has its own waste treatment system, rainwater recovery, a heating-cooling system, its power station against power cuts, automatic underground doors to protect sensitive equipment from rising water levels due to global warming. The owners explain that the site's energy production facilities and sustainable design elements will improve energy efficiency by approximately 30 % compared to the average of other buildings in New York City.
On the southwest corner of this new eco-district, a tower, named 30 Hudson Yards, attracts particular attention not only because of its spectacular trapezoidal architecture but also because of its hangered outdoor observation deck dubbed “The Edge” which cantilevers 20 m (65 ft) out from the building 1,100 ft above grade. At its tip, which is reminiscent of a bird's bill, a glass floor literally allows one to walk on New York. It’s the highest public outdoor observation space in the Western hemisphere. Topping out at 395 m (1,296 ft) 30 Hudson Yards is taller than the Empire State Building and currently the second tallest office building in New York.
For this graceful glass-and-steel building, Dillinger supplied more than 14,400 t of heavy plate in thicknesses ranging from 105.6 to 203.2 mm.
A technical challenge
More than the appearance of this new district with its elegant buildings, it is its location that makes it a real architectural feat. Indeed, it does not rest on land. It is entirely built on two gigantic slabs, laid above the railway depot of Penn Station, the most used station in the United States. About thirty tracks are covered, at the very place where trains carrying thousands of commuters every day travel. Rail activity was maintained throughout the construction work. As a result, an unattractive and unoptimized 11-hectare vacant lot was transformed into a masterpiece of residential and office towers of about 2 million square metres.
So far other 12,400 t of Dillinger heavy plate in thicknesses ranging from 50.8 to 203.2 mm were used in this gigantic project “Hudson Yards”.