Bright Colors Help Children's Hospital Create Welcoming Appearance
In July 2015, the Buerger Center for Advanced Pediatric Care opened as the newest addition to The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia campus, which serves more than 200,000 patients each year. The 12-story, 700,000-square-foot ambulatory care center is the focus of the new South Campus. Its curving curtainwall systems feature Valspar’s high-performance Fluropon coating systems in nine bold colors to give the exterior a vibrant, welcoming appearance.
Five types of unitized curtainwall systems were customized for CHOP’s Buerger Center. It included 4,219 shop-assembled and -glazed units, encompassing 151,000 square feet and incorporating segmented radius layouts. All of the aluminum framing was painted in Valspar’s 70 percent PVDF resin-based Fluropon coatings.
Stacked to create an undulating form, the building’s floors vary in area and shape according to their function. Along the waiting areas, floors are offset to create light-filled public spaces. The undersides of the floors are exposed, each revealing a single bright color. Using brightly colored Fluropon coatings, a horizontal accent band smoothly blends the complex connection between curtainwall and soffits.
The colors change at each floor, alternating between orange, blue, red, yellow, green, and purple. The primary colors match the child-friendly atmosphere further expressed with the handprints in the glass’ frit pattern.
The remainder of the metal framing on CHOP’s Buerger Center is finished in Fluropon Silver Pearl using a four-coat system on the exterior building components and a three-coat system on the interior building components.
Durable finishes contribute to the project’s longevity and reduce the need for maintenance throughout its life-cycle. Valspar’s Fluropon coatings meet or exceed the American Architectural Manufacturers Association’s stringent standard, AAMA 2605 high-performance exterior specification. Fluropon demonstrates reliable performance including resistance to harmful ultraviolet rays, chemical degradation, abrasions and humidity.
Photo credit: ©Jeff Goldberg/Esto, courtesy of The Valspar Corporation