Bronx, NY Vista Skywall Systems completed a major new luxury high-rise residential façade project. Vista supplied and installed an advanced window wall system and other fenestration products for the new 24-story Motto Apartments. Located at 2455 Third Ave. near the Harlem River, across from Manhattan, The Motto is situated in the Mott Haven neighborhood.
The newly constructed, and now open, multi-family building presents a façade of contemporary silver metal and large glass panels for its 18-story tower, which sits atop a contrasting six-story brick, louver, and glass panel podium. Materials that Vista mostly furnished and installed for floors 2 through 24 include a complex 110,000 s/f window wall system with vision glass, spandrel, casements, terrace doors, louvers, and a variety of metal panels. Revit BIM software modeling and drawings were used to design and guide installation of the fenestration system. In addition, Vista sourced and installed entrance doors fabricated by GAMCO Corp.
For The Motto’s façade, Vista sourced and installed the ECOWALL 141 unitized window wall system from Quest Products. Fabricated in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, ECOWALL is an impressive window wall system offering aesthetics, flexible design, thermal efficiency, and faster, more efficient installation from the interior.
Vista’s partners for The Motto window wall façade project included architect Woods Baget of New York, and general contractor/developer Artimus Construction, also of New York. Vista has partnered with Artimus many times in the past on high-rise projects throughout the five boroughs. The Masters Division of New York is the property owner.
The Motto offers 264 market-rate residential apartments as well as 3,000 s/f of ground-floor retail space and 14,000 s/f of parking. Besides luxury apartments with views, building amenities include a fitness center, outdoor terrace, and both media and sky lounges. One of a growing number of new high-rise residential buildings, retail stores, restaurants, and bars in the Mott Haven area, The Motto is a key part of this revitalized neighborhood. The building is located near the NYC MTA 4, 5, and 6 subway lines, providing a one-stop trip to Manhattan.
“Window wall is an exciting alternative to curtain wall for architects, developers, and building owners to consider,” said Steven Powell, Vista president of operations. “Vista is proud to be part of the team to create the beautiful, intriguing, and functional façade for The Motto.”
The ECOWALL 141 features a 5-½” deep back member and thermally broken framing using advanced glass fiber reinforced 38mm depth polyamide struts. For this project, Vista used the window wall’s insulated built in “Bypass” option to cover floor slabs and provide a continuous exterior façade appearance.
The ECOWALL system for the exterior face uses a double-seal EPDM glazing seal. For the interior, a dry EPDM gasket engaged at two locations and held in place with an aluminum stop is employed. The glazing system is UV-resistant and withstands high wind loads.
The window wall system installed by Vista also incorporated operating windows and swing doors. The Quest M90 System Casement with a 4” opening limit stop was specified, along with Quest Swing Door Systems which provide access to apartment balconies and setback rooftop terraces.
Insulated glass units were used to glaze vision panels for fixed lights, operable windows and doors, as well as spandrel glass panels. Vision glazing was specified with Guardian SN 68 low-E coated tempered or annealed glass, warm edge spacers, and Argon gas filling. Spandrel panels utilized Guardian heat-strengthened glass with a warm grey Opaci-Coat paint.
For other portions of the building’s window wall façade, Vista used a variety of metal panel styles and materials, most with 2” or 3” of insulation. Metal panel façade components included corrugated aluminum, perforated corrugated aluminum, aluminum flush metal, and mechanical louvers. Vista also supplied and installed custom sill flashing throughout the building.
The Quest window wall system was finished in a two-tone color scheme, readily facilitated by the thermal strut separation of interior and exterior frame components. The tower exterior was finished with durable AAMA 2605 PPG Duranar Sunstorm Silversmith paint, and the podium exteriors were finished with AAMA 2605 PPG Duranar Charcoal paint. Interior elements were finished in AAMA 2603 PPG Duracron Bone White paint.
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