{"id":3247,"date":"2016-10-04T14:45:49","date_gmt":"2016-10-04T14:45:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/?p=3247"},"modified":"2025-09-05T15:14:45","modified_gmt":"2025-09-05T15:14:45","slug":"color-changing-green-hued-alucobond-spectra-reflects-sustainable-design-of-new-mixed-use-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/color-changing-green-hued-alucobond-spectra-reflects-sustainable-design-of-new-mixed-use-community\/","title":{"rendered":"Color-Changing Green-Hued ALUCOBOND Spectra Reflects Sustainable Design Of New Mixed-Use Community"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Marine,<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Marine Gateway mixed-use development officially opened this spring in south Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, as the first major transit-oriented development integrated into Vancouver\u2019s Canada Line rapid transit rail system. It\u2019s also served by the South Vancouver Bus Loop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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Highlights<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\u2022 one 25-story 140,000-square-foot tower and one 35- story 195,000-square-foot tower \u2013 that offer a combined total of 461 market condos and rental apartments. Additionally, the development is home to a 14-story 250,000 square-foot office building and 225,000 square feet of retail space, including a three-story retail podium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Designed to achieve LEED Gold certification, Marine Gateway features more than 200,000 square feet of recyclable 4mm ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS aluminum composite material (ACM)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Four custom shades of green ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS in the Spectra color finishing system were selected as part of a unique cladding design<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

Project Name: <\/strong>Marine Gateway

Project Location: <\/strong>Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS: <\/strong>Bone White, Steel City Silver, Anodic Clear Mica, Custom Ridgedale Silver, Custom Yellow Flash, Red Fire, Custom Mustard Yellow, Custom French Burgundy, CIBC Red, Montreal Blue, Focus Black, Custom Spectra Lime Zest, Custom Spectra Mossy Forest, Custom Spectra Rainforest, Custom Spectra Springtime

Developer: <\/strong>PCI Developments Corp.

Architect: <\/strong>Perkins+Will, Vancouver, British Columbia

Fabricator\/Installer:<\/strong> Keith Panel Systems Co. Ltd.

General Contractor: <\/strong>Ledcor Construction, Inc.

Photography: <\/strong>\u00a9 Mark Kempf<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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The Project<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Designed to achieve the principles of smart growth \u2013 which places a priority on sustainable, mixed-use communities designed to enhance quality of life \u2013 Marine Gateway was developed by PCI Developments Corp.<\/a>, of Vancouver, British Columbia, on a one-block former industrial site that is now a new urban town center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPCI\u2019s goal for Marine Gateway was to transform a vacant and underutilized four-plus acre industrial lot into a vibrant, transit-oriented mixed-use town center that combines retail, entertainment, office, residential and transit onsite,\u201d said Andrew Grant, president, PCI Developments Corp. \u201cPCI saw the opportunity to directly integrate with rapid and bus transit, allowing residents, workers, shoppers and visitors to live, work, shop, play and commute all in one location.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Marine,
\u00a9Mark Kempf<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The $372-million 820,000 square-foot Marine Gateway development features two residential towers \u2013 one 25-story 140,000-square-foot tower and one 35- story 195,000-square-foot tower \u2013 that offer a combined total of 461 market condos and rental apartments. Additionally, the development is home to a 14-story 250,000 square-foot office building and 225,000 square feet of retail space, including a three-story retail podium. Shopping and entertainment\/recreation amenities include an 11-screen movie theater, a major fitness center, a supermarket and a strikingly landscaped public area dubbed \u201cHigh Street\u201d that is lined with retail stores and restaurants. Five stories of underground parking also are featured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Marine,
\u00a9Mark Kempf<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Designed to achieve LEED Gold certification, Marine Gateway features more than 200,000 square feet of recyclable 4mm ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS aluminum composite material (ACM) by 3A Composites USA installed as both exterior building cladding and storefront shoppers and as interior wall accents and trim. Recyclable ALUCOBOND\u00ae \u2013 which is manufactured with both post-manufacturing and post-consumer content \u2013 contributes LEED credits to building projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS colors selected for the development include: 95,000 square feet of Bone White, 41,000 square of Steel City Silver, 15,000 square feet of Anodic Clear Mica, 6,000 square feet of Custom Ridgedale Silver, 4,000 square feet of Custom Yellow Flash, 3,200 square feet of Red Fire, 2,400 square feet of Custom Mustard Yellow, 1,600 square feet of Custom French Burgundy, 780 square feet of CIBC Red, 255 square feet of Montreal Blue, and 250 square feet of Focus Black.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Alucobond consists of two sheets of 0.020\u201d aluminum thermobonded to a plastic core. ALUCOBOND\u00ae provides extraordinary flatness and rigidity, excellent formability, low weight and outstanding weather resistance. ALUCOBOND\u00ae aluminum-faced panels are manufactured with a polyethylene core in a standard 4mm thickness. ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS wall panels have a flame-spread index of less than 25 and a smoke-developed index of less than 450 when tested in accordance with ASTM E 84, and have a Class A interior finish classification.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Marine,
\u00a9Mark Kempf<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, four custom shades of green ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS in the Spectra color finishing system were selected as part of a unique cladding design \u2013 in combination with ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS in the Bone White, Clear Anodic Mica and Steel City Silver colors \u2013 for the two Marine Gateway residential towers. The custom colors include 10,000 square feet each of ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra Lime Zest, ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra Mossy Forest, ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra Rainforest and ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra Springtime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra Colors finishing system was introduced by 3A Composites USA to allow architects to incorporate a unique, ever-changing color spectrum in building cladding. ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra panels change colors as different wavelengths of light are reflected back to the audience, depending upon the viewing angle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PCI Developments worked with architects at the Vancouver, British Columbia, office of Perkins+Will<\/a> to design Marine Gateway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe wanted to ensure the public realm and architectural elements were well-designed and visually interesting, with a variety of materials, textures and color,\u201d said Grant. \u201cIn particular, the distinct use of color on the high-profile residential towers, the retail High Street and within the residential lobbies has created a colorful, dynamic and identifiable \u2018Marine Gateway\u2019 look that is warm and inviting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marine Gateway\u2019s \u201cmodernist\u201d architectural design incorporates a variety of materials, according to Ryan Bragg, Architect AIBC, MAA, MRAIC, LEED AP BD+C, principal, Perkins+Will Canada.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Marine,
\u00a9Mark Kempf<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pedestrian High Street distinguishes itself from other retail\/entertainment districts, according to Bragg, with its attention to architectural detail, vibrant colors and quality materials, including ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS panels, wood, brick and terra cotta within steel frames. The office tower is designed with a more restrained articulated curtainwall and Custom Ridgedale Silver ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS panels, while the residential towers feature a unique subtly changing color palette achieved with ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra cladding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe wanted a simple, calm palette for the residential towers,\u201d said Bragg. \u201cWhile we originally thought about incorporating painted glass panels, that material was not cost-effective. We did, however, want a fresh feel for the towers and a material that would change in appearance throughout the day. So, we looked at ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perkins+Will worked closely with ALUCOBOND\u00ae fabricator\/installer Keith Panel Systems Co. Ltd.<\/a> (KPS), of North Vancouver, British Columbia, and 3A Composites USA to create a complimentary palette of four custom green-hued ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra colors that could be installed in two different directions. Bragg estimates that at least three dozen ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra custom color samples were reviewed to create the final palette.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe wanted to create a fresh look with rather timely colors,\u201d said Bragg. \u201cWe knew that the Spectra would change in a subtle way while providing contrast with the bone white ALUCOBOND\u00ae panels. We always thought that the Spectra would appear to change more from a distance rather than close up. But, within residents\u2019 units, you can catch the change. …The Spectra is a very interesting material. It\u2019s been very successful in capturing the look we were trying to achieve.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Marine,
\u00a9Mark Kempf<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(In addition to exterior cladding, ALUCOBOND\u00ae in the custom Spectra Lime Zest color was uniquely installed as accent wall fascia illuminated with LED lights in residential lobbies. Residents\u2019 mailbox and entry buzzer areas are highlighted with ALUCOBOND\u00ae PLUS accents in Red Fire and Focus Black.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Marine Gateway residential towers are designed with 50 percent ALUCOBOND\u00ae cladding and 50 percent glazing, while typical high-rise residential buildings in Vancouver feature 80 percent to 90 percent glazing, according to Bragg, of the window-wall designs used throughout Vancouver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Marine Gateway towers are designed with a much more solid wall, which speaks to the buildings\u2019 sustainability and changing codes,\u201d said Bragg. \u201cThese are high-performance buildings featuring solid walls and well-placed windows. \u2026 Window walls don\u2019t perform as well. We wanted to better insulate the Marine Gateway towers while capturing different views and capitalizing on the changing Spectra colors.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Marine,
\u00a9Mark Kempf<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This solid-wall high-performance building design fits well within the City of Vancouver\u2019s goal to be the greenest city in the world by 2020. And, the entire development is a leading example of growth encouraged by the City of Vancouver\u2019s Economic Action Plan, which is designed to help Vancouver grow sustainably with communities, jobs and families in mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marine Gateway sets a standard for sustainable development associated with mass transit and includes a district energy system, an extensive water resource management plan, high-performance building envelope and shading strategies while incorporating two transit stations, according to a Perkins+Will statement.
The solid-wall design with color-changing ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra panels also contributes to Marine Gateway\u2019s distinctive personality, according to Bragg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs we increase the solidity and opacity of the residence towers, they take on a lot more character,\u201d said Bragg. \u201cThey\u2019re not just glazed towers, which makes them interesting in respect to other residence towers within the City of Vancouver. The Marine Gateway towers provide a unique identity for the project.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Marine,
\u00a9Mark Kempf
KPS served in a design-assist role, joining the team in 2011. Ledcor Construction, Inc., of Vancouver, British Columbia, served as general contractor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

KPS recommended the color-changing ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra panels for the Marine Gateway residential tower as a cost-effective yet striking cladding option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSpectra provides the illusion of back-painted glass but is an affordable alternative,\u201d according to Garry Wong, KPS director of operations, who estimated that the selection of ALUCOBOND\u00ae Spectra over glass resulted in a savings of nearly $1.4 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That cladding savings not only helped the project to remain on budget but allowed designers to incorporate \u201can overall better quality of materials\u201d in the development, according to Bragg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve worked with ALUCOBOND\u00ae for more than 30 years,\u201d said Wong. \u201cIt performed well on every level on this project \u2013 just as we\u2019ve come to expect. We\u2019re getting a lot of interest in Spectra from this project.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Marine,
\u00a9Mark Kempf<\/p>\n\n\n\n

KPS began fabricating the ALUCOBOND\u00ae panels during the summer of 2014 in a progressive process that coincided with installation, which was completed in 16 months. The greatest challenge KPS faced during ALUCOBOND\u00ae installation was in accessing the construction site, according to Wong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis was a very tight site, and we had to install interfaces on the windows and balconies,\u201d said Wong. \u201cThe towers were built adjacent to the rapid transit line, so we had to be careful not to drop any debris that could fall onto the train tracks. That could have shut down the train. We laid down netting to catch any tools that might fall.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marine Gateway holds the distinction of being one of the fastest-selling condo projects in Vancouver\u2019s history, according to PCI Developments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe towers stand out \u2013 looking sleek but colorful and warm \u2013 and provide a subtle but refreshing pop of color to the city landscape,\u201d said Grant. \u201cThe color change makes it visually interesting and dynamic throughout the day; and, the green remains highly relevant to Marine Gateway as a transit-oriented, mixed-use community. \u2026 The ALUCOBOND\u00ae panels supported differentiation and efficient energy usage with increased cladding as opposed to the predominantly glass towers that have dominated Vancouver\u2019s architecture. The result is a sustainable and architecturally significant and distinct development due, in part, to ALUCOBOND\u00ae cladding.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

photography courtesy of \u00a9 Mark Kempf<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Marine Gateway mixed-use development officially opened this spring in south Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, as the first major transit-oriented development integrated into Vancouver\u2019s Canada Line rapid transit rail system. It\u2019s also served by the South Vancouver Bus Loop.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"no","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[11,39,37,38,28,299,29,141,47,195,302,301,49,300,298],"class_list":["post-3247","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-case-studies","tag-acm","tag-acp","tag-aluminum-composite-material","tag-aluminum-composite-panel","tag-architecture","tag-canadian-architecture","tag-design","tag-facades","tag-leed","tag-leed-gold","tag-mixed-use","tag-perkins-and-will","tag-sustainability","tag-town-center","tag-vancouver-architecture"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3247","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3247"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3247\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7533,"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3247\/revisions\/7533"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3247"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3247"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alucobondusa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3247"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}