knox building
The Knox Building is a 10-story Landmarked commercial building located on Fifth Avenue. It stood alone from 1902 until 1985, when the 29-story, L-shaped HSBC tower was built around it.
This was a challenging project.The original large single glazed pivot windows had mostly been replaced with a conglomeration of smaller windows and fixed panels.They were of poor quality, leaky, inefficient, and the aesthetics were a far cry from the large sheets of glass original to the building. The challenge was to recreate the large sheets of glass in a double-paned, energy efficient, modern window.
At more than double the weight of the original windows, the original supplier chose to put in new pivot windows, but then determined at the last moment that the pivot bars would not support the weight.The project architect, PBDW, and the restoration contractor, Nicholson & Galloway, came to us for a solution.The pivot windows had already been approved by Landmarks, so PBDW had to resubmit for the change in operation, and Landmarks gave their approval.
Our 500SG series Tilt & Turn window was a perfect answer. With our European hardware, we could support the weight of the glass and the building staff could open the entire sash to the interior when needing to clean the exterior surface of the glass.
Almost all of the windows also had true arches at the head, presenting another challenge.We had to custom bend the hardware transmissions so the windows could be built with multi-point locking, essential for a proper seal and optimal performance.
We were able to meet energy codes, weight requirements,provide easy operability, while also regaining classic aesthetics.Not only did Landmarks approve the Tilt & Turn windows, but after completion the project was awarded the prestigious Lucy G. Moses award for excellence in preservation.
