One World Trade Center

PROJECT DETAILS:

Standing 1,776 feet tall, the iconic tower’s unique envelope incorporates curtain wall, glass panel wall and cable net wall. As building envelope consultants, SOCOTEC assisted the architect in drawing review and mock-ups for exterior wall performance, including blast mitigation. SOCOTEC was also instrumental in the development and selection of building exterior materials including a high-performance thermally advanced curtain wall system, incorporating energy-efficient low-e glass. We witnessed the curtain wall fabrication and monitored the installation.

On this signature building, SOCOTEC performed LEED modeling, energy code compliance, and compliance with Executive Order 111, which requires 20% energy savings compared to the energy code baseline. We also evaluated the thermal modeling of the curtain wall as provided by the manufacturer. To meet these goals, SOCOTEC, in collaboration with the design team, analyzed several bundles of efficiency measures that included:

• A high-efficiency envelope
• Efficient lighting with daylight dimming at the perimeter
• Water-cooled packaged units, with highest efficiency, allow for different occupancy schedules across diverse tenants
• All buildings on the site must use ConEd steam – and 1 WTC recovers the heat from the steam condensate
• The design included a 1.2 MW fuel cell system. SOCOTEC studied the operating parameters extensively to verify that the system was optimized for the building load. Unfortunately, the fuel cell system was damaged beyond repair by Superstorm Sandy.

Following its construction, from 2017-2018 SOCOTEC was involved at the building for exterior wall monitoring related to the tower curtain wall panels and the east cable net wall installation. Additionally, in 2020, SOCOTEC was brought on as FISP (Local Law 11/98) consultant and provided a facade inspection and assessment.