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Sbona Tower • Middletown, Connecticut |
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During the seventies and eighties the swell of activity in the elderly housing market provided the masonry block industry its largest opportunity for a significant new market. The block wall bearing system, used in conjunction with assembled block or precast concrete plank, was a favorite structural system for the mid to high-rise elderly housing structures. |
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| Many innovations in masonry construction were tested during these years. No building stands out more notably for the implementation of these innovations than the Sbona Tower. This building's bearing walls were constructed with 10" 75% solid concrete masonry units that were ground smooth in production to allow for assembly with epoxy glue in lieu of conventional mortar. The system was know as the "Threadline" system. It provided for a clean and exceptionally high rate of productivity with a structurally enhanced masonry unit that allowed engineers to push the limits of earlier design constraints. | ||
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In addition to being the tallest wall bearing building in Connecticut, Gil Switzer, the building's architect, included a cantilevered projection at the eighth floor that defies the expectation for the continuity of direct loading in wall bearing systems. While it provided for an attractive architectural solution it presented a difficult constructability issue. We will leave it to you to conjure up a means and methods solution for this challenge. |
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