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Bendheim Doubly Recognized For Product Innovation

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Problem-Solving Design Achievements Garner Awards

Recognizing our commitment to innovation, we have received industry honors for two key recent design achievements: our ventilated glass parking façade for Kansas City International Airport, and our new TurnKey™ Fusion Light Wall system for backlit interior glass.

Architectural Products Magazine honored our ventilated glass façade for the new KCI parking structure with a 2023 Product Innovation Award. Bendheim Vice President of Sales and Innovation Said Elieh and team designed a custom system of vertical compression clips for the project, securing glass panels weighing 800+ pounds each to the garage exterior without the need for a costly steel substructure. The elegant glass façade provides natural ventilation for the structure while also meeting key aesthetic goals for Kansas City’s high-profile airport renovation. Reflective glass on the north façade greets approaching motorists with a harmonious view of earth and sky, while etched glass on the west façade directs a softer glow towards the terminal.

“Having someone on the Bendheim side that understands the design vision we’re trying to achieve, but then can bring that technical capacity on the manufacturer side to help realize that conceptual vision is important,” noted Joshua Harrold, Associate Principal at BNIM.

Ventilated glass facade by Bendheim on the exterior of the Kansas City International Airport parking structure.

An elegant glass façade by Bendheim and Längle Glas at Kansas City International Airport. The KCI parking structure’s custom-engineered system has been recognized with a 2023 Product Innovation Award from Architectural Products Magazine. Photo by Michael Robinson Photography.

Building Design + Construction Magazine recently named our TurnKey Fusion Light Wall system as a Judges’ Pick for its 75 Top Building Products of 2023. Judges’ Picks are selected by a jury of architecture, engineering, and construction professionals who specify, purchase or recommend building products.

The TurnKey Fusion Light Wall system incorporates LED light panels directly into a simple rail-and-key system for attaching interior glass cladding. Our Fusion LED lights are specifically designed to provide exceptionally even illumination for backlit applications. As a complement to this technology, we also offer our newly developed LE’Diffusion™ Safety Glass, specially engineered for shadow-free dispersion of LED light. Able to accommodate glass panels up to 8 feet in height, the entire TurnKey Fusion Light Wall system is UL listed.

Bendheim TurnKey Fusion glass cladding system in a lobby.

At the University of Missouri’s NextGen Precision Health Institute, art by faculty member Katina Bitsicas receives even, shadow-free backlighting from Bendheim’s TurnKey Fusion Light Wall system with LE’Diffusion Safety Glass. Turnkey Fusion Light Wall has been selected as a Judges’ Pick in Building Design + Construction Magazine’s Top 75 Building Products for 2023. Photo by Michael Robinson Photography.

Donald Jayson, President of Bendheim, expressed great pride in his team’s achievements. “As a company, we are deeply committed to moving forward with innovation on all fronts. We place an extremely high value on solving problems for our partners, and I’m extremely pleased with this recognition of our expertise.”

Custom Glass from Bendheim Solves Challenges for Concert Hall

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One-way glass shields offices, permits illumination

Architects specified a wall of custom glass from Bendheim to meet complex challenges at David Geffen Hall, the newly renovated home of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.

An ambitious redesign of this high-profile venue, then known as Avery Fisher Hall, began with plans unveiled in 2019. With concerts suspended during the pandemic, an accelerated construction schedule allowed the newly rechristened facility to reopen in October 2022.

While the renovation plan was largely focused on the interior, one key difference in the building is clearly visible from Lincoln Center’s central plaza: the dramatic presence of new illumination. A 12-foot high band of ceramic fritted glass from Bendheim is framed by the distinctive tapered pillars of the concert hall’s portico, providing a projection screen for lighting along the top tier. Bright bands of colored light now add vibrancy and definition to the building’s well-known façade.

Unbeknownst to the public, however, this band of glass must also serve as the windows for a row of offices, occupied by New York Philharmonic staff. For the renowned firm of Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, the challenging assignment was to support the desired illumination of the exterior while also allowing a view and protecting the comfort and privacy of the staffers inside. Specifically, the designers were requested to provide one-way windows, allowing occupants to see out without being seen.

David Geffen Hall at night with Bendheim's illuminated glass wall.

David Geffen Hall at night with an illuminated glass wall by Bendheim. Photo by Lawrence Sumulong, © Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.

Bendheim’s custom design capabilities allowed them to create a unique product for David Geffen Hall, one that could reconcile these seemingly contradictory requirements. To take full advantage of Bendheim’s expertise in this area, principal architect Tod Williams visited Bendheim’s Design Lab in New York City for an in-person consultation. In the final specifications, ceramic fritted glass (fully opaque from the exterior) was laminated to Bendheim’s “vision glass”, whose proprietary coating created the one-way view from inside. The glass was provided in 5′ x 12′ panels totaling approximately 8,000 square feet.

The $550 million renovation of Lincoln Center’s concert venue (the latest of several since its opening in 1962) was designed to make the hall more intimate and to improve the patron experience, with fewer seats, improved acoustics, and more gracious public spaces. The hall is now also equipped to enable greater use of technologies such as theatrical lighting, sound amplification, and video.

“We take pride in bringing our unique design and fabrication capabilities to every project, but of course we were particularly delighted to work on David Geffen Hall,” commented Bendheim Vice President for Sales and Innovation Said Elieh. “It’s a New York City landmark, and we are thrilled to see our glass shine in this critical role.”

Channel Glass From Bendheim Graces Striking City Water Plant

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Play of light adds beauty to infrastructure

Montréal architects specified our Lamberts channel glass to fulfill ambitious goals for a vital piece of public infrastructure.

When Québec’s largest city planned to build a new water intake on the Canal de L’Aqueduc, local residents expressed concern. The facility would be located right in the middle of a popular public recreation area, in full view of a residential neighborhood, Luckily, the project team at Smith Vigeant Architectes agreed that no ordinary industrial building would do.

Channel glass facade on the water treatment facility.

Prise D’Eau du Canal de L’Aqueduc, Montreal, QC by Smith Vigeant Architectes. Photos by David Boyer.

To achieve harmony between the station and its setting, designers layered an external facade of channel glass over an inner envelope of colored aluminum. The remarkable result of this technique succeeds in both expressing and effacing the building’s utilitarian purpose.

Situated on a channel that draws water from the Saint Lawrence River, the intake operates 24 hours a day screening out debris. The combination of the inner and outer building envelopes provides proper security for the station and protects its operations from Canada’s harsh winters. It also serves to create a striking “pixilated” effect on the building’s exterior, as the vertical channels of glass cross the horizontal bands of aluminum to create the perception of squares.

Detail shot of the channel glass from the interior.

According to architect Daniel Smith, the inner aluminum panels (in a graded range of blues) were chosen to reference the “horizontal” quality of water as it responds to gravity. The “orange peel” texture of diffuses these colors while adding reflections from the sky, ground, and water nearby. The finished building, which is largely unmanned and needed no windows, glows gently by night and (as Smith described it) “participates” in the changing tones of the natural landscape by day.

We provided 352 channels of tempered, 100% heat soak tested glass for the project, in 14’ 8” lengths to provide an unbroken vertical wall of glass. Totaling 4,600 square feet in area, the channels were installed with our SF60S single glazed frame system in a clear anodized finish. “We wanted a material that would be responsive to its surroundings, like water,” noted Daniel Smith. “Bendheim has a very good system, and the quality was top level.  If I ever have another opportunity to use it, I will.”

Channel glass facade on the water treatment facility, lit at night.

As Montréal enjoys a new landmark, Smith Vigeant’s efforts have been rewarded with the 2022 Prize for Excellence in Architecture (Industrial Buildings Category) from the Ordre des Architectes du Québec. “We’re proud to be associated with a project that truly displays the exceptional qualities of our channel glass,” noted Michael Tryon, General Manager at Bendheim. “More and more, we’re seeing interest in channel glass as a highly practical material that can also make necessary infrastructure beautiful.  We look forward to working on many more such projects in the public interest.”

Vibrant Bendheim Glass Signals Airport Accessibility for Kansas City

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Z-KISS concealed attachment system adds color to terminal with ease

The new single terminal at Kansas City International—representing the largest infrastructure project in the region’s history–opened in February 2023. From the beginning of the design process, meetings with the city’s taxpayers identified a streamlined experience for travelers as a high priority, with an emphasis on comfort and dignity for all. In 2018, the Mayor and City Council of Kansas City, Mo., specifically directed lead architects at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill to create “the most accessible airport in the world.”

One reflection of this aim was the terminal’s restroom design. In addition to traditional male-only and female-only spaces, generous provision was made for gender-neutral facilities, easing travel for families with young children and cutting long wait times for female passengers. These options are coded with color as well as signage to direct travelers appropriately: blue for men, yellow for women, and green for gender-neutral rooms.

Bathroom entrance at KCI Airport with Bendheim glass.

We provided the vibrant back-painted etched glass used to execute this vision, as well as the patent-pending Z-KISS concealed attachment system. With over 10,000 square feet of glass provided, Kansas City International represents our largest Z-KISS installation to date.

A fully-engineered alternative to traditional Z-clip fastening systems, Z-KISS requires fewer horizontal hanging brackets while providing reliable mechanical support for the dead load of glass. Designed to create a frameless aesthetic for opaque glass, Z-KISS can be used with a wide range of glass choices, including back-painted, mirrored, or digitally printed varieties. The glass is delivered with the hardware preinstalled, ready for installation, and accompanied by shop drawings and layout drawings provided by Bendheim.

Bathroom entrance at KCI Airport with Bendheim glass.

In addition to back-painted glass for the restrooms, we also provided etched laminated mirrored glass from our Titanium™ line to frame the new terminal’s elevators in a warm cinnamon shade. While emphasizing access and inclusivity, project architects also bore in mind the terminal’s prominence as a brand new welcome center for Kansas City. With high-profile events such as the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the airport’s near future, a world-class feeling for its interior spaces was essential. With its etched surface, the delicate mirror effect of Titanium glass becomes beautifully subtle, with the gentlest of diffused reflections.

Elevators at KCI Airport with Bendheim glass.

“Our design capabilities and the breadth of our product offerings give us wonderful opportunities to support the visions of our architect partners,” said Said Elieh, Bendheim’s Vice President for Sales and Innovation. “Ease of installation is a high priority for us too, since it’s our job to make the beauty of these special glasses a practical choice. We’re extremely proud of our contributions to Kansas City’s next-generation airport, and we greatly respect their commitment to safe and comfortable travels for everyone.”

New Kansas City Airport Terminal Features Ventilated Parking Facade from Bendheim

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Architects selected an elegant and functional parking façade from Bendheim as part of a major upgrade for Kansas City International Airport

A completely new air terminal for Kansas City opened on February 28, replacing two outmoded structures built in 1972. The extensive modernization effort also included a new seven-story parking structure. Over 2 million square feet in size, the building provides parking for 6,219 vehicles. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill served as principal architects for the overall project, named “Build KCI”. The Kansas City-based firm of BNIM took lead on the parking facility, in a design-build partnership with general contractor JE Dunn.

We joined this effort from the design stage, collaborating with our partner Längle Glas to create custom-engineered fastening systems for the parking facility’s ventilated façade. We ultimately provided over 50,000 square feet of tempered and laminated glass for the project. As a trained architect, Bendheim Vice President for Sales and Innovation Said Elieh was able to contribute to essential planning work before construction began.

Ventilated glass facade by Bendheim on the exterior of the Kansas City International Airport parking structure.

Kansas City International Airport Parking Structure, Kansas City MO by BNIM. Photos by Michael Robinson Photography.

“Having someone on the Bendheim side that understands the design vision we’re trying to achieve, but then can bring that technical capacity on the manufacturer side to help realize that conceptual vision is important,” explained Joshua Harrold, Associate Principal at BNIM. “I think Bendheim has been a great collaborator in that respect.”  Our previous experience with the design of parking structure façades on this scale includes 727 West Madison in Chicago, Ill., and the Mueller Parking Structure in Austin, Tex.

Glass façades can provide an aesthetically pleasing exterior for parking structures while also providing cost-effective natural ventilation. At KCI, the “shingled” design of the façade creates pockets of air that slide between the glass panels, creating airflow in and out of the garage.

Ventilated glass facade by Bendheim on the exterior of the Kansas City International Airport parking structure.

The sheer size and weight of the glass panels, most as large as 6’ x 14’ and each weighing 800+ pounds, called for a carefully designed attachment system. Bendheim and Längle designed and manufactured custom vertical compression clip systems for the project, allowing a costly steel substructure to be eliminated from the design. The 14” long clips support the length and weight of each panel while accommodating construction tolerances, live load movement, wind loads, and expansion joints.

We also kept ease of installation at the forefront of the design process. “We were very impressed with the Bendheim system”, noted Paul Fischer, Project Manager and Field Foreman at AGP, Inc. “It was designed very well, and the installation of the system and the glazing was a breeze.”

Ventilated glass facade by Bendheim on the exterior of the Kansas City International Airport parking structure.

With a price tag of $1.5 billion, Build KCI constitutes the largest infrastructure project in the region’s history. The effort also achieved the notable distinction of LEED BD+C NC (New Construction) Gold Certification, making it only the second terminal or concourse project in the United States to receive this designation.

As Kansas City prepares to open its new front door to major events such as the 2023 NFL Draft and the 2026 FIFA World Cup, regional pride has never ridden higher. “We were extremely proud to bring our understanding of glass and our extensive experience with ventilated parking façades to this historic undertaking,” noted Bendheim’s Said Elieh. “No two façade projects are alike, and we look forward to making further contributions to the renewal of America’s infrastructure.”

 

New Corporate Headquarters In Indiana Features Bendheim’s Turnkey™ System

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Quick-install method supports design vision for employee-friendly building

Architects for a $157 million downtown redevelopment in Central Indiana specified our problem-solving TurnKey™ Glass Wall Cladding system for the project’s anchor building, adding elegance to an open interior.

Designed by Browning Day of Indianapolis, a new corporate headquarters for First Internet Bank opened in the city of Fishers, Ind., in May 2022. Framing the elevators of the six-story structure, our gently etched grey mirrored glass creates a soft backdrop for some of the more dramatic features in the open central space, including the grand staircase connecting the four uppermost levels. As described by Madison Rief, Designer and Fitwel Ambassador at Browning Day: “It was a contemporary solution that allowed us to highlight the elevators without stealing the drama from the feature stair and two-story feature wall.”

TurnKey glass wall cladding at an elevator lobby.

First Internet Bank, Fishers, IN by Browning Day Architects.

The use of our TurnKey™ system to attach the glass cladding sped installation along. This simple rail-based concept allows glass panels to be locked into place with one-inch clips that turn like a key. Installation crews need only their basic tools, and no special training is required.

The work at First Internet Bank was completed by Architectural Glass & Metal of Indianapolis. AGM’s Marc Fickle noted that installation was up to 20-25% faster with TurnKey (versus conventional J-channel and mastic). The TurnKey system is also more forgiving than other installation methods, allowing easy adjustments to compensate for uneven walls.

Panels mounted with TurnKey can also be easily demounted in the event of a redesign, or if access to an area behind the glass is required. TurnKey hardware is available in any RAL color, allowing designers to downplay or highlight these elements as desired. The clips installed in First Internet Bank were powder coated in RAL-7043 Traffic Grey, to match the custom grey etched and laminated mirror. Browning Day’s Rief expressed satisfaction with the outcome: “It was a perfect solution, and we just loved the look of it.”

TurnKey glass wall cladding at an elevator lobby.

First Internet Bank, Fishers, IN by Browning Day Architects.

In keeping with its history as the first state-chartered, FDIC-insured institution to operate entirely online, First Internet Bank took a reflective and deliberate approach to the purpose and nature of its brick-and-mortar office space. Features designed to promote employee wellness include a private amenity terrace and ready access to the nearby Nickle Plate Trail, fostering a connection with nature. The sleek and modern design of the building’s workspaces provides flexibility for collaboration, with a nod to the industrial past in the form of exposed concrete and open ceilings.

Said Elieh, Vice President of Sales and Product Innovation at Bendheim, noted: “We’re proud to be associated with this forward-looking project, and with the dynamism of growing cities like Fishers. The beauty of our TurnKey system is that it’s now far easier for architects and designers to include gorgeous interior glass in their plans.”