This cross-dock building for Fontaine has a unique floor plan with bump-outs at the corners. These shield the truck court and trucks from direct public view and provide direct view access from the offices of the truck court. The interior offices run the entire length of the front of the building with bottom level windows for the entire length. A high solar shade on the corners caps the ends and creates dynamic shadows throughout the day. High clerestories on opposite sides provides generous daylighting inside the warehouse. The warehouse is used to modify factory-made chassis for vehicles to suit the end-user which works best for a cross-dock building. Vehicles are wheeled one side, worked on, painted in a custom paint booth, and wheeled out the other side.
Some of the obstacles encountered during the design phase included the sanitary sewer drop off due to the hilly nature of the site. With a 30 ft. vertical drop there were concerns about how to carry the sewer safely out of the building to connect to the city. After some careful underground routing, this was achieved with intermediate drops through the invert elevations. A second issue was the tree line and hill within 30 ft. of the rear of the building. Having to create a safe angle of repose in the rear with a thick forest of trees right behind was challenging for the construction crew while lifting the panel but coupled with expertise and good overall construction sequencing, the building was tilted without incident.
Several small internal fins protrude into the building on which the spandrel tilt panels rest. This created a depth of shade at the corners and a challenge for bracing the panels while they were being tilted. The internal fins provide spandrel support in addition to creating interesting nooks inside the office spaces. During interior design these were used as showcases with shelves for the office staff memorabilia and created focal points inside the office and conference rooms.
Close to some basic metal industrial buildings, this project stands out as a stalwart of excellence in the architectural design and brings a clear freshness to the area. Being within the outer confines of the airport, there is very good visibility from the air which showcases a great site plan and movement of vehicles around the building. Fontaine Mods., being of the established Charlotte firms that employs close to a hundred people, along with the finely tuned interior design of the building and layout, gives the working demographic, a modern and office-like building to enjoy.
Charlotte, NC 28214
United States
The Tilt-Up Achievement Awards were established to honor projects that use site-cast tilt-up concrete to introduce new building types, advance industry technology and provide unique solutions to building programs. Winning entries illustrate the variety, beauty, and flexibility of tilt-up construction.
ACHIEVEMENT
2024
The world’s greatest tilt-up structures are featured by the TCA as Tilt-Up Achievement Award Winners. Learn more >