HEALTH CARE: Helen DeVos Children's Hospital
Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital
Grand Rapids, Mich. Region ENR Midwest
Project Team
Owner Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids
Architect URS Corp., Southfield, Mich.
General Contractor Wolverine Group, Grand Rapids; Turner Construction Co., Detroit
MEP Engineer URS, San Francisco
Structural Engineer Zinser Grossman Structural, Dallas
Spaces within this 11-story, $286-million facility are rooted in sustainable design principles as well as decades of research in creating optimal healing environments for children. By situating a glass-clad patient tower atop a three-story base, planners maximized daylight and views of Grand Rapids while reducing energy loads. During planning, project team members determined that a proposed triple-glazed curtain wall would meet neither the designated heat-loss requirements nor the maximum weight restrictions for the cylindrical, steel-framed structure. This hurdle prompted the development of an insulated floor-to-ceiling system called Visionwall 4 Element—a four-sided, butt-glazed unit. DeVos purports to be the first hospital tower in the world featuring 100% vision glass in all patient rooms.
