565 Broome, SoHo

Renzo Piano designed New York’s first zero-waste luxury owner-occupied apartments. This building received this environmental award in recognition of its many and varied ecological features, such as generous daylighting solutions, electric car charging stations and water dispensers for reducing the number of plastic water bottles in the building.

Once a place of refuge for a generation of modern artists, SoHo has become more than just a centre for shopping, dining and nightlife, it has also established itself as a hub for art and culture. With the transformation of the Hudson River banks, outdoor pursuits have also become part of the fabric of SoHo. The luxurious owner-occupied apartments in Broome SoHo are the crowning glory of the neighbourhood’s evolution, which offers convenient access to all these facilities but still provides a peaceful place of refuge amidst the hustle and bustle of the district.

The 30-storey building soars above the smaller neighbouring buildings and offers far-reaching views over the city and the Hudson River.

GU solution: Gretsch-Unitas supplied the components for the Projecting Top-Hung windows. This function offers considerable functional and aesthetic advantages in many building projects. In the Projecting Top-Hung window, the window sash dips downward slightly when opening outward and remains in any opening position. This style of hardware enables an incredibly homogenous external look to be created for glass facades. In contrast to conventional Top-Hung windows, Projecting Top-Hung windows are positionally stable in any position and can also be locked in an open position thanks to the GS opening restrictor. As such, the windows are secured against unwanted movement/slamming, even in windy weather.

To ensure that the appearance of a building or facade is not disrupted by railings, balustrades, grates or protruding glazing for the purposes of fall protection, the world of architecture is increasingly relying on opening restriction mechanisms for windows and balcony doors. Here, the opening width is restricted to stop people/objects from falling through the gap between the window and wall reveal.

To allow the window to be opened completely for cleaning or inrush airing purposes, trained and authorised people are able to deactivate the opening restriction mechanism. The window is then closed again in a secure position.

The GS opening restrictor can be combined with various components from Gretsch-Unitas’ extensive product portfolio, enabling individual solutions to be created with ease.

The turn-restrictor satisfies the requirement of the New York City Department of Health and of EN 13126-5 to provide an anti-fall guard.