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No longer a second-rate substitute for quality materials, a new generation of plastics is emerging as the building material of choice for many architects and designers.

By Barbara Knecht

By using green translucent polycarbonate on the exterior layer of the facade and white translucent polycarbonate on the interior, the effect changes from inside to outside. Green Glen San Francisco, Calif. Architect: Pfau Architecture (Peter Pfau, principal) Manufacturer: CPI International Photography: © J.D. Peterson

For the coat closet, Design Office sought a seamless profile in a lightweight and translucent material with some integral color. They brought the problem to a Los Angeles fabricator called Performance Composites, which manufactures fiberglass products for industrial and architectural uses. The fabricator accepted the challenge of making a translucent product using fiberglass, the common name for fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP). Glass fibers and polyester resin are combined into a material that is usually filled or sanded and then painted to remove and hide imperfections. According to Francis Hu, President of Performance Composites, “More and more people are using fiberglass, because it is costeffective and lightweight, and extremely versatile. It is a good designer’s material because it is extremely malleable.” For the 6-by-21¼2-by-3-foot closets, wooden molds were constructed, lined with wax to permit removal, and then a clear layer of gel coat was applied. Over that, fiberglass mat, wetted with tinted resin, was layered into the mold to a thickness of 1¼2 inch. In order to achieve the correct color, thickness, and translucency, numerous samples and prototypes were produced to insure that the final finish would be flawless.

The same process for the much larger 12-by-3-by-2-foot reception desk yielded a different appearance. “People have described it as looking like a huge piece of taffy, with the imperfections, such as cloudy spots and bubbles, of a piece of candy,” remarked George Yu. Besides the effort of achieving the desired visual impact, the architect had to solve a major technical problem. The enormous size and weight (2,000 lbs) of the 3¼4-inch-thick enclosure required that stiffening ribs be cast into the form to prevent it from deflecting once it had cured.

On the floor, Design Office looked for a material that would give a sense of depth. After considering tile, sandblasted glass, and thick resin, they convinced a local terrazzo maker to experiment with clear epoxy and recycled glass. After several tests to get a satisfactory ratio of glass to epoxy and degree of translucency, they put it down in 20-foot-wide alternating bands of clear and milky colored epoxy embedded with colored glass. As Yu describes it, “With the clear epoxy, it feels as if you are standing on a frozen lake, and the milky colored one is the like coleslaw. When the sun is high, the blues and greens of the recycled glass reflect off the ceilings and walls.” The final product had effects that neither the designers nor the manufacturer imagined, but it has been so successful that the manufacturer is now marketing the product commercially.