BUILD LLC PH03 Dining Room Night 02
[Photo by BUILD LLC]

BUILD recently completed a penthouse project in downtown Seattle which makes use of interior screens to define space, maintain privacy and accentuate light. Some new materials and methods are put to work and you may find it useful.

BUILD LLC PH03 Dining Room Day 02
[Photo by BUILD LLC]

Lead architect, Andrew van Leeuwen, designed the penthouse with an open floor plan to maintain the extraordinary views and to take full advantage of the 1,500 square feet interior.  Spaces such as the entry and dining room are defined by the ceiling hung soffits. The corrugated, perforated steel sheets are made by Alpro and also provide acoustic properties to reduce echoes.

BUILD LLC PH03 Entry Day 01
[Photo by BUILD LLC]

In order to provide a visual barrier between the dining room and the entry, and to further define the spaces, the soffit turns down 90 degrees and becomes a vertical screen. Natural light filters through the screen and silhouettes can been seen beyond.

BUILD LLC screen drawing 2
[Drawing by BUILD LLC]

The dropped soffit creates a designated area for penetrations to accommodate lighting, speakers and fire sprinkler heads. The soffits allow these fixtures to be arranged in an organized and intentional manner.

Above the steel panels rests a black acoustic pad – this absorbs the echoes and also provides a consistent black backdrop to the perforations.

The edges of the steel panels cantilever out approximately 6” to provide a shelf for uplighting. The LED strip lights installed at this location enhance the soffit and provide subtle lighting in the home.

BUILD LLC screen drawing 1
[Drawing by BUILD LLC]

Alpro manufactures a wide variety of corrugated, perforated steel panels as well as the acoustic pads and steel edge caps to match. The sheets come as large as 4′ x 12′. We used the ‘F’ profile for this project (right in the photo below).

BUILD LLC Alpro samples

There is approximately 210 square feet of the Alpro material used on the project. The full assembly including the panels, acoustic pad and edge trim cost between $15 and $20 per square foot (not including labor for the install).

BUILD LLC Alpro backlit

We’ll have a thorough BUILDblog post on this project in the near future. You can see more images regarding this project on the Translucency and Light post.