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Kalwall writes another chapter of library's history with daylight

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Apr 08, 2010

The story of the Michigan City (Indiana) Public Library, like its thousands of books, unfolds a chapter at a time. Both Chapter 1 and the original library open in 1897. Eighty years later, Kalwall stars in Chapter 2 as controversial and cutting-edge architect Helmut Jahn designs the library's successor just six blocks away. By Chapter 3, Kalwall returns to rehabilitate the now 30-year-old building.

Jahn's work has won awards and commissions across the United States, Europe, Africa and Asia. And his 1977 design for Michigan City's 35,000-square-foot, sawtooth-roof library was no exception, garnering three honors from the American Institute of Architects and a fourth from the American Institute of Steel Construction, Inc. With room for 147,000 books as well as seating for 208 patrons and additional meeting space for 200 more, the Michigan City Public Library also features a beautifully landscaped interior courtyard accessible to visitors in fine weather. The plan included a Kalwall translucent wall system to introduce natural daylight into the building while insulating against heat and cold.

Kalwall clearly stood out as an innovative technology back in 1977. Over the years, the translucent Kalwall wall system maintained structural integrity, standing up to the howling winds and icy cold of Lake Michigan without any leakage or delamination. But by 2007, for the lack of any maintenance, its age was beginning to show. Fortunately, thirty years of continual innovation at Kalwall made it the obvious choice once again. Because some of the library panels stretched 18+ feet, no other product could make the span without the use of steel tubes.

During the manufacturing process, standard 2-3/4" (70 mm) Kalwall sandwich panels can be infilled with various densities of specialized, translucent insulation. Architects and designers can achieve a thermal insulation value of up to R-20 (U = 0.05 Btu/hr/ft²/°F, or 0.3 W/m²K) and still cover expansive areas with translucent cladding or roofing. The Michigan City Public Library benefits from minimized solar gain and heat loss, cutting energy costs for air conditioning and heating.

In addition to the healthy and aesthetically pleasing, museum-quality daylight^™ Kalwall pours into the library with 20% light transmission, it lessens the need for artificial lighting and eliminates glare from computer screens. The original panels delivered an impressive .29 U-value. However, the new Wall System, incorporating Kalwall's unique thermal break composite I-beam technology, now delivers a U-value of .23. The thermal break is a full 1-3/4", while competing systems typically deliver less than 1/2" isolation. And the composite I-beam passes critical fire testing regimes, including achieving a U.L. listing for Class A and B built-up roof units, as well as an unofficial one-hour fire resistance test against temperatures up to 1200°F. Today's Kalwall also incorporates a glass veil erosion barrier that eliminates the potential of future fiber bloom, and thermal performance is significantly improved.

Because Kalwall is pre-engineered, installation time is greatly reduced. With 10,850 square feet of Kalwall in the main building and 1,350 in an accompanying storage structure, the project was finished "38 days early," says Don Glossinger, library director. Glossinger has been with the library long enough to remember ferrying books from the original 1897 building to its 1977 version in the trunk of his car. As is common with Kalwall installations, the Michigan City project "caused an absolute minimum of disruption." The library is "delighted with the results," Glossinger adds, and "grateful...for getting the work done in such an efficient and productive way."

Michigan City Public Library
Michigan City, IN
Photos: Don Varda, Michigan City Public Library

Kalwall Specifications:
Wall: 12,210 square feet
U-value: 0.23 Btu/hr/ft²/°F (1.3 W/m²K) – Thermally broken
Light Transmission: 20%
Exterior Color: Crystal
Interior Color: White

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