When it comes to One World Trade Center (1WTC), the landmark centerpiece of the World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan, New York City, superlatives are in no short supply. The tallest building in the western hemisphere, 1WTC is a stunning showpiece of innovation in architecture, urban design, safety and sustainability.
Clad in stainless steel, the 104-story building is a gleaming beacon at the new heart of the city. Like Manhattan’s nearby 85-year-old Chrysler building – also clad in stainless steel – 1WTC will show no age as the years pass. The timeless beauty of stainless steel reflects enduring design values as well as essential practicalities, such as low life-cycle costs.
Bringing design to life
This highly symbolic skyscraper looks to the future while memorializing the structure that preceded it. Accordingly, architects Skidmore, Owings & Merrill created an echo of the original tower’s distinctive corners in 1WTC. But to make the corners truly prominent, the architects asked Outokumpu for something unique.
A special team – with members representing application technology, production, product service and a roll texturer – developed a new surface with exceptional brightness especially for this building. Named Deco Laser for the advanced technology used in its development, the new pattern finish was produced in an embossing process in the rolling mill.
More than surface beauty
The stainless steel shines in other ways as well. Rising to a height of 541 meters, 1WTC is the most environmentally sustainable project of its size in the world, featuring the latest methods to maximize efficiency, minimize waste and pollution, conserve water, improve air quality and reduce the impact of development. Fully recyclable stainless steel plays a key role, giving the landmark tower a timeless, sustainable durability.
For 1WTC’s exterior, 200 tonnes of Deco Laser-finished, corrosion-resistant cladding produced in the Dillenburg plant in Germany was delivered, earning this skyscraper the status as one of the most beautiful landmarks today.