The PPR Apartments is a suite-style residential community located near the original Palmer, Pittenger and Roberts communities at Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pa. The apartments represent a major achievement in campus design for Digsau, a Philadelphia-based architect.
The apartments, which opened in the Fall of 2017, are three cube-shaped structures interconnected on all floors. The PPR Apartments and the original Palmer, Pittenger and Roberts residence hall form a courtyard near the College’s South entrance.
“Sited just opposite a century-old collection of student housing, the project weaves the existing residential quad into the broader life of the college,” says Architect. “The architects not only appropriated the fence from an adjacent baseball diamond into the building itself, but they added an outdoor terrace as a spectator space.”
CFS Framing Provides Rainscreen Support
The PPR Apartments feature a cold-formed steel (CFS) framing backup system supplied by ClarkDietrich Building Systems and Kamco Supply. W.S. Cumby, Inc. served as the general contractor.
“The building is a structural steel and plank structure with cold-formed metal backup system for the slate rainscreen support,” says Justin Henzel, vice president and general manager of Wallworks, Inc., which was the project’s framing contractor.
- Wallworks engineered the framing system to include the rainscreen backup support
- ClarkDietrich provided 2-inch by 5-inch Z furring to match the architect’s desired wall thickness
The PPR Apartments feature a cold-formed steel (CFS) framing backup system engineered and built by Wallworks, Inc. Photo courtesy of W.S. Cumby, Inc.
Also, ClarkDietrich custom-cut CFS studs and slotted track for the project, Henzel says. This was critical to the project’s success, saving time, since the three buildings were constructed simultaneously.
PPR Apartments at Swarthmore College won the 2020 Residential Architect Design Award for Student Housing from Architect. The PPR Apartments also won a gold medal from the Philadelphia chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) for 2019’s best built project.
The project represents the first buildings to employ the Swarthmore College’s environmental sustainability framework. They feature comprehensive water management systems, ecologically sensitive landscapes, a zero-waste initiative, and a wide range of energy production and conservation systems.
Additional Resources
- Steel Framing Helps Deliver Dorm on Time for University of North Texas
- Builder Chooses Cold-Formed Steel to Meet University of Virginia Student Housing Project Goals
- Panelized Cold-Formed Steel Framing Covers 1 Million Sq. Ft. in Student Housing Complex
Notes:
Architect:
http://www.digsau.com/projects/nppr7
Swarthmore:
https://www.swarthmore.edu/news-events/ppr-apartments-win-coveted-architecture-award
https://www.swarthmore.edu/living-swarthmore/living-ppr-apartments
GC:
http://www.cumby.com/projects/academic/ppr-apartments/