Manhattan apartments warm to Wraptite airtight offsite solution
An exciting project to create a seven-story modular building featuring a series
of modern New York apartments has been fitted out with the high-performing
Wraptite® airtight membrane. The superior airtightness performance of
Wraptite from the A. Proctor Group is an ideal solution for offsite developments,
delivering huge benefits to the combination of in-factory manufacture and on-site
construction.
East Broadway Residences is located on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New
York. The building has been designed and manufactured as a volumetric offsite
project by Brooklyn based architects Think! Architects to create an apartment block
consisting of 63 volumetric modules. OCCA Offsite based in Istanbul, Turkey is the
manufacturing contractor for the volumetric modules.
One key benefit of Wraptite concerning offsite is that it is designed to ensure
that the performance of the factory fitted membrane is not compromised during
transportation from factory to site. Wraptite offers a simplified system and
provides a fully self-adhered vapour permeable air barrier certified by the BBA and
combines the important properties of vapour permeability and airtightness in one
self-adhering membrane.
The self-adhesive membrane was applied in the factory, bonded externally to
the exterior walls and roof. Ensuring the membrane was held firmly in place was
critical to maintaining the quality of the system during ocean transportation and
stacking at the construction site.
Applied externally on the outside of the structural frame, Wraptite simplifies the
process of maintaining the envelope’s integrity, as there are fewer building services
and structural penetrations to be sealed. Window frames were installed offsite and
detailed with the Wraptite self-adhesive membrane to attain a watertight window
and facade system. Each of the volumetric modules was fully furnished with
bathrooms and kitchens including MEP systems and as well as fire sprinkler systems.
A site-installed rainscreen facade from natural stone was mechanically installed on
site.
The installation of Wraptite was a rapid process due to its advanced, easy to apply
self-adhesive design and ensured complete water tightness during all phases of
manufacturing and the final installation on-site.
The high vapour permeability of Wraptite allows the substrate beneath to dry
quickly and moisture vapour to escape, and reduces the likelihood of mould,
mildew, condensation, timber distortion and metal corrosion.