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Kiss + Cathcart are consultants for the building's most advanced feature: state-of-the-art thin-film photovoltaic (PV) panels that replace mirror glass spandrels from the 37th to 43th floors on the south and east faces of the tower. While the surface area available for PV is relatively small, the system still provides enough output to power the equivalent of five to seven houses. Working in collaboration with the base building architects, Kiss + Cathcart designed the PV system to function as an integral part of the tower's curtain wall. This dual purpose makes it one of the most economical solar arrays ever installed in an urban area. Energy Photovoltaics developed custom PV modules to fit the building's rigorous aesthetic, structural, and electrical criteria. As the first major commercial application of building-integrated PV's in the United States, 4 Times Square points the way to large-scale production of clean, silent and cost effective solar electricity where it is needed most: at the point of greatest use. |
As the tallest skyscraper built in New York City in the past decade, this office tower at Broadway and 42nd street is an unusual but extremely important venue to demonstrate "green" technologies. The developers wished to show that energy efficiency strategies can and should be incorporated into high-end real estate.