Air, Water, Structural Mock-up Testing

Mock-up Testing Fast Facts

The largest and tallest mock-up wall in the world. East and west coast mock-up testing laboratories. Can test multiple mock-ups at one time, with all the necessary cranes and lifts to simplify construction, testing, and analysis. Customer offices, customer lounge, telephone, fax, and Internet access available for customers on-site during duration of mock-up construction and testing. On-site machine shop, craftsmen, and tool crib keep the project moving efficiently in the face of unexpected issues.

Value

The integrity of a building envelope depends on the performance of its curtain wall. That’s why Architectural Testing offers architects and designers comprehensive mock-up testing capabilities to ensure that their curtain walls are properly designed and will function as required. The results of our testing are used to validate the design, workmanship, and material selection and to gain the approval of clients, architects, and/or consultants.

Tests are performed according to AAMA, ASTM, ANSI, CSA, CPSC, Architectural Project Specifications, and other standards and programs. Tests can involve precast structures, metal/glass, exterior skins, live, or dead loads. Customized test conditions can be devised by Architectural Testing experts to measure other performance attributes.

Recognized test methods and specifications are used to obtain data on:

• Wind resistance
• Air infiltration
• Static and dynamic water resistance
• Condensation
• Structural loading
• Security vulnerability
• Thermal cycling
• Impact safety
• Fire
• Acoustics
• Interstory displacement (vertical movement)
• Dynamic seismic performance (lateral movement)
• Thermal transmittance
• Sealant and gasket durability

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Innovations

At Architectural Testing, size is never a restriction. Building envelope mock-ups can be constructed measuring up to 120 feet wide by 60 feet high—the largest outdoor curtain-wall test site in the world. Mock-ups up to 32 feet high can be built in one of our 10 indoor test chambers. Other test equipment includes:

• Pratt & Whitney supercharged airplane engine used as air-blowers
• Water spray racks
• Air flow and pressure control panels with reversible blowers
• Laminar flow elements
• Liquid nitrogen distribution systems
• High pressure hydraulic equipment.
• Dynamic seismic racking equipment

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Insights and Possibilities

The Architectural Testing team knows how to devise and specify tests for a wide range of mock-ups and conditions, which enables us to serve a diverse clientele. For an airport, we constructed mock-ups of seven different designs created from architectural drawings to test column beam stiffness. For the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia, we tested sections of its unique, barrel-vaulted, glass roof. Other tests were devised for curtain walls used in such notable buildings as the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Marine Corps Museum, NASA, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Bank, and many sports stadiums. Some of the world’s most prestigious architects and construction firms trust the experts of Architectural Testing to provide the insights they require to validate curtain-wall performance.

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Learn more about how the Architectural Testing Difference can help you or Contact Us today.