Architectural Metals: A Guide to Selection, Specification, and Performance

The historic breakthroughs in the science of metallurgy over thelast quarter century have produced an array of new metallicbuilding materials. Architects and designers now have a far broaderpalette of metals to choose from than at any other time in history,and metal is fast becoming the star building material featured insome of today's most exciting new building projects.

A book whose time has come, Archi-tectural Metals is the firstcomprehensive guide to the metals and metallic finishes currentlyavailable for use in architecture. Learn from a fourth-generationexpert in the field who has, over the past fifteen years, consultedon some of the world's most prestigious building projects.Architectural Metals demystifies metals for architects, artisans,and design professionals providing them with a logical frameworkfor the selection and use of the correct material for the job athand.

Encyclopedic in scope, Architectural Metals is an extremelyuser-friendly working resource supplying readers with instantaccess to a wealth of essential information about the forms andbehaviors of metallic building materials. From aluminum, stainlesssteel, copper, lead, and zinc to new metals and finishes such astitanium, pewter-coated copper, and colored stainless steel, itdescribes everything architects, engineers, and designprofessionals need to know about all the common and many uncommonmetals at their disposal.

Each chapter of Architectural Metals is devoted to a specific typeof metal, metallic finish, or coating. Each includes a historicaloverview, environmental concerns, an exhaustive description ofavailable forms and (where appropriate) colors, performanceevaluations, finishes, weathering and corrosion characteristics,maintenance and restoration techniques, fastening, welding, andjoining methods, and more. And since each metal-producing industryhas its own unique jargon and systems of measurement, the authortakes pains throughout to define relevant terms and translatemeasurement and thickness indices into familiar inch and millimeterscales.

Destined to become a standard in the field, Architectural Metals isan indispensable tool for architects, designers, and artisans whowork with metals.

"Metalis the material of our time. It enables architecture tobecome sculpture; it also expresses technological possibility aswell as the time-honored characteristics of quality andpermanence." --From Frank O. Gehry's foreword to ArchitecturalMetals

Written by one of the leading experts on architectural metals, thisis the first comprehensive guide to the metals and metallicfinishes and coatings available for use in architecturalconstruction. Growing out of its author's experiences helpingarchitects realize some of the most exciting designs of the pasttwenty years, Architectural Metals:
* Demystifies metals for architects and design professionals
* Supplies a logical framework for selecting the best materials forthe job at hand
* Provides instant access to everything architects and designersneed to

L. WILLIAM ZAHNER is President of A. Zahner Company Inc. and Zahner Architectural Metal Consultants, Kansas City, Missouri. He has worked with many of the world's leading architects and has contributed to a number of high-profile projects utilizing metal as a major building material, including the Weisman Museum of Art and the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain.