New York City subway station shelters commuters

with Super Sky skylight finished by Linetec

Wausau, Wis. (September 2011) – More than 64,000 daily commuters at the 96th Street subway station in New York City are pleased to have a newly-improved transit station. The station is part of the original IRT subway, opened in 1904, at the intersection of 96th St. and Broadway on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Super Sky Products Enterprises, LLC, in conjunction with Atlantech Systems Inc. and general contractor, Citnalta Construction Corporation, worked with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority on the $98 million renovation of the station. Super Sky provided skylights to cap each entrance: Two, narrow, large-circumference, barrel vault skylights flank the east and west sides. The north and south entries are covered by two cylindrical vault skylights; each of which required complex geometry to determine the different ellipse halves and different cylindrical radii. Super Sky’s project manager, Jeff Pfluger, explains, “Because the skylight perimeters curve in both plane and elevation, the tubular perimeter skylight framing consists of aluminum plates. The sides are cut to the cylinder radii, while the tops and bottoms are cut to the plan ellipses. They were then fully welded together and ground smooth prior to paint application.”

Linetec finished the skylights’ aluminum in a two-coat, PPG Duranar® 70% polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), Silver White coating. These finishes meet the AAMA 2605 specification and exhibit outstanding resistance to humidity, color change, chalk, gloss loss and chemicals. As an environmentally-responsible finisher, Linetec safely captures and destroys the liquid paints’ volatile organic compounds (VOC) content. “These sustainable coatings will ensure a long-lasting, durable finish,” says Linetec’s senior marketing specialist, Tammy Schroeder, LEED® Green Associate. Intended to last for decades, the updated Manhattan transit station was completed $20 million under budget and on time, after three years of construction. It opened in April 2010, during one of the snowiest winters on New York’s record.