Located in South Florida’s Sunny Isle Beach, Jade Signature this “Tower on the Beach” is a parallelogram design that maximizes sun exposure, and includes underground parking. Designed by famed architects Herzog & De Meuron, it has 57 floors and used in excess of 100,000 cubic yards of concrete featuring slag cement. The end result is an inspiring connection with sea and sky, enhanced by large open interiors and special non-reflective, visually unobtrusive glass walls. The residences’ extra large, sun-shaded terraces can be accessed via sliding glass doors. The quality of thought in the design is matched by the quality of the interior finishes. All of these special features make each contemporary house in the sky a grand statement in luxury beachfront living.
Slag cement was used in deep soil mixing, the mat foundation, and the superstructure.
Deep Soil Mixing allowed for the efficient construction of the below-ground level parking area, which required low strength and low permeability for soil stabilization. The in-place soil was mixed with a slag cement:portland cement slurry that contained 80% to 90% slag cement. This mix design was used to solidify the entire base of the project, and allowed for the parking garage to be constructed in very difficult, high water table conditions.
In the mat pour for the foundation, the structure required high strength, 10,000-psi mass concrete. The 60% slag cement used in the mass pour was able to achieve in excess of 10,000 psi without thermal cracking. The 9800 cubic yards of mass concrete was all placed in 18 hours.
In the superstructure, virtually of all concrete contains slag cement used at between 50% and 60% to achieve specified strengths from 3000 psi to 8500 psi, depending on the application.
This is a project that has maximized the use of slag cement for cost efficiency, technical excellence, high performance, and contribution to an efficient project construction timeline. It provides an inspiring example of architectural use of concrete to create a unique living space in this beautiful beachfront environment.
Project credits: Fortune International Group, Owner; Herzog & De Meuron, Architect; McNamara/Salvia Inc; Malcolm Drilling, Contractor; Capform Inc, Contractor; Supermix Concrete, Concrete; Lehigh Cement Company, Slag Cement.