Building Core

Elements and Design

 The typical floor plate of the
standard commercial office
structure contains the following:

• Vertical Circulation Core

• Open Lease Space

• Optional public corridor.

Building Core

Core
 Lease Area

Core

Tenant Lease Space

 Lease Depth

Lease
Core
Depth

Tenant Lease Space

Optional Corridor

Lease
Core
Depth

Tenant Lease Space

Tenant Lease Area
Elements of the Building Core
The Building Core of the Commercial building contains

• Passenger Elevators & Lobby

The Building Core of the Commercial building contains

• Passenger Elevators & Lobby

• Service Elevator
The Building Core of the Commercial building contains

• Passenger Elevators & Lobby

• Service Elevator
• Service Elevator Vestibule
The Building Core of the Commercial building contains

• Passenger Elevators & Lobby

• Service Elevator
• Service Elevator Vestibule
• Mechanical Room
The Building Core of the Commercial building contains

• Passenger Elevators & Lobby

• Service Elevator
• Service Elevator Vestibule
• Mechanical Room
• Vertical Chase
Passenger Elevators & Lobby

M W
 Service Elevator

M W
Service Elevator Vestibule

M W
 Mechanical Room

M W
 Vertical Chase

M W
 The Core also consists of

• Fire Egress Stairs

 The Core also consists of

• Fire Stairs
• Restrooms
 The Core also consists of

• Fire Stairs
• Restrooms
• Drinking Fountain Vestibule
 Fire Egress Stairs

M W
 Public Restrooms

M W
 Public Restrooms

M W
 Core Location

The Building Core can take any of basic

locations relative to the floor plate.

• Central Core
• Off- set Core
• Exterior Core
• Split Core
 Central Core Location

• In the central core the

lease depth is relatively
equal around the core of
the building.
Central Core Location
Central Core Location
 Central Core Location

• In the central core the

lease depth is relatively
equal around the core of
the building.

• The Tenant can lease the

entire floor plate
Central Core Location

Lease
Core
Depth

Tenant Lease Space

 Core Location

• Or the tenant can lease a portion of the floor

plate.
Central Core Location

Lease
Core
Depth

Tenant Lease Space

Central Core Location

Bruce Graham
John Hancock Bldg.
Chicago, Ill.
Central Core Location

• Frank Gehry
New York Times
Headquarters
Central Core Location
Core Location
 Off- Set Core Location

• The off Set-Core places the core off center

creating differing lease depths.
Off- Set Core Location

Lease Depth 1

Lease
Depth
Core
2

Lease Depth 3
 Off- Set Core Location

• The off Set-Core places the core off center

creating differing lease depths.

• This provides greater leasing options.

 Off- Set Core Location

Lease Depth 1 Core Lease

Depth 2
Off- Set Core Location

Henry Cobb
Electicite de France
Paris, France
Off- Set Core Location

Jean Nouvel
Torre Agbar
Barcelona, Spain
 Split Core Location

• The Split core divides the core with a central

space, all components of the core are accessed
from this central space.
Split Core Location

Core Core

Tenant Lease Space

Split Core Location
 Off- Set Core Location

• This eliminates the need for any peripheral

access corridor and lease space can extend
right up to the walls of the core elements.
 Split Core Location

Tenant Lease Space

Core Core
 Split Core Location

Murphy / Jahn, Deutsche Post

Split Core Location

Cesar Pelli
International
Finance Center II
 Split Core Location

• The Split Core can be divided in any number of

ways. It should be noted that this increases the
depth of the core and therefore the size of the
floor plate.
Split Core Location

Core Core

Core Core

Tenant Lease Space

 Split Core Location

• The lease area can here too be divided but

access must still be maintained to two means of
egress in case of fire.
 Split Core Location

Tenant Lease Space

Core Core

Core Core
Split Core Location

Norman Foster
Swiss Re
Split Core Location
 Exterior Core Location

• In the Exterior Core configuration the core is

pulled either to one side or edge.

• If the core is pushed to one side creating a ‘dead

wall’ this can be used to advantage where poor
views or party walls present a problem.
Exterior Core Location

Core

Tenant Lease Space

 Exterior Core Location

Michael Graves
Humana Bldg.
Exterior Core Location
 Exterior Core Location

Norman Foster
Commerzbank
Exterior Core Location

Steven Holl
5th Ave. & 42nd
Exterior Core Location
 Exterior Core Location

• The Core can also be isolated as a separate

mass element independent from the lease floor
plate.
 Exterior Core Location

Core Tenant Lease Space Core

 Exterior Core Location

Richard Rodgers, 122 Leadenhall St.

Exterior Core Location

Richard Rodgers
Lloyds of London
Exterior Core Location
 Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings

Different banks of elevators serve different floors

A B

1-20 21-40
 Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings

Unused Elevator lobbies are used to hold core

elements such as restrooms or mechanical

M
M
Lobby

W
W
Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings
Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings
 Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings

Elevator banks drop

out of the core as
they are no longer
needed.
 Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings

As elevator banks drop out the space becomes

lease space or the floor plate is reduced

Lease Space Lobby

 Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings

The reduction in the

core due to the drop
out of elevator banks
allows for the
increase of lease
space or reduction of
floor plate allowing
the building to “taper”.
 Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings

It may become necessary to relocate the fire

egress stairs to maintain efficiency of the lease
space or for design purposes

Lobby
 Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings

Fire egress stairs can

be are transferred
horizontally
 Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings

To minimize the
square footage of the
core on very tall
buildings architects
can stack the elevator
banks and use express
elevators to sky
lobbies. Banks of
elevators service only
a set of designated
floors while movement
between them is
achieved by the
express system.
 Elevator Configurations in Tall Buildings

Minoru Yamasaki
World Trade Center
 Lease Space Planning

Lease space can be arranged in basically two

general configurations:

• Perimeter Office

• Executive Core
 Lease Space Planning

The Perimeter Office

In the perimeter office, private managerial offices

line the outside wall of the building.

Their views make them prime locations

Lease Space Planning

Core

Tenant Lease Space

 Lease Space Planning

The corners of the

building are then the
most sought after.
These are often
reserved for the
highest staff level.
Architects often facet
the buildings corners
to create more corner
offices.
 Lease Space Planning

The Executive Core

Increasingly we see the introduction of the

executive core which moves the executive offices
to the center of the floor plate.

This allows greater light penetration and

maximizes the number of people who get a view.
Lease Space Planning

Core

Tenant Lease Space

 Residential Cores

The typical residential core is smaller

because it will usually not require as many
elevators and there is no need for the public
restrooms.
 Residential Cores

The Residential Core consists of

• Fire Stairs
 Residential Cores

The Residential Core consists of

• Fire Stairs
• Elevator Lobby
 Residential Cores

The Residential Core consists of

• Fire Stairs
• Elevator Lobby
• Service Elevator
 Residential Cores

The Residential Core consists of

• Fire Stairs
• Elevator Lobby
• Service Elevator
• Vestibule
 Residential Cores

The Residential Core consists of

• Fire Stairs
• Elevator Lobby
• Service Elevator
• Vestibule
• Mechanical Room
 Residential Cores

The Residential Core consists of

• Fire Stairs
• Elevator Lobby
• Service Elevator
• Vestibule
• Mechanical Room
• Trash Chute
Residential Cores
Residential Cores
 Residential Layouts

• It is common to push all major spaces to

the perimeter.

• Closed spaces such as bathrooms, closets

mechanical closets, and kitchens are often
pushed toward the core.
Residential Cores
 Residential Cores

• This is because code calls for all major

rooms to be accessible to the perimeter for
fire rescue.

• It also allows for maximum light

penetration
Residential Cores