35 Hudson Yards

Doors of Choice for NYC Luxury Residential Tower

New York City is home to some of the world’s most prestigious and beautiful architectural masterpieces. From office skyscrapers to luxury residential high-rises, the sky is the limit for the Big Apple, which grows (vertically) each and every year. One of the latest additions to the New York City skyline is 35 Hudson Yards, a high-end residential building designed by renowned architect David M. Childs, FAIA, of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM). One of the most celebrated architectural firms of our time, SOM is the architect behind the Burj Khalifa in Dubai (the world’s tallest building), as well as One World Trade Center.

35 Hudson Yards is the tallest residential tower in the Hudson Yards neighborhood, rising more than 1,000 feet in the air. Only the highest-quality materials were used in its construction. For instance, the facade features Jura limestone hand-selected from the Kaldorf quarry in Bavaria, Germany. On the interior, the exquisite two-to-six-bedroom homes were designed by Tony Ingrao of Ingrao Inc., an Architectural Digest AD100 firm, which is a list of the greatest talents in the world of design.

The main entrance of 35 Hudson Yards needed special attention as well, which is why architects at SOM called upon Ellison Bronze. The building’s entryways, which are accessed by hundreds of guests and tenants daily, needed to possess the performance qualities necessary for high-use portals. Aesthetics played a role in the specification process as well. Architects needed custom doors to visually match and fit seamlessly into the storefront framing materials of the building’s various access points.

The luxury tower encompasses retail space at the street level, including SoulCycle, WS New York, Tavern by WS, as well as an Equinox Club, Spa and the world's first Equinox Hotel, and residential spaces on the upper levels. The uniqueness of the building required distinct doors at each entry point, and Ellison provided a variety of doors to meet this precise design intent. The main entry features custom curved balanced doors, while others feature non-balanced doors (some manual, some automatic using in-floor operators). Ellison proved to be the ideal company for the job, successfully manufacturing a number of doors for the east, south, and west elevations of the building.

The building’s main residential entrance, facing south, required a unique solution. Due to the curved design of that portion of the structure, the doors themselves could not be flat, and architects at SOM needed a manufacturer that could produce doors to meet this atypical design requirement. Ellison craftsmen custom-made curved doors that fit to the precise angle of the facade that bows inward at approximately 22 degrees.

The main entryway doors along with select others are made from Muntz bronze and feature a #4 Satin finish. Additional doors around the building are made from extruded aluminum and painted to match the surrounding sidelights and framing materials of those specific areas. The exceptionally unique custom curved main entry doors were equipped with Stanley® Magic Force™ power operators to meet ADA guidelines. The other non-balanced doors throughout the building were equipped with heavy-duty Tormax TN in-floor operators, furnished and installed by MacKenzie Door Company.

New Hudson Facades (Linwood, PA) was the curtainwall subcontractor and also managed the installation of the Ellison doors throughout 35 Hudson Yards.

All Ellison balanced doors feature an innovative inset pivot point that allows them to open at two-thirds width. This permits internal air pressures and external wind loads to pass on either side of the door upon opening. In turn, users at 35 Hudson Yards will not have difficulties opening the balanced doors even on New York City’s windiest days.

“We had great success at the main entrance of the residential lobby of 35 Hudson Yards, which uses custom, curved double Ellison balanced doors to fit the unique shape of the structure. The overhead concealed operators were yet another nice touch for this luxury space,” added Martucci.

The installation process may be a different from what some door installers are accustomed to because Ellison doors are custom manufactured and feature the company’s innovative balanced hardware. Curved doors in the specification are unique as well.

“Ellison was extremely receptive to any questions we had on site, and they were willing to assist with adjustments as needed. Due to the building having multiple retail spaces, it was difficult at times to coordinate with all of the different trades to meet project deadlines. However, Ellison’s flexibility helped the process run smoothly,” said Martucci.

As an added benefit, Ellison provides detailed record keeping and full warranties on each door they manufacture. This is important considering their extensive lifespan. All Ellison doors are imprinted with an individual project number to facilitate easy tracking and maintenance. Plus, all balanced hardware components are machined in-house at Ellison’s Falconer, NY, facility so replacements are readily available upon request.

With proper maintenance, the sophisticated 35 Hudson Yards tower is now equipped with doors designed to last for the life of the building. Tenants, too, will appreciate the grand entrance and effortless operation that Ellison doors impart for as long as they call 35 Hudson Yards home.

35 Hudson Yards officially opened in March 2019. The last of the Ellison custom balanced doors were installed in September of that same year.