111 Main at City Creek

111 Main at City Creek

Imaginative Design Entails Real-World Solutions.

This 24-story office tower’s unique construction gives passersby the illusion it’s floating in air and occupants the sensation they’re walking on sunshine. That’s because the building’s hat-truss system suspends its weight from the rooftop and balances the load across 18 perimeter columns, which only extend three-quarters of the way down to the fifth story, where a reinforced concrete core connects the balanced load with the foundation.

The absence of perimeter columns around the base, which is wrapped in glass, creates the floating illusion, while the absence of load-bearing interior columns provides a truly uninterrupted open office with full 360-degree views—and lots of sunshine.

111 Main St

111 Main at City Creek, Salt Lake City, UT

Project Goals

The triple-height glazed lobby was to have visibility out of the building through the shades while providing sufficient solar protection and letting in light above them. To accomplish this, the architect specified motorized shades with shade bands suspended on cables. This would create clerestory-like apertures above each shade band when fully open.

Such a unique design requires customization and close collaboration. Mecho assisted SOM early in the design and development process to ensure all deliverables were feasible.


111 Main at City Creek

111 Main at City Creek

Project Solutions

The lobby required 12 suspended banner shades, each measuring 25 ft. by 5 ft. and encompassing custom brackets, cable reels, and extruded hem bars.

From the system’s overall operation down to the smallest componentry, the custom solution was accepted. Early engagement and extensive pre-planning were necessary for this to happen, as Mecho is often the only company willing to offer these types of imaginative solutions and make them a reality.

Mecho/5 manual shades were specified to manage the halo of sunshine encircling the remaining 19 floors. ThermoVeil shade cloth in Shadow Grey neutralized interiors in terms of the aesthetic and solar heat gain due to its weave and technically advanced material, which together provide a uniform scrim effect at the window wall and appropriate density for sun control.

111 Main at City Creek

111 Main at City Creek

Project Results

LEED 111 Main is a LEED® Gold certifiied building. The site operates at 15 percent below Utah’s energy code, thanks in part to the shading system, which allows for reduced use of the building’s sustainable lighting and fully automated, underfloor HVAC systems.

Mecho's Sustainable Leadership