The Residences at the Ritz

Toronto, Canada

Located in Toronto’s downtown core, the 53-storey Residences at the Ritz-Carlton and Ritz-Carlton Hotel features a chiseled profile that stands out within the Toronto skyline.

The Residences at the Ritz

Toronto, Canada

Located in Toronto’s downtown core, the 53-storey Residences at the Ritz-Carlton and Ritz-Carlton Hotel features a chiseled profile that stands out within the Toronto skyline.

Project led by an Entuitive expert while employed at a previous firm.

The Ritz-Carlton contains a 20-storey, five-star hotel and 33 storeys of condominium space and related amenities directly above. Sloped and stepped columns support the widening structure to enable the building to achieve its cantilevered south elevation.

The second-floor, column-free ballroom, with space for 650 people, required diagonal steel struts and a poured-in-place concrete floor to strengthen the structure and eliminate vibration. The transition point between the structural grids of the hotel and condominium components is designed for optimal hotel and residential layout.

location

Toronto, Canada

Awards

2011, Award of Excellence, Canadian Institute of Steel Construction; 2010, Green Good Design Award, The Chicago Athenaeum

Client

Cadillac Fairview; Graywood Developments

Size

19,000 m² (205,000 ft²)

Architect

Kohn Pedersen Fox, Design Architects; Page+Steele, Executive Architects

Budget

$300 M

Role

Structural Engineering and Structural Glass Consultant

Award of Excellence

Canadian Institute of Steel Construction

Challenge

Simplify construction and reduce the cost of the structural glass bridge that serves as the hotel lobby’s centrepiece.

Solution

Ordinarily, a glass bridge involves a series of connecting glass sections to form a load-bearing balustrade, but the need to save time and reduce construction costs prevented us from using this design option. We sourced a glazing manufacturer in Switzerland that produced a tempered-laminated glass balustrade in one piece, spanning the lobby’s 9-metre width. The resulting bridge is an all-glass structure in its purest form, with the unique look of a floating glass skywalk.

Learn more about how Entuitive approaches engineering challenges, and discover why Engineering Performance matters for your project.

The Residences at the Ritz