Freedom Tower Sections Undergo Structural Tests
The Freedom Tower has been deemed sturdy and safe by any number of computers, but where this building is concerned, there’s no such thing as too many assurances. Tests at Construction Consulting Laboratory West use actual mockups.
A 40-by-20-foot section of wall was being examined when Canan Tasci visited. “Blown by the roaring propeller and engine, water from a spray rack simulates a wind-driven rain at 74 mph to test water penetration during high-wind conditions,” Tasci wrote.
Other tests - there are exactly 26 - analyze “structural loading, floor deflection, seismic movement, and thermal expansion and contraction.” Massive machines, including the aforementioned airplane engine, make the whole thing possible.
These processes are more for comfort than discovery; construction on the Freedom Tower is already underway, of course, and if any problems were discovered at this point, they’d be poorly received.
Still, it’s nice to see these steps being taken. And Benson Industries, not Silverstein Properties, set the testing standards, so there’s one additional level of safeguards in place.