Anthropologie is a specialty retailer that offers a distinct assortment of women’s apparel, accessories, home furnishings and decorative accessories and is owned by parent company Urban Outfitters, Inc. Like its sister locations, the new store in New Orleans capitalizes on an aesthetic that is modern and eclectic with hints of traditional elements. Its sturdy wooden and steel staircase, with a sweeping steel cabling suspension system, serves as a fittingly eye-catching centerpiece. Ronstan Tensile Architecture supplied a complete cable system to uphold this unique suspended staircase.
Ronstan’s ACS1 sleek steel cable assemblies descend from the ceiling rafters to create a display reminiscent of a loom, a design that speaks to the store’s fabric wares. The cables fan outward from the ceiling amidst pendant light fixtures and cascade through a circular wooden cutout in the second floor. Finally, the cables rest into the steel stair railings in clean, parallel lines, serving as polished infill. The system’s unique design offers a striking juxtaposition of shapes, colors, textures and materials in a way that manages to unify - rather than separate - the facility’s two floors.
“This application truly shows off the unmatched beauty and functionality of our product,” said Scot West, President of Ronstan’s U.S. operations. “We admire the project’s uncommon design, and we’re very proud of the way our system facilitates that vision.”
Functionally, the cabling system serves to uphold the heavy wooden and steel staircase. This type of system was chosen because the tension provides enough durable support to eliminate the need for underside beams, freeing up valuable retail space. Additionally, the system’s cables are installed taut enough to prevent patrons from pulling or disturbing them in any way - an important consideration for high-traffic retail facilities. Ronstan’s compact adjusters serve as the end fittings that keep the system in its critical tension.
The compact adjusters used in the installation feature an elegant design that is both sleek and compact in appearance. These end fittings are fully adjustable, and have fully concealed threads and recessed clevis pins that are tightly secured with circlips. They are high strength, corrosion resistant, and can be adjusted and tensioned at up to 25% of the break load rating of the wire.
“The system installed well and the mechanisms worked smoothly,” said Bobby Armitage, Field Superintendant at Johnston Products of Dallas, Inc. and installer of the system. “Ronstan was very accommodating during the installation phase, and so we were able to finish in adequate time. The end result was very nice, and we’re proud to say that the project has received a lot of compliments.”
Construction on the New Orleans Anthropologie store was completed in July 2010. The project team consisted of architect Phillips Partnership, Atlanta, GA, and installer Johnston Products of Dallas, Inc., Cedar Hill, TX.