The Atlanta Airport Marriott Hotel at Gateway Center is a 358,000 Square Foot facility with 403 guest rooms located adjacent to the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in College Park, GA. Designed by Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart & Associates of Atlanta, the hotel features a Porte-Cochere which not only provides shelter for arriving guests, but also serves as a distinct visual beacon for the project. Not surprisingly, the curving roofline of the Porte-Cochere alludes to the aerodynamic shape of the wings on the airplanes flying above.
Aluminum panels were selected as the cladding material for the Porte-Cochere to accentuate the graceful and encompassing curve of the roofline, and to provide an aesthetic counterpoint to the ribbing of the hotel’s precast concrete cladding. They also convey high-tech precision and detailing, which is also in keeping with an aviation theme.
Aluminum composite panels are available in virtually any color under the sun but for the hotel project, the architect chose two colors that complemented the precast: Bone White and Champagne Metallic. Altech Panel Systems of Cartersville, GA, fabricated approximately 4,900 sq. ft. of the white panels and just over 3,000 sq. ft. of the Champagne-colored panels. The 4mm, PE-cored aluminum composite material from which the panels were formed was ALPOLIC, manufactured by Mitsubishi Plastics Composites America Inc.
The panels were installed by SECO Architectural Systems Inc., Snellville, GA. Brasfield & Gorrie of Kennesaw, GA, was the project’s general contractor.
About Mitsubishi Plastics Composites America
Mitsubishi Plastics Composites America, Inc is the global leader of aluminum and metal composite materials. With U.S. headquarters in Chesapeake, VA., Mitsubishi Plastics Composites America (MPCA) has been manufacturing the ALPOLIC® materials for architectural wall cladding and specialty applications markets since 1974. MPCA is truly a global presence, serving a worldwide customer base with products that offer innovation, style, and performance. To learn more, visit www.alpolic-usa.com.