Driven by oil-related industry, business is booming in Williston, North Dakota. So much so that the airport could no longer keep up with the surge in travel to the region.
 
In designing the new 110,000-square-foot terminal building for Williston Basin International Airport, Alliance Architects sought a low-maintenance, durable cladding that could withstand the harsh northern winters. Metal emerged as the material of choice and was specified in a number of styles, types, and locations including insulated metal panels (IMPs), single-skin, and corrugated panels.
 
The façade’s colors blend into the surrounding prairie landscape, stratified limestone of the Missouri River, and the area’s industrial mines.
 
MCA member companies CENTRIA and Kingspan earned a Metal Construction Association Chairman’s Award in the industrial category, which evaluated the project based upon overall appearance, significance of metal in the project, innovative use of metal, and the role of metal in achieving project objectives.
 
Serving as a judge for the Chairman’s Awards and Metal Architecture magazine’s annual Design Awards Program, Steven G. Blye, AIA, LEED AP, AMFP, Legat Architects, stated, “This is a great exploration of metal. The patterning is strong and done very effectively. Metal is used in a lot of different textures and forms, but it remains cohesive throughout and works well for a greater whole.”
 
To create a 10,000-square-foot enclosure at the main entrance elevation and North/South returns, the architects selected Kingspan’s rainscreen façade.
 
For the west, north, and south sides of the exterior and interior walls, CENTRIA’s EcoScreen Screenwall corrugated metal panels in Allusion Rust were fabricated with mitered corners that wrap window openings and corners of the building. In addition, CENTRIA’s Formawall Dimension Series IMPs were installed with flat and embossed finishes in Silversmith and Dark Bronze at the stair enclosures. The overhang has a five-step soffit and fascia configuration and some of the IMPs were manufactured in parallelogram shapes to maintain vertical joints at sloped fascia.
 
Alliance Architects also specified CENTRIA’s CS-200 Concept Series single-skin metal wall panels in Dark Bronze at the bridge abutments and interior soffits.
 
Built to accommodate 350,000 passengers annually, the two-story structure—more than double the size of the former airport—features four gate lounges, a bar, restaurant, retail, and two runways.