It has been almost a year since we last officially checked on 16 York, a 32-storey office tower under construction in Toronto’s South Core area. Developed by Cadillac Fairview, the architectsAlliance and B+H Architects-designed project is wrapping up its final exterior details while work continues inside to meet a June, 2020 opening. HSBC and First National Financial are among the announced tenants for the 878,000 ft² tower.

Cantilever at 16 York, image by Forum contributor Lachlan Homes

Cladding has completely enclosed the upper levels of the tower, including the cantilevered overhang above the 20th floor. Work continues to enclose the street-level overhead canopy, clad in grey aluminum tiles.

Ground level at 16 York, image by Forum Contributor Lachlan Homes

Inside, work has been continuing on the triple-height lobby space, with bands of overhead lighting and white marble cladding around the elevator cores in the process of being installed.

Interior lobby work, image courtesy of PCL

Beginning early construction in May, 2017, the project was one of the first to use the Job Site Insights digital construction platform developed by PCL. The system uses a variety of sensors throughout the construction site to determine construction statistics and improve efficiency. Sensors can be placed in inaccessible areas to detect issues as soon as they happen. An example of this is positioning sensors underneath the building's raised access flooring (a flooring strategy that allows wiring and plumbing to run under the floor rather than above in the ceiling) to automatically detect flooding and leaks before they become serious. Raised access flooring has become popular in modern office buildings and data centres to prevent leaks from above, and circulate air in a way that is more energy efficient.

Elevator core cladding installation, image courtesy of PCL

Additional information and images can be found in our Database file for the project, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum thread, or leave a comment below.

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