Boeing International Headquarters vs Grant Thornton Tower

Comparing the Boeing International Headquarters and the Grant Thornton Tower is interesting because they both stand in Chicago, IL, and were completed within 2 years of each other, but they were designed by different architects.

This offers a unique glimpse at how rival designers approached projects in the same city during the same era.

The Grant Thornton Tower is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 755ft (230m) with 50 floors above ground, while the Boeing International Headquarters reaches 561ft (171m) with 36 floors above ground.

Of course, each project may have faced different briefs or regulatory constraints, which we don't really know about and could also explain the outcome.

Both the Boeing International Headquarters and the Grant Thornton Tower were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Postmodernism style.

The Grant Thornton Tower was designed at a moment when the Postmodernism style was already in decline, making it more of a lingering expression of the movement. In contrast, the Boeing International Headquarters was built when the style still carried greater cultural weight.

Both the Boeing International Headquarters and the Grant Thornton Tower were designed to serve as commercial towers, and that has remained their main use since their completion, serving similar roles in the urban fabric.

The Boeing International Headquarters also provides 435 parking spaces.

Both the Boeing International Headquarters and the Grant Thornton Tower rely on a Frame structural system.

A frame structure uses a grid of columns and beams to carry the building's loads. This frees the walls from structural duties, allowing for flexible floor plans and larger windows.

They also employ the same type of facade, a Curtain Wall facade.

A curtain wall is a non-load-bearing facade hung from the structural frame. It is anchored to floor slabs and transfers only its own weight and wind loads, allowing for sleek, glassy exteriors.