Chase Tower vs Aon Center

Comparing the Chase Tower and the Aon Center is interesting because they both stand in Chicago, IL, and were completed within 4 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 Aon Center is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 1135ft (346m) with 83 floors above ground, while the Chase Tower reaches 868ft (264.6m) with 61 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 Chase Tower and the Aon Center were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the International Style style.

The Aon Center was designed at a moment when the International Style style was already in decline, making it more of a lingering expression of the movement. In contrast, the Chase Tower was built when the style still carried greater cultural weight.

Both the Chase Tower and the Aon Center 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 Aon Center also provides 679 parking spaces.

The two buildings opted for different structural and facade solutions.

The Chase Tower uses a Frame system, which relies on a regular grid of columns and beams to sustain its weight, while the Aon Center uses a Framed Tube In Tube system, that combines a strong central core with a perimeter tube of columns.

And when it came to the facade, the Window Wall went with a Window Wall facade, which uses panels fitted between floor slabs, leaving slab edges visible, while the Aon Center opted for a Curtain Wall facade, that uses a lightweight glass curtain wall hung from the structure.