New Luxury Student Housing Uses Metal Materials to Honor University’s History
Designers at Gensler Houston turn to Móz Designs to create a one-of-a-kind student housing experience.
[College Station, TX] – Tasked with designing new student housing for Texas A&M students, the design team at Gensler Houston knew they wanted to create something that would stand out from other housing in the area. Built in 2018, Aspire College Station Luxury Student Housing (with 15 stories and 263 units) does just that.
“Aspire College Station was created to offer Texas A&M University students a lifestyle, not just an apartment,” explained Ane Rocha, an associate at Gensler Houston, who says the design succeeded in being a differentiator from its College Station competitors. “Gensler worked with the client to develop a student housing property that would appeal not only to the building’s occupant demographic—college students—but also their parents.”
From the onset, the design team knew they wanted to pay homage to the university’s heritage and history while adhering to strict copyright guidelines. The Century Tree, which grows near the Texas A&M Academic Building, is a special place for many students and alumni. More than 100 years old, the tree was one of the first planted on the university’s campus. The oak tree is notable for its size as well as its unique branches, many of which rest on the ground. “Using perforated metal to create the image of a grand oak tree was the perfect solution,” said Rocha. “We wanted to keep a mix of industrial and high luster materials.”
The Gensler team used custom Móz Digital Perforated Aluminum Wall Sheets in a powder coat Nickel colorway to create the one-of-a-kind oak tree image. Twenty one flat panels of ⅛” aluminum were used throughout the project—approximately 482 square feet of custom perforated metal in all. And instead of printing the image directly onto the material, the custom perforated metal used different hole sizes throughout the panels to create the image of a tree over the entire elevation. “It is a very important piece of the design, as it brings you into the building and gives you a sense of wonder,” said Rocha. “And the Móz team is great to work with.”
Móz Perforated Metal is available in a wide variety of standard colors with custom options available. Designers can also request superior durable finishes for exterior applications. Móz Perforated Metal can be used on columns, exterior panels, wall panels, ceilings and room dividers. And with custom imagery options available, designers have endless options for bringing unique visual elements to any space.