United Steelworkers Building
The United Steelworkers Building, originally named the IBM Building and also known as the I.W. Abel Building or Five Gateway Center, is a highrise office building in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was built by the Equitable Life Assurance Society in 1961–64 as part of the Gateway Center project which redeveloped a large portion of the area known as the Point. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing property in the Pittsburgh Renaissance Historic District and has been designated as a Pittsburgh landmark by the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation.
| United Steelworkers Building | |
|---|---|
The building in 2019 | |
| Former names | IBM Building |
| Alternative names | I.W. Abel Building, Five Gateway Center |
| General information | |
| Type | Office |
| Location | 60 Boulevard of the Allies |
| Town or city | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Country | United States of America |
| Coordinates | 40°26′22″N 80°00′20″W |
| Groundbreaking | December 5, 1961 |
| Topped-out | November 8, 1962 |
| Opening | March 19, 1964 |
| Cost | $5 million |
| Owner | United Steelworkers |
| Height | 172 feet (52 m) (estimated) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 13 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Curtis and Davis |
| Developer | Equitable Life Assurance Society |
| Structural engineer | Worthington, Skilling, Helle & Jackson |
| Main contractor | George A. Fuller Co. |
IBM Building | |
| Part of | Pittsburgh Renaissance Historic District (ID13000252) |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | May 2, 2013 |
| Designated PHLF | 2014 |
The building was designed by Curtis and Davis, a New Orleans-based architecture firm, with structural engineers Worthington, Skilling, Helle & Jackson. The design of the building, featuring a load-bearing steel diagrid exoskeleton, was highly unusual at the time and helped pioneer the use of diagrids and framed tube construction.