At SUPERSTRUCTURES, we continually refine our “line” to find the most time-effective, cost-effective, and elegant restoration solutions for each project. What do we mean by “line?” In auto racing, victory hinges on a formula of speed + safety. Completing the course in the shortest time without wiping out requires finding and following the “racing line,” the ideal route to negotiate turns swiftly but without incident.

In The Thing from Another World (1951), a team tracks a mysterious aircraft across Polar ice. They fan out, and connect the “dots” of their positions to form a circle, revealing that the craft in question is actually…a flying saucer. The science in this Science Fiction story (fanciful as it is) echoes the methods SUPERSTRUCTURES uses to diagnose defects in building envelopes.

The tradeoff between remote and in-person work calls to mind the famous Isaac Asimov short story, “The Fun They Had.” Back in 2020, our team did well working from home, mastering remote access tools and, in some cases, working as efficiently as in our office setting. But before long, many of us were saying we couldn’t wait to get back to the office (or on-site).

Remediation of cracks and spalls in masonry and concrete is a key part of our practice. While we endorse immediate repair of all observed deficiencies, we’re intrigued by this artist’s approach to less serious conditions (while they await repair, of course).

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe said, “God is in the details.” SUPERSTRUCTURES’ restoration of 31 Greene Street (George W. DaCunha, 1876) in the SoHo-Cast Iron Historic District demonstrates how attention to restoration details at almost one hundred discrete locations creates a unified standout.

Plans to “restore” Giza’s pyramid of Menkaure by recladding its facade with granite blocks have stirred up a monumental debate. The available evidence, including original stones remaining at the base of the pyramid, indicates that the original “design intent” included polished Aswan granite cladding. But should the pyramid be reclad? The question is a redux of the dilemma constantly facing preservationists.

SUPERSTRUCTURES' restoration of NYU’s Department of Philosophy Building (Alfred Zucker, 1891) posed two professional challenges to our team: to extrapolate, based on incomplete evidence, facade details that had been lost over time; and to decide where inappropriate past repairs to the facade should be reversed to recreate the building’s historic appearance.

The SCA, NYCHA, DCAS, DDC, HHC, PANY&NJ, OGS, DASNY, and US GSA—SUPERSTRUCTURES has active projects for all these agencies.  So our client list is replete with acronyms, right? Actually, some are not acronyms, but initialisms. What's the difference?

SUPERSTRUCTURES’ Associate Principal, Lorie Riddle, RA (center) and Architectural Conservator, Nityaa Iyer (left) examine the condition of ornamental plaster on the rotunda ceiling of the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House—from a platform 40 feet above the floor.

The skies over New York City got a little wilder late last year when Flaco, a Eurasian eagle owl escaped the Central Park Zoo. City bird watchers may also start noticing Flaco’s mechanical counterparts: UAVs—drones—approved last year for building inspections across the five boroughs.