Rutherford Police Headquarters

Rutherford Police Headquarters

Rutherford in Bergen County, in the US state of New Jersey is home to a new Police Headquarters. 

The unit consists of a three-storey, 21,000 sq. ft. building designed to support the borough police department and the municipal court and has an emergency operations centre, officer and detective offices; and departments that include dispatch, violations, and detainee processing. 

Institutional and operational requirements combined with the multifaceted nature of the facility meant a thorough labour of design was paramount at all stages in the project. The building had to not only provide a useful and comfortable workplace and place of service for the community but had to have a contemporary yet timeless design to host and serve as a reference to the community and future generations.

The Borough of Rutherford and RSC Architects led the design of the project.

The facade of the Rutherford Police Headquarters consists of a mix of brick and terracotta cladding. The brick component provides a traditional element and the combination of flat terracotta tiles and a terracotta brise-soleil system add a contemporary touch and both materials blend beautifully with the local townscape.

Brick and terracotta are both popular façade resources not only because they are natural materials with a great environmental profile and unrivalled specifications, but also offer design versatility and ease of installation. They are also often used together.

The terracotta element in this project consisted of 700m² of flat Tampa Argeton cladding tiles and 1700 linear metres of 50x50mm Barro Argeton baguettes, both in a bespoke shade of ivory in a glazed finish.

The design concept of the flat tiles element was relatively simple which allowed for an off the shelf support system to be used however the design concept of the brise-soleil element was more complex. The sun shading system consisted of baguette profiles spanning vertically along the side of the building all the way to the top where they transitioned onto a soffit. This transition required a change of direction in both planes and this design aspect together with some other project particulars such as angled cuts and a requirement for an invisible support system offered unique geometric challenges and the necessity of 3D modelling to aid the setting out and production of the mitred baguettes and supporting bracketry. 

The Rutherford Police Headquarters is today an iconic building that the local community at Rutherford are proud of but it is also a recent living testimony of how understanding the purpose that a building needs to offer its users, respecting architect’s vision and providing the required technical support and adaptability are the key to great architecture.

Telling Rainscreens ltd is an engineering house and the technical arm for the supply of the Argeton cladding system in the UK and the USA. Argeton terracotta is a popular off the shelf cladding solution sought after for its robustness and ease of installation however it’s also available in bespoke shapes.