Building Component

Building parts that serve a building-wide functional or enclosing role rather than carrying its primary structural load: the cornice as a finishing and weathering element, the curtain wall as a non-load-bearing external skin, and the safety elevator as the vertical-circulation invention that made the tall building habitable. Belongs here: named components that serve an enclosing, finishing or servicing function. Does not belong here: load-bearing structural forms such as the column or the arch, grouped under structural element, or the raw materials such components are built from, grouped under material.