Haynes Whaley was pleased to be part of the design team for the Smithsonian Institute (SI) Collections and Support Center, located in the Washington, DC metropolitan area.  Renovations, interior modifications, and the addition of two mezzanines totaling 368,600 sf were made to an existing warehouse building to house six different Smithsonian offices, including Exhibits Central, Libraries, Facilities Management, Protective Services, National Museum of African American History and Culture collections, and the National Museum of American History collections.  Special features of the building included rare book conservation facilities, a security training facility, shuttle bus transportation hub, and exhibit design and fabrication shops. Notable facts about the project and its construction are numerous, including a reflective white roof and the use of a helicopter and 600-ton crane to hoist 33 RTU’s. Our project partners for this outstanding facility included Developer: Trammell Crow Company; Contractor:  Harvey-Cleary Builders; and Architect:  Gensler.

Haynes Whaley worked closely with all team members in executing an accelerated 6-month schedule.  In fact, construction moved at such a fast pace that a delivery truck making a material drop off inside the building was framed-in by walls before it could even unload! 

Earlier this month, the SI Collections & Support Center received a 2009 Gold Award from the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) and two Awards of Excellence from NAIOP for Best Suburban Renovation and Best Interiors over 25,000 sf.