Design

When you engage us to help in the design process, we’re aware of the position we need to take: strong supporting cast members enhance the lead actor rather than highlighting their own functions.  Our goal in design projects is to gain access to the process early so that we can positively influence designs while still malleable.  Protective design, hardening, armoring and safety do introduce an additional set of “loads” and requirements into the design process, but these loads need not and should not drive the design.  Our consultants are experienced in understanding the creative process as well as the construction and fabrication processes.  We look forward to reviewing and commenting on your preliminary concepts, and to assisting you through project commissioning.

• Design and retrofit of DoD buildings and facilities to satisfy the requirements of UFC 4-010-01, “Minimum Antiterrorism Standards for Buildings”
• Design and retrofit of GSA buildings to satisfy the requirements of the Interagency Security Committee
• Design and retrofit of Veterans Administration outpatient clinics, hospitals and campuses to meet the requirements of the VA Physical Security
• Design Manuals (Life Safety and Mission Critical Protected)
• Design and retrofit of buildings at chemical and petrochemical facilities to protect against accidental explosions
• Design and evaluation of explosive storage facilities
• Design and evaluation of protective systems for high pressure tanks and piping
• Design and evaluation of tactical and commercial vehicle armor
• Design, fabrication and testing of specialty test equipment and sensor systems
• Design of safety systems for vehicle impact and aircraft overrun

Process

Our approach to design support projects begins with your request for a review of the design services.  For developmental mechanical systems or design-bid-build projects, our narrative or scope generally accompanies our fee letter for project services.  For design-build-leaseback (developer or contractor led design), our services will include preliminary analysis and design to support a pricing package in support of the pursuit.  Our fees, proposed for acceptance upon award of the project to the design team, will include these preliminary activities.

We appreciate the confidence you place in us when you select us to be part of a design team.  To justify that confidence, we provide timely and complete design and specification information.  Our approach is necessarily conservative during the concept and preliminary design stages, so that required details can be incorporated.  This approach allows us to efficiently (and cost effectively) respond to esthetic, functional and operational change requests later in the project. We have sufficient reserve in our early details so that changes won’t adversely impact the performance of the protective measures.

We continue to support the design team through all design and construction or fabrication document preparation.  Throughout the process, we collaboratively introduce details for incorporation into the architect’s and structural engineer’s drawings, providing review and markups after print.  Our services can extend into construction and fabrication as desired.  We routinely work with vendors (blast windows, facades, curtainwalls) throughout the design process such that submittals are responsive and comments are limited.

We are proud to have our name associated with the many courthouses, law enforcement buildings, DoD offices, barracks and hospitals that you design, and that we help protect.