Land Development, Site Planning, & Design
- New Thermal Test Facility,
U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center
Natick, Massachusetts
the challenge The U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center in Natick, MA develops a wide array of clothing and equipment for the warfighter, and immediately needed additional space to support their research activities and respond to issues arising from the Iraq war effort. The Thermal Test Facility includes new laboratories and testing facilities to provide testing of uniforms and support equipment under controlled conditions to determine their ability to protect against battlefield thermal effects from microwave, laser, fire, or other thermal sources. The Bioengineering Group was retained to provide the site civil and landscape design of this 8,266 sq. ft. facility consistent with the achievement of a “Silver” rating using the Corps of Engineers Sustainable Project Rating Tool (SPiRiT). The need to keep project costs within the limits of a very tight budget, and a fast-track schedule were major constraints.
the interdisciplinary approach The Bioengineering Group identified key elements of the site design for application of low cost, low impact, sustainable design approaches. We developed a detailed erosion and sediment control plan to contain and manage construction phase and long-term runoff to handle water on site. Landscaping was designed to reduce urban heat island effects and to minimize water usage through the utilization of low maintenance native “low mow” turf grasses
A particular challenge was routing the subsurface utility lines owing to the many existing lines that crisscrossed the site, many so old that no information as to their exact depths and location existed. A utility location survey was conducted to locate all utility lines and their inverts and profiles were developed to ensure that new lines were routed to avoid conflicts with existing utilities while accommodating bioinfiltration measures for stormwater handling. The firm’s scope of work also include the provision of construction drawings, SPECSINTACT specifications, MCACES cost estimates, and engineering services during bidding and construction of this $9 million facility.
the results The site design provided by Bioengineering Group staff achieved the maximum number of points possible under the SPiRiT rating system for Sustainable Sites given the nature of the project and an overall “Silver” rating was achieved consistent with the requirements for all MILCON projects. The project came in on budget and schedule to support mission critical war support functions. It also is an example of how low impact; sustainable site development can be employed, even on sites with small footprints within densely populated military base environments.