Blast-mitigating curtainwall also supports LEED goals

U.S. General Services Administration's (GSA's) Federal Office Building 8 (FOB 8) will soon complete its major modernization. The project includes Wausau Window and Wall Systems blast-mitigating curtainwall to enhance the façade with contemporary aesthetics and functionality, providing occupants with expansive views and plentiful access to natural light.

Upon completion, anticipated before the end of 2012, the project will seek LEED Gold certification from the USGBC. Maximizing daylighting strategies, the exterior renovations entail replacing a large portion of the existing limestone façade with expanses of glazing. Additions and expansions include a glass entrance pavilion at the building's north side, projected window bays on the south façade, and two new atria.

Wausau custom-engineered and fabricated Blast Hazard Mitigation (BHM) Series four-sided, unitized curtainwall. In addition to the unitized wall, Wausau provided point-supported glass wing walls and atrium curtainwall systems. In total, Tidewater Glazing, Inc. installed approximately 60,000-sf of Wausau's high-performance systems on the project.

FOB 8 occupies the entire block at 3rd and C Streets S.W., in Washington, D.C. It originally housed Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) headquarters and laboratories. Designed by Boggs & Partners, the renovations will transform the property into a half-million square foot Class A office space nestled in a park-like setting. Once FOB 8's transformation is complete, the Architect of the Capitol and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will lease the space.

FDA vacated the building in 2002 and interior renovation began. GSA awarded the $72.8 million contract to Turner Construction Company in January 2010. The 545,000-sf building is comprised of eight levels: a basement, a ground level, and six additional stories. There also is a rooftop penthouse containing mechanical equipment.

The project scope includes the renovation of the exterior of the building and its grounds, the addition of an entrance pavilion, and the installation of permanent perimeter security. The permanent security measures were developed in accordance with the Interagency Security Committee (ISC) Security Design Criteria for New Federal Office Buildings and Major Modernization Projects. +