For the past six years, architecture/engineering firm Leo A Daly has been designing sites for remote field stations that are collecting environmental data across the country on behalf of the National Ecological Observatory Network, an independent nonprofit entity funded by the National Science Foundation.
Over its 30-year lifespan, NEON’s 106 aquatic and terrestrial sites will track climate conditions, land-use changes, and data on invasive species. The sites have been selected to represent different regions of vegetation, landforms, climate, and ecosystem performance.
One difficult design problem, according to Elizabeth Hunter, the firm’s Project Manager for NEON, has been complying with a mandate of near-zero ecological disturbance. “NEON’s engineers wanted to build [the field stations] with a hovercraft and not disturb anything,” she says, only half jokingly. Leo A Daly, which has designed structures for national parks, had to find ways to meet NEON’s demands using equipment no bigger nor more intrusive than a small skid steer loader.
Case in point: the instrument hut and tower for a site called Dead Lake, near Demopolis, Ala. The site is located close to the Black Warrior River and is susceptible to flooding. NEON has strict criteria about enclosing its instruments within a continuous foundation, so the design team called for the tower to be built on a foundation supported by piers five feet off the ground that allow floodwaters to pass through. The station went live in 2013.
The sites are mostly self sufficient, but have to be accessible by scientists, who visit the sites periodically to collect data and recalibrate the equipment. At Dead Lake, an elevated metal boardwalk wiggles its way around trees and other obstructions from the site to a staging area a couple of hundred feet away.
Hunter says the buildout of 60 towers and 46 aquatic sites—including 40 relocatable structures—should be completed by 2017. The towers range in height from 26 to 300 feet and take two to six months to build. The sites cost anywhere from under $500,000 to more than $1 million each.
Read about more innovations from BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report
Related Stories
| Apr 6, 2012
National Association of Women in Construction forum to be hosted in Philadelphia
The April Forum, titled “Declare your Independence!” will feature educational sessions on topics ranging from Managing the Generation Gap and Dealing with Contract language across state borders to Strategic and Succession Planning.
| Apr 6, 2012
Rooftop solar energy program wins critical approval from L.A. city council
Los Angeles Business Council applauds decision allowing LADWP to create new national model for rooftop solar energy
| Apr 6, 2012
Batson-Cook breaks ground on hotel adjacent to Infantry Museum & Fort Benning
The four-story, 65,000-ft property will feature 102 hotel rooms, including 14 studio suites.
| Apr 6, 2012
Perkins Eastman unveils Qatar mixed-use sports complex
Home stadium for Lekhwiya Club a vibrant addition to Doha’s architectural identity.
| Apr 5, 2012
5 tips for a successful door and window retrofit
An exclusive tip sheet to help the Building Team manage door and window retrofits successfully.
| Apr 4, 2012
Educational facilities see long-term benefits of fiber cement cladding
Illumination panels made for a trouble-free, quick installation at a cost-effective price.
| Apr 4, 2012
HDS designs Mount Auburn Hospital’s new healthcare center in Waltham, Mass.
HDS Architecture provided design services for all the Mount Auburn Healthcare suites including coordination of HVAC and FP engineering.
| Apr 4, 2012
Bald joins the Harmon glazing team
Bald has 13 years of experience in the glazing industry, coming to Harmon from Trainor where he was the regional manager of the Mid-Atlantic region.
| Apr 4, 2012
JCJ Architecture designs New York City's first casino
Aqueduct Racetrack complex transformed into modern entertainment destination.
| Apr 4, 2012
San Antonio animal hospital earns LEED Platinum certification
Middleman Construction Company builds the city?s first commercial building to earn certification.