In 1999, Tennessee concrete company Smyrna Ready Mix started off with just three trucks. Since then, it has grown to 5,400 employees in 16 states. Last year, the company moved from its small office in downtown Nashville to its new corporate headquarters on an 800-acre site.
Designed by EOA Architects to showcase various concrete processes and applications, the five-story, 85,000-sf building’s vertical layering mimics the patterns in the company’s stone quarry, located on the opposite end of the campus site. The building’s glass and concrete bands are meant to mirror the quarry’s natural contours and striations.
Inside, the helix of the building’s circulation patterns draws inspiration from the shape of a concrete mixing truck drum. Exposed concrete walls extend unobstructed from the first through fifth floors. The shear wall, the elevator, and the stair cores are 18-inch-thick poured walls with a custom radius, minimizing the amount of finishing work needed post-pour.
The interior design also references the company’s brand and industry. Custom-designed light fixtures echo the forms of concrete drums. The steps’ curved underside nods to the supply chutes used to pour concrete from the mixing drum. In the training room, the wet bar’s backsplash has been made with repurposed test cylinders, which are used to determine the strength of a mixed concrete batch. Furniture and textiles incorporate the red, white, and blue colors of the company’s logo.
The project also features corporate amenities for onsite staff and drivers, including dining, a fitness facility, training and community rooms, and a daycare center for 100 of the company and community’s children. Future plans for the campus include walking paths.
On the Building Team:
Owner: SRM Concrete
Design architect: EOA Architects
Architect of record: EOA Architects
MEP engineer: I.C. Thomasson Associates
Structural engineer: EMC Structural Engineers
General contractor/construction manager: DPR Construction
Here is the design statement from EOA Architects:
Smyrna Ready Mix is a family-owned and operated concrete company founded in Smyrna, Tennessee in 1999. Beginning with only three trucks, the company has grown to 5,400 employees in 16 states. This dramatic expansion meant it was time to move from a cramped office in downtown Nashville to a new corporate headquarters on an 800-acre site near an interstate interchange just south of the city. Here, the new building will help anchor a new mixed-use development, provide a landmark for a new corporate campus and help definite this gateway to the town of Smyrna.
Office Building as Billboard
Designed to showcase the varied types of concrete processes and applications, the vertical layering of the five-story building mimics the rhythms found in the company’s stone quarry, also located on the site. The building profile rises at the opposite end the site from the sunken quarry, creating an inverse relationship that guides the design. The building’s floor plate pushes and pulls to create an organic form with glass and concrete bands mirroring the quarry’s natural contours and striations.
Full glazing takes advantage of surrounding views and showcases the structural components, including numerous types of concrete and finishing styles. Slender 16-inch diameter columns made of a high-strength concrete mix balance on elegant bases tapered to 10 inches at the first floor and do the work of a typical 24-inch column. Cantilevered post-tension slabs demonstrate the material’s sculptural possibilities. The building contains no 90-degree edges; everything is rounded, creating a dynamic flow that further reinforces concrete’s versatility.
Workplace design uses lightness, movement
EOA steered away from a brutalist concrete expression to emphasize light and lightness and create a warm and welcoming environment. Users enter the building through three large concrete fins that provide the framework for the entry vestibules. The lobby floor is a custom concrete mix developed by EOA and SRM that resembles terrazzo. The lobby’s material palate adds a vertical oak motif complemented by champagne colored metal ceilings and railings. A double cantilevered concrete stair anchored in front of the exposed double-height concrete shear wall cascades gracefully into the lobby space, establishing the sense of open movement that permeates the building.
Inspired by the shape of a concrete mixing truck drum, the design incorporates an internal helix into the building’s circulation patterns. Vertical circulation is highlighted through the use of exposed concrete walls that extend unobstructed from the first through fifth floors. The shear wall, as well as the elevator and stair cores are 18-inch-thick poured walls with a custom radius to soften the edges and minimize the amount of finishing work required post-pour. These elements were left in a natural sculptural state with only a matte finish sealer applied to allow the form-work joints to cast shadows as sunlight moves through the space.
Artful connections to the company's brand and industry infuse the interiors: Custom designed light fixtures echo the forms of concrete drums. The curved underside of the monumental steps is a nod to the supply chutes used to pour concrete from the mixing drum. In the training room, test cylinders, used to determine the strength of each mixed concrete batch, were cut and re-purposed as the backsplash of the training room wet bar. Furniture and textiles subtly incorporate the red, white and blue colors of the company's logo.
Office building supports family business, community vision
The family had a specific and progressive vision for its new home. It was important to them to invite the community into the building and onto the campus, which includes a historic community cemetery. Future plans include walking paths to create a larger, healthy holistic environment. The project also prioritized unprecedented corporate amenities for both on-site staff as well as drivers: the first floor includes on-site dining, a fitness facility, training and community rooms as well as a daycare center for 100 of the company and community’s children.
Related Stories
| Jun 17, 2013
DOE launches database on energy performance of 60,000 buildings
The Energy Department today launched a new Buildings Performance Database, the largest free, publicly available database of residential and commercial building energy performance information.
| Jun 13, 2013
7 great places that represent excellence in environmental design
An adaptive reuse to create LEED Platinum offices, a park that honors veterans, and a grand national plaza are among the seven projects named winners of the 2013 Great Places Awards. The Environmental Design and Research Association recognize professional and scholarly excellence in environmental design, with special attention paid to the relationship between physical form and human activity or experience.
| Jun 12, 2013
5 building projects that put the 'team' in teamwork
The winners of the 2013 Building Team Awards show that great buildings cannot be built without the successful collaboration of the Building Team.
| Jun 11, 2013
Finnish elevator technology could facilitate supertall building design
KONE Corporation has announced a new elevator technology that could make it possible for supertall buildings to reach new heights by eliminating several problems of existing elevator technology. The firm's new UltraRope hoisting system uses a rope with a carbon-fiber core and high-friction coating, rather than conventional steel rope.
| Jun 6, 2013
Get smart about space utilization in the workplace
As we continue to look for more effective ways to improve the overall workplace experience, one tool we can use is measuring and analyzing space utilization.
| Jun 5, 2013
USGBC: Free LEED certification for projects in new markets
In an effort to accelerate sustainable development around the world, the U.S. Green Building Council is offering free LEED certification to the first projects to certify in the 112 countries where LEED has yet to take root.
| Jun 4, 2013
SOM research project examines viability of timber-framed skyscraper
In a report released today, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill discussed the results of the Timber Tower Research Project: an examination of whether a viable 400-ft, 42-story building could be created with timber framing. The structural type could reduce the carbon footprint of tall buildings by up to 75%.
| Jun 3, 2013
Construction spending inches upward in April
The U.S. Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced today that construction spending during April 2013 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $860.8 billion, 0.4 percent above the revised March estimate of $857.7 billion.
| Jun 3, 2013
Trifecta of awards recognize Vision/Rubenstein campus, Bayer Healthcare HQ
When Vision Equities, LLC and Rubenstein Partners purchased the 200-acre former Alcatel-Lucent campus in Whippany a little more than two years ago, the partnership recognized the property’s potential to serve as a benchmark infill revitalization for the State of New Jersey.
| May 31, 2013
Nation's first retrofitted zero-energy building opens in California
The new training facility for IBEW/NECA is the first commercial building retrofit designed to meet the U.S. Department of Energy’s requirements for a net-zero energy building.