2006 Precast Concrete (Co-Winner)

Construction Trades Addition
MN State Community & Technical College
Moorhead

The existing college campus was comprised of one contiguous building that had been expanded eight times over the last 40 years. The exterior treatment was a mixture of brick veneer cavity wall construction and precast concrete “T” panels that were introduced in one of the 1970’s additions when the facility was still a technical school. The new Construction Trades Lab addition was planned for a primary corner of the campus with high visibility off the main arterial street and also visible from the Interstate Highway due to its height requirement as a Trades Lab. The intent with this addition was to incorporate both brick and concrete exterior materials, but to reinterpret the use of the concrete in a more contemporary and refined manner to reflect the change in use of the building over the years now as a Community and Technical College. The concrete panels contained horizontal reveals as well as projected horizontal banding and a cornice. Integral color was used on the exterior of the panels for a warmer beige appearance and to avoid the maintenance of a painted finish. Early during the design process, the decision was made to also go with a concrete panel back-up in lieu of CMU at the brick cavity walls. This allowed the structure to be erected in less time to allow the Construction Trades programs to move into the new lab sooner, and allow their old space to be remodeled into other functions in a timelier manner.