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The U.S. Treasury Building may not be a leading Washington, D.C., tourist attraction, but its prominent location adjacent to the White House and on the $10 bill make the imposing granite structure one of the most recognized landmarks in the nation's capital.
There's more to the Treasury Building than just money. Three architects designed the four granite wings that were constructed over a 33-year span, concluding in 1869. The five-story building also houses one of the federal government's oldest and most intact collections of fine and decorative arts.
With decades of heavy use clearly evident in the condition of the building's historic finishes and infrastructure, treasury officials authorized a full-scale, $120 million renovation and modernization program that got under way in 1999.
The joint venture of Turner Construction Co. of Arlington, Va., and Grunley Construction Co. of Washington led the construction manager-at risk team on the six-year, four-phase project.
The team found widespread interior and exterior deterioration; peeling insulation; and antiquated mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection systems. It also had to address extensive water damage - the result of a 1997 roof fire - as well as lead-based paint, asbestos, mercury and PCBs located throughout the building.
Perhaps the project's biggest task was concealing 21st Century building systems within a 19th Century structure. Brick inner walls were channeled out to create chases for mechanical ductwork, while new electrical conduit was routed through carefully cut holes in walls and ceilings.
The lack of available space above the existing plaster ceilings required the project team to install 3.5-in., raised-access flooring on the floor above for the new lighting and sprinklers. In some cases, existing slate and marble floors were removed, catalogued and reinstalled at a different elevation.
Restoring the building's plasterwork required superior craftsmanship, especially for the intricate, 150-year-old moldings. Workers from specialty subcontractor John H. Hampshire Inc.of Baltimore, carefully restored original ornamental and cornice plaster molds on the walls and ceilings. New molds were cast and installed in areas that had suffered severe deterioration.
With no blueprints of the Treasury Building to work from, the project team encountered one surprise after another. Many steel vaults leftover from the days when the building housed portions of the nation's money supply were discovered only after demolition work began.
Cutting through the steel plates and rebar for one particularly thick vault opening required more than a month.
Despite the project's complexities, the Treasury Building renovation was completed on schedule and within budget. Treasury officials accepted 75 of the project team's scope-reduction recommendations, saving the government $6 million.
Key Players:
Owner: US Department of the Treasury, Washington, D.C.
Architect: Shalom Baranes Assoc., Washington, D.C.
General Contractor: Turner Construction/Grunley Co. Joint Venture, Arlington, Va.
Structural Engineering: Thornton-Tomasetti-Cutts, Washington, D.C.
MEP Engineer: URS, Washington, D.C.
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