Landover, MD
National Park Service, Warehouse
Scope/Solutions
The General Services Administration leased warehouse space to the National Park Service (NPS) to house rare and valuable national artifacts, along with offices and laboratories. NPS required a floor coating system to seal the concrete from dusting, withstand large weights with a wide margin of safety, tolerate a rigorous cleaning protocol, and provide a high degree of cleanliness necessary for the storage of museum artifacts. Shortly after installation, the floor coating exhibited blisters in the epoxy finish. SGH investigated the causes of the blistering and developed a remedial plan to get NPS the functioning flooring surface they needed.
Highlights of SGH’s work on this project include the following:
- Reviewed previous reports that included data on moisture content of soils under the concrete slab-on-grade
- Conducted testing that revealed osmotic pressure as the cause of the blisters in the floor coatings
- Developed a remedial program that included construction of a swing space to serve as temporary storage for artifacts during repair
- Designed a floor system design that was able to tolerate the existing conditions and resist further blistering
- Developed plans and specifications for the warehouse repairs and administered the remedial construction
1 of 2
Project Summary
2004
Completion Date
Solutions
Repair & Rehabilitation
Services
Applied Science & Research
Markets
Government | Industrial
Client(s)
Sinkin & Crivella
Specialized Capabilities
Materials Science
Key team members
Additional Projects
Mid-Atlantic
Thomas Jefferson Memorial
Originally constructed in the early 1940s, the Thomas Jefferson Memorial sits on the south bank of the Tidal Basin adjacent to the Potomac River in Washington, DC. SGH provided structural engineering services as part of a phased restoration to various elements of the monument.
Mid-Atlantic
St. Elizabeths Center Building
The U.S. General Services Administration wanted to repurpose the historic Center Building as the central office for the Department of Homeland Security.