National WWI Museum and Bergman Memorial Family Gallery and Open Storage Center
Kansas City, Mo.
Merit Award
Sent by: JE Dunn Construction Co.
Owner: Museum and National Memorial of the First World War
Main design company: Multi-study
General contractor: JE Dunn Construction Co.
Structural Engineer: KH Engineering
MEP Engineer: IMEG Corp.
Subcontractors: Steel builders; E and K of Kansas City; Square One; DH Pace; Flynn Midwest
As part of the memorial’s newly renovated lower level, the Bergman Memorial Family Gallery features 4,000 square feet of storage, including a 190-foot shoreline of windows that display artifacts that were once stored in storage facilities. locked storage at the back of the house. This space allows guests to observe curators and archivists preparing artefacts for display in one of the world’s largest First World War collections.
This $3.7 million project faced a tight completion date, so the team prioritized early procurement and streamlined project management, successfully completing work on time and on budget in May 2023.
Originally built in the 1930s, the memorial museum was designed as a circular space with curved walls that were not built to be exactly concentric. But the scope of the project included the construction of a staircase leading from the ground floor to the basement, except that the outer wall did not match the same curvature as the inner wall. This meant that every measurement had to be extremely precise, especially with the ceiling tiles matching the curve of the staircase from above. To overcome this obstacle, the team created a template of each piece to be cut, ensuring the accuracy of the installation.
To create the shoreline shelving in the open storage space, the contractor designed and built unique shelving units in their pre-construction facility. Custom shelving temporarily displays the museum’s large collection of World War I artifacts while museum archivists prepare the pieces for display in other exhibits.
