New fire station is airport landmark
by Jonathan McGaha | February 28, 2009 12:00 am
When the new Indianapolis airport opened in November 2008, the $6 million Fire
Station #1,which was dedicated on Jan. 18, 2008, became a visible landmark for
departing passengers and visitors. Part of the Indianapolis Airport Authority’s
massive Midfield Project, the facility was built with no local property tax
dollars.
Built to meet the needs of the expanding airport complex while continually providing the best possible emergency response times for passengers, airline and airport personnel, and members of the community, the 21,900-square-foot (2,035-m2) fire station serves as the department headquarters and is home to Crash 990, Tower 994, Rescue 995, Special Ops 997, Marion County Mass Decon Trailer, Squad 998 and Battalion 9. It houses six on-duty firefighters and four full-time administrative personnel.
The lower level of the fire station consists of a lobby and reception area for guests with access to administrative offices, a small conference room and a copy room with filing area; state-of-the-art training room with video-conferencing technology; a large apparatus area more than 100 feet (30 m) long configured for quickly deploying emergency response equipment; alarm center; on-duty lieutenant’s and battalion chief’s offices; a large eat-in kitchen; day-room; and quarter-master’s storage. The second level contains a fitness facility, small quiet room, bunks, and men’s and women’s shower and locker rooms.
For the fire station, architectural firm RQAW Corp., Indianapolis, was challenged to design a station that responded to both air and structure fires while integrating the design into a context that is dominated by the new airport terminal.
The swooping arch of the terminal roof was translated into a segmented arching form that dominates the assimilation of sculptural components in contrast to the uniformity of the terminal. The ribbed metal panels and split-face block contrast the smooth material surfaces of the terminal and many of the support buildings. The smooth metal panels establish a relationship with the terminal and integrate the design into the complex.
The function of the fire station is expressed in the contemporary interpretation of an historic hose tower, which is used for training. The truncated glass entrance rotated from the building plane responds to the parking offset from the building to maximize site utilization and enhance the access sequence. A sunscreen was incorporated to reduce utility costs, filter natural light into offices and add a 3-D sculptural component of light, shade and form that complements the architectural dialogue of the form and façade.
Kawneer, Norcross, Ga., supplied 569 square feet (53 m2) of glass storefront entrance and 629 square feet (58 m2) of aluminum windows, and Minneapolis-based Mon-Ray Inc. provided 474 square feet (44 m2) of soundproof windows. Construction Specialties Inc., Cranford, N.J., supplied 356 square feet (33 m2) of sunscreens. Moon Township, Pa.-based CENTRIA provided 3,170 square feet (294 m2) of profile metal wall panels and 5,698 square feet (529 m2) of flat metal wall panels. Berridge Manufacturing Co., San Antonio, manufactured 3,816 square feet (355 m2) of standing-seam metal roofing. Indianapolis-based Overhead Door Co. of Indianapolis fabricated nine overhead doors for the fire station.
Garcia Construction Group Inc., Indianapolis, was the construction manager; RL Turner Corp., Zionsville, Ind., was the general contractor; and Kiva Structural Engineers, Terre Haute, Ind., was the engineer. Top Quality Glass & Mirror Co. Inc., Indianapolis, supplied the storefront and windows; Crown Corr Inc., Noblesville, Ind., supplied the metal wall panels; and Metal Solutions Inc., Indianapolis, was the metal roofing contractor.
Berridge Manufacturing Co.
CENTRIA
Construction Specialties Inc.
Kawneer
Mon-Ray Inc.
Overhead Door Co. of Indianapolis
Source URL: https://www.metalarchitecture.com/projects/new-fire-station-is-airport-landmark/