CUA Conway School of Nursing

A University in Washington D.C. needed a new state-of-the-art building for its school of nursing, and it was important to the client to maintain the look of the existing gothic architecture on its campus. This was a design assist/build project consisting of 60,000 square feet of precast panels and copings on a steel frame structure and 30,000 square feet of post-installed thin veneer stone.
Precast concrete was chosen for this project due to the complex aesthetic design features, schedule, and site constraints. Using precast concrete is a modern construction method that can provide the complex institutional athletics of the surrounding campus buildings while being able to take advantage of the various schedules and site benefits of precast construction.

The University is a campus with an existing Gothic architecture style. It was very important to keep the new building in the same design style as the current surrounding architecture throughout the campus. Stone was applied at the precast producer’s plant to the panels to match the aesthetics of the other campus buildings. The stone that was used in this project was salvaged and recycled from a demolished Catholic Church, which is both symbolically relevant as well as a completing sustainability feature.

Aside from the design, a reason to choose precast for this project was the location of the project and the need to stick to a strict schedule. The building is located adjacent to a busy public street that could not be shut down for long periods of time, Due to precast being produced offsite and ready to install when arriving on site, traffic disruptions were limited, and the schedule was able to be maintained to allow students to use the building on time. This 102,000 square foot nursing education facility will serve the students at this University for years to come.