Barton Malow

Scope Of Work

Designed by world-renowned architect Zaha Hadid, known for the “unbuildable” building, Michigan State University’s Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum pushed architectural boundaries and challenged conventional construction. Constructed of sloped steel and concrete with a pleated metal and glass exterior, carefully piecing together dynamic dimensions and non-traditional materials challenged the team from the very beginning. Atypical building techniques were a part of everyday construction. The structural system is a hybrid of steel framing and concrete shear and bearing walls.  Iconic and innovative, crafting this complex architecture to life while maintaining design intent came with numerous challenges. Barton Malow provided construction management services for the 46,000-SF facility that includes over 20,000 SF of gallery space.

Given the unique design, Barton Malow carried out an exceptional preconstruction effort to source materials and ensure constructability. Throughout development of the design and modeling process, successful BIM integration processes were performed, where information was extracted from the collaborative design model for interactive estimating, value engineering, schedule productivity, and design-assist interface.The project team overcame several challenges including budget, making the complex concept buildable, and using conventional materials in non-conventional ways. Amid a busy university campus, extra measures were taken to ensure a safe site, and the museum was completed with an exemplary safety record.  The project had significant community impact including utilizing local workforce, supporting MSU’s education mission, and creating minimal disruption on campus.