Field Museum Capital Improvements
Cost: $100 million

Several elements went into the Field Museum of Chicago's capital improvements project, including the Collections Resource Center.

The Field's drive to acquire knowledge has resulted in a collection of more than 22 million artifacts - reportedly the fourth largest of its kind in the world.

A problem gradually arose at the Lake Michigan landmark because of the decreasing amount of storage space for newly acquired relics and other uses.

Alternatives were considered, and the Field eventually chose to go 75 ft. below grade. The two-level CRC facility will provide 182,000 sq. ft. of space for the museum's dinosaur bones, totem poles and other objects.

The L-shaped space wraps around the east facade and the part of the south facade east of the entry stairs.

A bentonite slurry wall was selected to provide the earth retention and resist overturning due to earth pressure.

Plant, East Entrance

Improvements were needed for the museum's central plant partly because some systems dated to the 1950s.

Extra capacity was also incorporated because of the museum's expected growth and the changing nature of scientific investigation. More energy is needed to support increasingly sophisticated research.

Newly installed components include chillers - for ice and chilled water - steam boilers, fire pumps and air handling units.

Energy-saving initiatives were implemented, such as installing a system to make ice for the HVAC system at night when the cost for power is reasonable. Demand costs for energy are expected to go down about 25 percent.

Like the CRC, the central plant was located in two underground levels, but southwest of the museum building. The plant's small size allowed sheet piling to be used for earth retention, rather than slurry walls.

The last element, the East Entrance, was constructed to improve museum accessibility.

A comparatively short distance separates the North Parking Lot of next-door Soldier Field from the building's east side. The only existing ground-level door, the West Entrance, is about three to four city blocks from parking.

The new entrance will become the main way in for guests with strollers, the disabled and schoolchildren.

A unique feature is that a skylight composed of tensioned cables will hold the glazing. A marble-clad pavilion will form the entrance and attach to the building and over the CRC.

Return to Top of 2005 list