PCA truly understands the higher education project dynamics: project, campus, and community constituents; matrix decision making; the need for initial and sustained quality; energy and resource efficiency; budget and schedule discipline; and the need to meet student needs – now and in the future.
Ed Adelman, AIA, Director, Massachusetts State College Building Authority
As a trusted partner and advisor of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA) since 2008, we have forged a relationship resulting in a phased master plan to add more than 350 beds through a combination of renovations and additions, with seven of the eight phases designed to be executable in the 10-week summer and winter breaks. All 8 phases were planned, drawn and implemented in less than three years with a total cost of over $40 million. A hit with students, the project is the first LEED Gold Certified public university residence hall in Massachusetts and is capable of offsetting 100 percent of its energy requirements through on-campus, renewable energy sources. Today, we continue to work with MMA to improve their student services and campus experience.
With MMA, we have touched multiple parts of campus life including cadet housing, a mess deck renovation, entry reconfigurations, and build-over building expansions. Though we began as a consultant to improve sprinkler systems, we developed a relationship with the academy through consistent and creative client service. As designers, we understand that a sprinkler system renovation is an opportunity for unexpected paint choices, new wayfinding, and budget-friendly design elements that can drastically change the look of a space. Since then, we approach each challenge at MMA with an open mind and start with the “why?” in order to provide expressive design solutions that do what’s asked, and then some – all on budget.
