The Tilt-Up Concrete Association ( www.tilt-up.org) announced this month that two of Merriman Schmitt Architects' building projects have won TCA Achievement Awards in the association's 2009 competition.

Projects for Wilton Connor Packaging and 3D Systems were named winners in the Industrial Division.

3D Systems, located in Rock Hill, S.C., is an 80,000-square-foot North American headquarters and production facility. With additional operations throughout Europe and Asia, 3D Systems is the world's leader in three-dimensional stereolithographic modeling.

Because of the unique nature of 3D Systems products, the facility receives visitors from around the world. The company required a building that showcases the corporate brand, but also provides a window on the unique production capabilities of the business.

The dramatic building exterior is highlighted by a three-story crescent-shaped glass curtain wall supported by four tilt-up concrete buttresses that frame the main entrance. Tilt-up construction was chosen as the architectural medium to provide design creativity while meeting an extremely fast-track construction schedule. The building shell was designed and construction begun prior to the interior upfit design being fully realized.

Wilton Connor Packaging, a division of Weyerhauser, is located on Westlake Drive in Charlotte. The 334,000-square-foot facility combines 264,000-square-feet of office, production and warehouse space with a 70,000-square-foot display space where the company shows customer packaging in a mock retail environment.

The building effectively blends corporate environment and production facility. Large tilt-up concrete fins are designed to funnel visitors to the front entrance visually and literally. The fins pierce the load-bearing curtain wall and intersect inside the building lobby. Inside, these structures morph into a dramatic water feature with fountain and reflecting pool. The intersection of these panels forms the hub of the facility from which the interior radiates.

Tilt-up concrete provide a cost-effective medium for quality, creative expression while ensuring speed to market.

Merriman Schmitt Architects, based in Charlotte, specializes in the design of Class A office, industrial, retail, and mixed use facilities.  Services include architecture, 3D rendering and animation, master planning, and interior design and architecture.

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