Skanska has been selected by the Cox Science Center and Aquarium to deliver a major expansion of its campus in West Palm Beach, including an 86,000-sq-ft, two-story Hall of Science.
Formerly known as the South Florida Science Center & Aquarium, the Cox Science Center & Aquarium will also have an enlarged aquarium, permanent and visiting exhibitions, and hands-on STEM learning environments.
Designed by PBK, the upgrade adds a Gulfstream Tank, shark and ray touch tanks, and dedicated exhibits for Florida everglades and mangroves.
Skanska will build the new science hall and add 115,000 gallons of aquarium volume across 16 salt and freshwater tanks, making the facility Florida’s fifth-largest aquarium.
It will remain open during construction.
Tricky tanks
The new Gulfstream Tank will be the biggest concrete exhibit tank, with an acrylic window spanning 14 x 24 feet and weighing around 20,000 pounds.
To install such large panels, openings will be designed in the second floor and roof decks allowing installation after the building is enclosed and temperature controlled.
The Hall’s structure is a hybrid of cast-in-place concrete and concrete-masonry-unit (CMU) walls, with precast concrete joist elevated decks and a structural steel roof.
‘Exhaustive market review’
Skanska previously built the award-winning Patricia & Phillip Frost Museum of Science in Miami.
Cox Science Center board chairman Eric Stonestrom said Skanska was picked for the project selected after “an exhaustive market review”.
“Their long operating history and ability to provide a strong locally based team with specific aquarium skills are making this collaboration a great partnership,” he said.
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