American Assn. for the Advancement of Science

The AAAS building is highly innovative in a variety of ways. It is a “green” building”, utilizing gas fired boilers for both heating and cooling, operable windows, environmentally safe materials, and energy efficient lighting coupled with a significant degree of natural lighting.

Because of this the AAAS headquarters was a collaborative effort that brought together experts from a variety of fields to meet the unique needs of the project. GGA provided the user perspective and knowledge of the functional requirements of today’s office workers, as well as the technical expertise, local knowledge and production expertise required to develop and document the schematic designs of the building’s interiors.

Initially, Group Goetz provided the programming and building evaluation efforts that ensured the building would meet functional requirements of users as well as AAAS’s need to lease some space in the building to other organizations. Group Goetz worked closely with the base building architect, the developer, and AAAS. Group Goetz developed the initial space plan and consequent base building modifications required to meet both aesthetic and practical requirements of the project.

Given all of the environmentally sensitive aspects of this project and the fact that many elements - such as the gas-fired HVAC system - are the exception rather than the rule in most office buildings, GGA paid a great deal of attention to careful coordination with all project consultants to make sure that all systems were working in tandem with each other and that the completed interiors would indeed come together as an integrated whole.

Following completion of the base building modifications, Group Goetz helped develop the documentation for the design of the interiors and is the architect of record for all interior work.

The AAAS headquarters was completed at the end of 1996.

Location: Washington, DC
Services: Interior & Exterior Modernization
Size: 210,000 SF