Meridian High School
TYLin provided structural engineering services for a new high school building in suburban Virginia that is has the flexibility to accommodate up to 1,500 students.
Spaces in this new high school are organized vertically to minimize the building’s footprint on a site that is shared with two occupied schools, athletic fields, and acreage reserved for future commercial development. The building's program includes fabrication and robotics labs, two gyms and an indoor track, auditorium and support spaces, a café, and tunnels connecting the below-grade locker rooms to the adjacent athletics fields.
The school’s primary structure is a steel frame with composite floor framing supporting concrete on composite steel deck slabs and metal deck roofs. Four two-story transfer trusses span the 75’-100’ open volumes containing the ground-level gyms and auditorium. These spaces are topped by three levels of classrooms supported by large story trusses. In close coordination with the architect, TYLin designed steel braced frames that are distributed throughout the building. The primary lateral force resisting system, these frames extend from the foundation to the roof.
This project, completed using a Design-Build project delivery method, is Net Zero Energy Ready and also has a LEED Gold certification goal.
Image credit: Thomas Holdsworth Photography