Beautiful things are often a result of time and hard work, and when it came to the Foster Recreation Center at Missouri State University, the end result was worth all the time in the world. It began in 2004, when approx. 10,000 students signed a petition to request a feasibility study for renovating their Rec Center. After conducted, it was clear renovating the older center, McDonald Arena, wouldn’t be a viable option. So MSU students and faculty began the process of designing a new facility, choosing the site, and financing the project. By April 2010, construction finally began.
Enlisting the help of Cannon Design, an innovative, site-specific form was created; shaped by environmentally-responsible building techniques. The structural steel for the project was assigned to Doing Steel, Springfield, MO. Doing subcontracted out part of the steel to a supplier in Joplin, MO because the order was so large. It went as planned through 2010, but in May 2011, a ruinous tornado hit Joplin, destroying several tons of steel. “This was a major reason for the project’s delay,” recalled Tnemec Coating Consultant, Dustin Keilbey. “In the end, Doing Steel had to fabricate all the steel and prime it in their shop.” They applied Series 90-97 Tneme-Zinc to the steel because of its “same-day” curing. A top-coat of Series 27WB Typoxy was applied later; a low-VOC, high-solids coating that the engineers requested.
The coatings project for the center’s interior was awarded to Sam Melvin Painting with a major goal in mind: to meet LEED standards. According to Keilbey, this was a major advantage for Tnemec involvement with the project. “This gave us an advantage because we could provide low VOC and LEED-conforming products that still provide high performance.” With the wide range of wall colors needed and the LEED requirements, a different system than originally envisioned, Series 287 Enviro-Pox and Series 297 Enviro-Glaze, was chosen. The appropriate colors were matched to the design and the coatings were spray- and roller-applied to the walls, which were clean, dry, and free of oil, grease, and other contaminants. These details, and the project’s strict adherence to LEED requirements, would earn it LEED Silver Certification.
The men’s and women’s locker room/shower area was coated by Epoxy Coating Specialists of Kansas City, MO. They designated Series 222 Deco-Tread as the perfect epoxy for the job. The quartz-filled polyamine epoxy was triple-broadcast for slip resistance; making the floors both safe and ultra-durable.
The end result was officially opened in October 2012. The stunning, 100,000 sq. ft. building holds three gymnasiums, a full aquatics center, an indoor jogging track, a fitness center with cardio equipment and free weight systems, a rock-climbing wall, and more. It’s as aesthetically pleasing as it is functional, and it has become a staple of MSU’s campus. During the ribbon cutting ceremony for the center, Student Body President, Paige Oxendine, said, “This facility will change our university in the best way possible.” And with the help of Tnemec coating systems, it has done just that.