When you hear the word ‘merit’, you probably think of a great achievement or outstanding accomplishment. Both of those things could be used to describe the work of the Whiteman Air Force Base Resident Office, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District on the Consolidated Operations Building at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri.
The civil engineering team at Whiteman has done great work on this building, and their effort was recognized. The Combined Operations Building was selected as the recipient of a Merit Award for the 2023 Department of the Air Force Design Awards at the 14th annual Design and Construction Partnering Symposium, sponsored by the Air Force Civil Engineer Center.
“The team’s success on the Combined Operations Building has been many years in the making,” said Tim Kurgan, Chief of Military Programs for the Kansas City District. “This facility is state of the art and is a great improvement for our Air Force partners.”
This Department of the Air Force Design Awards, an annual awards program managed by AFCEC, recognizes projects with excellence in design, sustainability and energy efficiency while meeting Department of Defense and Air Force standards.
There were three projects selected for the 2023 awards. The Consolidated Operations Building was selected for the Facilities New Construction Category.
The projects were selected by a three-member jury of subject matter experts from AFCEC. Judging criteria included reduced energy/water use, materials or life-cycle cost efficiencies.
Not only is the building exemplary in these areas, but it is also a significant asset to the base. This innovative facility will be the site for important processes for operations with the B-2 aircraft, such as weather forecasting, mission planning and airfield management.
“The building consolidates operations for the B-2, like pre-flight checks and planning,” said Larry Bolton, project manager forward at the Whiteman Resident Office. “It creates a one stop shop to prepare, plan and then execute the mission.”
USACE has been supporting the B-2 at Whiteman for over 30 years. This building is the result of partnership between multiple military and civilian organizations. Bolton and the civil engineering team at the Whiteman Resident Office were an integral part of this partnership, and they worked hard together to deliver on this project.
“We got it across the finish line,” Bolton said.
According to Bolton, the building was submitted for the award on behalf of the civil engineering team at Whiteman. All the participants who worked on the building were recognized during the awards ceremony.
“Larry and the team worked through numerous iterations of design and once in construction worked quickly to resolve issues,” Kurgan said. “It is great to see their efforts recognized through an AFCEC Design Award.”
A formal presentation of the awards occurred on January 30, 2024, during the AFCEC Design and Construction Partnering Symposium in San Antonio, Texas, which ran through February 1, 2024.