Indiana National Guard Hamilton County Readiness Center

HEAPY designed the mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, and technology systems for the new Hamilton County Readiness Center, envisioned as a 73,000 SF facility combining personnel and equipment from three Indiana Army National Guard (ING) armories into one facility. The center will accommodate space for up to 294 personnel and will support the administrative, training, communication, and logistical needs, and also serves as an emergency shelter facility with backup power support. Spaces include training and assembly areas, food preparation and dining, parking areas, and future areas available for expansion.

The center emphasizes sustainability and energy efficiency, natural daylight interiors, and evokes a sense of prominence while reflecting and integrating with the area’s natural rural setting. The facility will be designed as a fully electric building with backup propane for domestic water heating due to the absence of natural gas, and is set to achieve a LEED® Silver certification.

HEAPY worked collaboratively with American Structurepoint and the Indiana Army National Guard to keep the project within budget, particularly because the budget for the project was set prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The final design achieved the Guard’s objectives, passed NGB review, and came back under budget.

Because the Readiness Center has highly variable occupancy levels (i.e., 300 reserve personnel for training weekends versus 30 FTEs most of the time), the MEP systems had to be designed for maximum flexibility, balancing functionality and energy efficiency. A 30-ton heat-recovery chiller serves as the primary chiller and is also used to pre-heat domestic hot water and reheat for dehumidification control during periods of low occupancy. During exercise and training weekends, water is supplied through a series of propane-fired instantaneous water heaters, which reduces the need to store a large quantity of hot water during low occupancy times. The team also reduced the main air handling unit (AHU) discharge temperature and leveraged an induction diffuser to the discharge site, reducing the size of the HVAC system and lowering first cost and long-term energy costs.

Technology integration included meeting National Guard and UFC requirements for audio/visual and security systems, arms vault design, and a secure space (SCIF) with separate technology networks (NIPR and SIPR), requiring a special fiber optic backbone for SIPR access outside the building to support mobile military units.