Meier Architecture and Engineering: New downtown home fits right in with community mission
After more than 33 years on the west side of Kennewick, Meier Architecture and Engineering has made the move downtown. Long-term residents will remember Meier’s new home as the old JCPenney building that the Kennewick Irrigation District (KID) has called home for more than a decade. The renovation of this classic downtown building was designed for KID by Meier.
Subsequently, Meier purchased the building from KID in summer 2015. This new home gives Meier the room to grow and strengthens the commitment our 100 percent employee-owned firm has to the community. As an act to supporters of Kennewick’s downtown revitalization, Meier is thrilled to be able to participate directly in the vibrant community that is growing in the downtown environment.
Like other local small business, Meier grew out of Hanford’s support mission, and during the past 20 years, we have been diversifying our services to other federal and commercial markets, just like other local companies are doing. We believe this helps grow business relationships while stabilizing our local economy with a strong focus on our region’s future.
Keeping a balance of commercial and federal work is not a simple business model, but addressing a broad range of services and markets means that we have less business volatility, allowing us to maintain our long-term commitment to our staff and community.
A benefit to Meier’s involvement in commercial and federal work has been the opportunity to introduce cutting-edge commercial design technology to federal customers. Meier was one of the first to make photogrammetry and 3D modeling services available to Hanford prime contractors.
Now, in recent years, Meier has been able to make Building Information Modeling (BIM) Technology available on projects like the K-West Annex project. Also as a design-build partner with DGR*Grant Construction, Meier integrated BIM for Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in the design of the Systems Engineering Building.
“The use of this new design approach has been a huge asset to clients who, with many stake holders, appreciate the ability to participate in the design process in a very visual way through the interaction they now have with the three-dimensional design model,” said Anthony Cockbain, Meier’s director of projects.
With services provided to local ports, school districts, health care providers and numerous commercial interests in the community, Meier is excited to continue its tradition of one-stop shopping for clients that need a full range of architectural and engineering services.
Becoming “small business” eligible once again, Meier is pleased to have resumed providing Independent Qualified Professional Engineering (IQRPE) services at the tank farms and has recently completed the Double Shell Tank Integrity Assessment (on time and on budget) for Washington River Protection Solutions.
“This assessment was a huge effort involving a number of very specialized subject matter experts,” Meier’s Paul Giever said. “It is great to see the added value we have been able to provide to the client by organizing such a vast set of information about their system into one document.”
This year, Meier will continue to be strong STEM advocates by filling leadership positions, as a board member on the STEM Foundation, as well as offering student internships, job shadows and classroom participation. Meier encourages others to reach out in some way to support our students and teachers.
Meier is committed to providing the best services a local small business can provide to the Hanford Site. Meier is well positioned and excited to forge ahead in our community and help make great things happen for our clients.
This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 10:33 PM with the headline "Meier Architecture and Engineering: New downtown home fits right in with community mission."