Indiana Jones: “Snakes. Why'd it have to be snakes?”
Sallah: “Asps... very dangerous. You go first.”
Remember that classic exchange from Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark? Yet despite all of the snakes stored at the Virginia Museum of Natural History (they have more than 10,300 cataloged specimens of amphibians and reptiles), you can bet that an Archeologist like Indy would love to explore all of the collections there. We recently had an opportunity to do just that. The museum, located in Martinsville, Virginia, is home to a collection of more than 10 million items (and growing). These items collected locally and from around the globe, provide the basis for in-house, national and international study. Research at the museum is focused on Invertebrate Paleontology, Vertebrate Paleontology, Recent Invertebrates, Archaeology, Mammalogy, Marine Science and Geology. Specimens in these collections are stored in special conditions to reduce damage caused by fluctuations and extremes in temperature and humidity. Most of these specimens are susceptible to deterioration caused by extended exposure to light. For these reasons (along with space conservation and item accessibility factors), a number of special considerations were taken in the design of the storage systems required for these collections. Spread out over several rooms within the museum, Spacesaver powered high-density mobile storage systems allow the museum to continue adding to their collections without expanding their storage areas. These powered mobile systems include synchronized drive systems designed for smooth acceleration and deceleration of the carriages to minimize vibration and jarring. On several of these systems, special toe kicks were installed on the bottom of the end panels to enable curators to open aisles in the system - even if their hands are full. Delta Designs Museum Cabinets are prevalent on many of the mobile storage systems. These museum-grade cabinets help protect against light and other environmental hazards and can be configured to store items of all shapes and sizes. Wide span shelving is used in several areas to store over-sized items such as geological samples, fossils and mammal specimens. Other unique design features include storage shelving that has perforated shelves that facilitate air flow and the flow of fire suppressant agents in the event of a jar breakage. Some of the shelving has clear plastic shelf fronts to protect jars and small specimen vials. There are also smooth-gliding roll-out trays and drawers for organizing and protecting small finds. Powered high-density mobile shelving can also be found in the museum’s library which houses over 7,000 titles in a collection which includes books, journals, and magazines.
Indiana Jones: "Take this. Wave it at anything that slithers."
In the end, we didn’t need torches to wave around at any snakes during our expedition, but we did get to see a lot of neat stuff while we were there. You can see photos from our tour below. If you would like to learn more about the Virginia Museum of Natural History visit their website. For more information on Spacesaver museum storage solutions click here.
We wanted to let you know that the steel Modular Casework product line from Hamilton Sorter is certified for SEFA 8 Metal Laboratory Grade Casework standards. SEFA, which stands for Scientific Equipment and Furniture Association, is an international trade association. They provide testing, tools and best practices to assist manufacturers, specifiers and users evaluate the safety, durability and structural integrity of laboratory casework and complimentary items.
Hamilton Sorter's powder coated steel welded cabinets meet these stringent tests for powder coat finish, wall, tall and base cabinets. The evaluation includes cabinet and shelf load capacity; door and drawer impact and cycle tests; and surface finish resistance to chemicals and hot water.
Hamilton Sorter's powder coated steel welded cabinets meet these stringent tests for powder coat finish, wall, tall and base cabinets. The evaluation includes cabinet and shelf load capacity; door and drawer impact and cycle tests; and surface finish resistance to chemicals and hot water.
Spacesaver has introduced two new Revit models in their Design Resources library. You can now download models for Mobile Storage with Cantilever Shelving and Double-Wall Shelving (case type) and start using them today. For more information check out Spacesaver's blog Storage Solved, or head on to the Design Library.
Matt Tourdot shared this video on Spacesaver's Storage Solved blog. It is a great example of the "less is more" theory.
Gary Chang exhibits the value of creativity when it comes to saving space and organizing stuff. He gets the power of innovation in the effective use of space. His tiny apartment is cooler, better organized and arguably more user-friendly than most of our much larger spaces.
The issues he faced are no different than those that we face every day. Cramped spaces abound. Not enough room to put all of our stuff. At work, at home; in the equipment room, the storage room, or the file room in the basement. At the armory, the library, the precinct, or the warehouse. When it comes to tight spaces, organizational challenges and storage headaches, Gary Chang understands that Stuff (and how you store it) really does matter.
Originally posted by Matt Tourdot of Spacesaver on their Storage Solved blog.
(The design of his apartment looks similar to the Seattle Public Library Gift Shop design that we discussed here. )
Last week we provided a definition of Modular Casework. Today we’ll give you six reasons to consider it in your next interior design project:
- It’s factory produced – The manufacturing of Modular Casework takes place in a controlled environment with computer generated machinery that can make precision cuts and guarantee measurements.
- It’s quickly installed – Modular Casework ships in modules that are ready to install, cutting the installation time to about half that of millwork.
- It’s reconfigurable – Unless there are seismic concerns, Modular Casework is not actually bolted to the wall or floors. The base cabinets are leveled and ganged together. The upper wall cabinets are fastened to a zip rail. The modules do not have to be damaged or disassembled in order to reconfigure or relocate - making it very easy to reuse when needs change.
- It’s repairable – Doors, drawers, hinges, and end panels are much easier to repair than traditional millwork, because Modular Casework components are engineered to disassemble and reattach.
- It’s depreciable – Modular Casework is treated like furniture and depreciates on a seven year schedule (as opposed to millwork, which is classified as permanent construction and requires 39 years to depreciate.)
- It’s specifiable - Drawing millwork is a tedious, time consuming task. But Modular Casework can be drawn in software by a local representative. Or, with BIM software, it is simple to drag and drop your options into a space with ease, assuring that you get the design you intend.
Modular Casework is fast becoming THE alternative to built-in cabinets. Its use is spreading from offices to laboratories and from hospitals to schools. Problem: Webster doesn’t offer a definition for “Modular Casework”. Answer: we decided to suggest a few of our own.
mod•u•lar [moj-uh-ler] case•work [keys-wurk] / [kās-werk] (noun)
1. Storage system designed to be customized, re-configured, re-located and re-used
2. Furniture that looks built in, but isn’t
Consider your office environment. There are several areas well suited for modular casework. Areas like community workspace, copy/fax/print areas, mail rooms, break rooms, kitchens, libraries, and other spaces that have specific activity and storage needs. But what if those needs change? Modular casework is designed to change with you, and that’s the gist of what it is as a “product”.
3. More than just a product. It is a system of manufacturing that gives you the versatility and look of built-in millwork with the value and precision of a CAD driven, factory produced product, with a 7-year depreciation schedule, and a limited lifetime warranty.
Consider your investment. Millwork is classified as permanent construction and requires 39 years to depreciate. Modular casework, on the other hand, is treated like furniture and depreciates in 7 years. The ability to specify finishes, surfaces, hardware and other elements can create a look that fully integrates into the interior design plan. Set-up and installation is simplified, because it comes from the factory as finished components – saving time and money. Reusing the components as departments move, or needs change is a snap. So, you aren’t throwing your investment away or leaving it there when you go. (Just because it looks built in doesn’t mean it has to act like it.) Flexible, modular, usable. Mr. Webster…take note!
{We recently had the opportunity to visit the BJAC's architecture office in Raleigh, North Carolina to see firsthand how they incorporated modular casework into their office. They use base cabinets, wall cabinets and shelving in the print/work area, base cabinets and wall cabinets in the kitchen and shelving in the library. One of the design features of the office is clear, corrugated polycarbonate panels on metal studs used for walls and partitions. The fact that the casework and shelving is finished on all sides turned out to be key – due to the transparency of these panels (the backside of the shelving in the print/work area is visible.) In the kitchen, the customization of the casework allowed for aluminum framed glass doors to be used, which worked well with the overall look of the office. The shelving in the library was designed to allow for binder as well as flat file storage and was built around a work area and laminate chip samples. Below are some photos from our visit.}
To learn more about Modular Casework you can visit Hamilton-Sorter.
mod•u•lar [moj-uh-ler] case•work [keys-wurk] / [kās-werk] (noun)
1. Storage system designed to be customized, re-configured, re-located and re-used
2. Furniture that looks built in, but isn’t
Consider your office environment. There are several areas well suited for modular casework. Areas like community workspace, copy/fax/print areas, mail rooms, break rooms, kitchens, libraries, and other spaces that have specific activity and storage needs. But what if those needs change? Modular casework is designed to change with you, and that’s the gist of what it is as a “product”.
3. More than just a product. It is a system of manufacturing that gives you the versatility and look of built-in millwork with the value and precision of a CAD driven, factory produced product, with a 7-year depreciation schedule, and a limited lifetime warranty.
Consider your investment. Millwork is classified as permanent construction and requires 39 years to depreciate. Modular casework, on the other hand, is treated like furniture and depreciates in 7 years. The ability to specify finishes, surfaces, hardware and other elements can create a look that fully integrates into the interior design plan. Set-up and installation is simplified, because it comes from the factory as finished components – saving time and money. Reusing the components as departments move, or needs change is a snap. So, you aren’t throwing your investment away or leaving it there when you go. (Just because it looks built in doesn’t mean it has to act like it.) Flexible, modular, usable. Mr. Webster…take note!
{We recently had the opportunity to visit the BJAC's architecture office in Raleigh, North Carolina to see firsthand how they incorporated modular casework into their office. They use base cabinets, wall cabinets and shelving in the print/work area, base cabinets and wall cabinets in the kitchen and shelving in the library. One of the design features of the office is clear, corrugated polycarbonate panels on metal studs used for walls and partitions. The fact that the casework and shelving is finished on all sides turned out to be key – due to the transparency of these panels (the backside of the shelving in the print/work area is visible.) In the kitchen, the customization of the casework allowed for aluminum framed glass doors to be used, which worked well with the overall look of the office. The shelving in the library was designed to allow for binder as well as flat file storage and was built around a work area and laminate chip samples. Below are some photos from our visit.}
To learn more about Modular Casework you can visit Hamilton-Sorter.
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