J2H Partners (J2H) and Clune Construction (Clune) are pleased to announce they have completed construction of a 10,000–square-foot, state-of-the-art expansion of theComputing Technology Industry Association’s (CompTIA) headquarters in DownersGrove, IL. The project substantially increased CompTIA’s communications capabilities and their ability to create greater programming for the tech industry. It was designed by Perkins and Will, with J2H Partners serving as the project manager, and building manager ILO was the broker.
“Serving as the general contractor on the expansion of the headquarters for the world’s leading tech organization was a great opportunity for Clune,” said Luke Unverzagt, Vice President, Senior Project Manager for Clune Construction. “Our team rose to the challenge and built an innovative, forward-thinking space that will assist CompTIA in their mission to advance the tech industry for years to come.”
CompTIA serves as an advocate for tech professionals and provides education, training, certifications, and market research. The project, which was an expansion of the association’s existing Downers Grove headquarters at 3500 Lacey Road, presented some unique challenges – the largest was ensuring the new AV studio had the proper acoustic rating. This required double-checking of all rough-in that supports the space to make sure it didn’t compromise the acoustic ratings of the partitions and ceilings. In addition, the AV scope of work had to be well coordinated with the space’s acoustic features to ensure they worked together to provide the required acoustical performance. Regular communication between all trades and subcontractors during the process was also essential.
In addition, the existing piping in CompTIA’s building did not accommodate the expansion’s design, and was too low for the ceilings. To overcome this, workers performed a controlled shut-down of and draining of the full glycol piping system. Once complete, the pipes were relocated away from the space, and then refilled once they were installed in their new location.
The newly added spaces accommodate one fully equipped studio for CompTIA associates to record high-quality television interviews and podcasts, and a shell space for a second. The studios will serve as primary vehicles to communicate the latest news about technology to a greater audience.CompTIA’s expansion will also include an educational center for classroom instruction and online learning programs.
“We’re excited to expand CompTIA’s offerings with our new, state-of-the-art studio,” says Brian Laffey, CFO forCompTIA. “We can’t speak highly enough of the entire project team that helped make this new space possible.”
In addition, the new space has an open ceiling concept throughout the common corridor area, acoustic baffles, three new work rooms, a development room and a large storage space with high density file systems.
