Renovated Warehouse Becomes Home to a Pharmaceutical Company

The entire front façade directly surrounding the entrance was removed, and a new 35-foot tall glass and aluminum storefront was erected.

Previously a printing plant for the Star Ledger, an existing abandoned and heavily-used warehouse building was purchased by a pharmaceutical company with the intent to move and grow their business into New Jersey. As the executive and interior architect on the extensive renovation project, KSD Architects upgraded the exterior facade and designed the existing interior to be selectively demolished and fit-out into corporate offices, research laboratories and a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant.

Parts of the existing CMU and steel structure, sealed with a combination of CMU and insulated metal panels at the exterior, were demolished to accommodate the new aesthetics and functions required by the pharmaceutical company. The entire front façade directly surrounding the entrance was removed, and a new 35-foot tall glass and aluminum storefront was erected with a decorative ACP (aluminum composite panels) surround. To further update the building, the remaining front façade was perforated and infilled with custom designed, powder-coated black windows. Finally, prefabricated fiber cement brick panels finished the front.

Inside the building, existing CMU walls were partially removed to adapt the building to a new pattern of circulation; this new flow was designed around employees who now operate the research & development, QA, and analytical laboratories, as well as the new corporate offices on the second level, and engineers within the new pilot plant. To house the new HVAC and process equipment required by the new functional uses, an equipment platform mezzanine was built extending from the existing second floor. Since the existing building structure was not meant to support these projected loads, the structural engineer proposed new extended footings that reinforced the existing ones. This process was carried out and almost led to some archeological discoveries!