The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Metropolitan Museum of Art embarked on a landmark $150 million project to enhance how visitors experience its renowned collection of European paintings (1250–1800) by replacing and modernizing the gallery skylights. Originally built in 1939, and last remodeled in 1952, the skylight system spanned 30,000 square feet of glass and included a louver system to introduce natural overhead light into the galleries. This ambitious project involved not only upgrading the skylights but also extensive infrastructure improvements, including the installation of 10,000 feet of new ducts, pipes, and cables, as well as 50,000 square feet of masonry repairs and repointing. Upgrades to mechanical equipment in the 60,000 sf attic space were also incorporated.

Kohler Ronan played a key role in identifying energy-saving opportunities during a 2015 building-wide energy conservation study for the Wings ABC Skylights & Infrastructure project. The resulting energy improvements were significant enough to secure a performance-based grant from the City of New York, which helped offset the project’s capital costs.

Kohler Ronan also provided comprehensive commissioning services, ensuring that all systems performed to the highest standards of efficiency and functionality. The commissioning tasks for this project included owner’s project requirements, a commissioning plan, commissioning specifications, a submittal review, HVAC systems troubleshooting and control strategy optimization, functional performance testing, owner training, and measurement and verification. Commissioned HVAC systems consisted of gallery variable air volume air handling units, a chilled/hot water distribution system, advanced filtration, humidification, terminal boxes with reheat, and BMS upgrades.

Photo credit: © Paúl Rivera 2024