CGA: Please introduce yourselves to our readers and tell us a little bit about yourselves? Also, please tell us about some of the people who participated in this project.

Sear-Brown is a 650-person architecture, engineering, planning, and construction firm with its corporate headquarters in Rochester, New York. I have a Master’s Degree in Architecture from the University at Buffalo with a Bachelor’s in Studio Art. I work in Rochester as an architectural intern with a background in computer visualization and look forward to licensure soon.

This project was made possible through the collaboration of a multi-disciplinary group consisting of Architecture, Structural, Site, Electrical, and Construction Management. The cooperation and dedication of the Monroe Community College Administration, various committees, and contractors involved were critical to the project’s success.

Sear-Brown’s Team was composed of (alphabetically): Andy Britton, Laura Civiletti, John Donnelly, Steven Fernaays, Malinda Gaskamp, Mike Grasso, John Kane, Chris Langton, Mark Maddalina, Kyle Sears, Mike Winderl.

Image courtesy Sear-Brown

CGA: Can you tell us a little bit about the Monroe Community College 9/11 Memorial and how was Sear-Brown was commissioned to work on this project?

Following the tragedies of September 11th, our neighbors within the Student Association at Monroe Community College (MCC) approached our firm looking for assistance in creating a meaningful place for remembrance. Dan O’Hanlon and Jessica Brown of MCC met with a Sear-Brown design team selected by Project Manager Malinda Gaskamp to address their interests in developing a place that might help the campus and our larger community cope with many deep emotions we had all felt since that day.

Our company immediately agreed to provide its Design and Construction Management services to this effort free-of-charge. This was a substantial investment and I was proud to see this level of commitment from the firm. Southside Precast, who manufactured the memorial’s panels, stood out among the many contractors that donated services to this effort. At a time when many people felt helpless, our community seemed to truly come together to try to make a difference through this project.

We discussed design concepts, rendered in VIZ, with the students to make a selection. We then proceeded to develop one concept for presentation to Monroe Community College for their approval. Once approved, the college agreed to the project site and the Foundation committed funds to the project.

Image courtesy Sear-Brown

CGA: The monument was created with a rather unique design element that required a certain amount of technical calculation. Can you explain to us the motivation behind this design and how you were able to successfully overcome the challenges involved with this design?

While the thought of taking part in the creation of a memorial was really cathartic for us all, in that we had an opportunity to finally help or contribute in some larger sense, there was also quite a burden in attempting to develop a design that could represent the significance of that day. From the beginning we understood that our client was not the students, was not the college, but consisted of the many victims, their families, friends, survivors, and anyone who needed a place to go to remember or reflect. Any design had to have meaning for them. The final design concept ultimately was intended to represent the loss that was felt in our nation, our cities, and in ourselves following September 11th.

The substantial size and mass of the wall made the voids more powerful in contrast, yet the wall read as one continuous element. That void was intended to speak to our loss on many levels. The site, in plan, resembles a globe, the memorial wall is proportioned after the American flag, and the wall itself has an abstracted skyline relief of Manhattan.

In our studio, Steve Fernaays mentioned that it would be great if we could use the powerful shadows that were quite apparent through the visualizations (see conceptual plan rendering-MCC-911memorial-plan.jpg and attached image).

Image courtesy Sear-Brown

Using the solar design capabilities of VIZ4, AutoCAD, and the capabilities of our in-house survey team, I performed multiple tests comparing the day and time of actual survey data against the VIZ computer model’s Daylight System. Confirming that the system was accurate and the actual solar angles over various days matched the computer-simulated angles, I could then predict the solar angle for September 11th at 8:45am. This was the angle that would be literally set in stone during construction.

We set two long white slabs of precast stone into the pavement to align with the predicted solar angle, which was marked in the field by our survey team. By design, the sun aligns with these forms as it passes through the voids at 8:45am each September 11th. From 8:46 on, the moment the tragedies began to unfold, these two long rectangular forms fall into shadow, a metaphor for the fall of the towers themselves. I watched each day as the sun came closer to its mark. The morning of September 11th, our cloudy skies opened up in just enough time for the sun to shine through the voids of the memorial and mark the anniversary of these attacks that changed our world.

CGA: You chose AutoDesk VIZ to help visualize this project, what were the deciding factors in this decision considering the many options available today?

Our firm works predominantly with AutoCAD and that has time and again made VIZ a very comfortable fit for us. The work passed from concept to construction documents very quickly and with the need for visualization in obtaining approvals, fund-raising and for coordination, the fact that the design concept could be presented, developed, and updated between these two programs was invaluable. Having tested the accuracy of the VIZ Daylight System through this design, I know that it was an invaluable tool and provided us with a great solution to our design problem.

CGA: In designing a monument that took advantage of the suns angles, how did the design process begin with VIZ and how did you work through the design iterations?

Our survey team provided the specific north direction, the latitude and longitude of the site, and test data (dates, times, angles) for shadows at the memorial location. That same information was placed into the VIZ model, rendered and the angles were compared. High-resolution images were repeatedly output and laid over the AutoCAD plan to test the accuracy against the survey data. Once the system was determined to be accurate, the data was input for September 11th at 8:45am and that angle was predicted for placing the precast elements at the construction site.

CGA: Can you describe some of the technical challenges that you faced while trying to visualize this project with respect to the design and the careful attention paid to how the sun would interact with it?

There were a few things I needed to learn in using VIZ for this solar design that aren’t typically at issue in our everyday visualization project. Early inaccuracies between the simulation and the actual data indicated that the 0,0 location in VIZ had to correspond to the exact latitude/longitude point and that was input for the site. The center of the voids of the memorial had to be located at 0,0 in the model environment for the system to be accurate.

CGA: Can you explain and describe some of the before and after imagery that was created for this project?

Preliminary imagery was created for presentation and approval of the concept. Those images were then further developed for community awareness and fund-raising efforts, which included a project board with a series of images and project statement, and an animation. Later in the design process, imagery was only really generated for design and solar testing.

Project Board - Image courtesy Sear-Brown


Image courtesy Sear-Brown


Image courtesy Sear-Brown

CGA: How long did this project take to complete in terms of the visualization and design finalization process?

The students approached us on March 4th and, through a very efficient design-build process, construction was completed for the dedication ceremony on September 11th, 2002. The solar angle, locating the placement of the white precast forms, was the last dimension to be called out in the process to allow the maximum time for testing and confirmation.


CGA: What was the most rewarding part of working on this project?

When I visited the memorial on September 10th there was evidence that someone had already come to visit the memorial. They had left behind an obituary for a New York City firefighter who was last seen going into the World Trade Center following the second attack that day. That was the first moment that I knew that we had made a difference to someone through this project.

Images courtesy Sear-Brown


Photos Courtesy Paul Rossi, Southside Precast Products

Project Statement It is impossible to understand the level of loss and pain that the 3,047 victims, the countless wounded, their families, friends and countries have experienced through the tragedies of September 11th, 2001. The impact of these events has been and will continue to be unspeakably powerful for all of us. Inspired to create a place for remembrance, reflection, and healing, the Student Association of Monroe Community College (MCC) asked our firm for assistance in creating a memorial within their campus. Upon presentation of our design intentions, the Student Association gained the endorsement of MCC, and funding was established for the project. Our firm coordinated the memorial’s design and construction. The design consisted of several key components. A procession, lined with engraved bricks, allowed personal statements by the students, faculty, and our community - to become a part of the memorial. An eight-foot concrete memorial wall stands within a circular plaza at the end of this walk. Utilizing solar design technology, and building to strict design tolerances, two symbolic voids within the wall act as a solar clock to mark the moment of the tragedies. Two forms of white concrete have been set within the sidewalk grid. By design, the sun aligns with these forms as it passes through the voids at 8:45am each September 11th. From 8:46 on, the moment the tragedies began to unfold, these two long rectangular forms fall into shadow, a metaphor for the fall of the towers themselves. This project was designed and built with precision in only six months through the dedicated efforts of motivated professionals, students, and the support of their organizations in response to this great tragedy. Through this cooperative effort we are proud to have created a unique architectural piece for the campus and our community.