Company:
National Transportation Safety Board

Capitol CREAG Services:
Space Programming/Program of Requirements
Coordinate Design Intent Drawings
Site Selection/Market Survey
Independent Government Estimates
Develop Solicitation for Offers
Negotiate Offers
Best and Final Offers
Prepare Lease Documents and Obtain Signatures
Post Award Services

Project Challenge:
The National Transportation Safety Board needed senior real estate consultants to manage a full design-build procurement of a new world class NTSB training facility in Northern Virginia. The requirement consisted of a design build 72,000 SF transportation laboratory (research and testing facility/conference and training type space), 30,000 SF free-span warehouse/airplane hanger (transportation testing laboratory/research), plus 30,000 SF of exterior simulation court to fulfill the mission of the National Transportation Safety Board International Training Academy and supporting laboratory and research functions. The assignment commenced in Q3 2000; space had to be designed, built and ready for occupancy by December 2002.

Kevin Wilson, Principal of Capitol CREAG, was hand picked by GSA to provide full procurement oversight and services for this very important initiative.

Due to the nature of its use, this training facility had many unique, above-standard items including:

• A common area large enough to accommodate 150 people to be constructed in a manner consistent with the finishes of a prestigious hotel conference center lobby to include all furnishings, amenities, public areas, ability to accommodate wireless Internet access, audio visual areas with VCR/Cable accessibility, and appropriate auxiliary lighting.
• A common Area with large windows overlooking a well landscaped outside area.
• A custom built NTSB Training Academy and supporting laboratory and research facility in line with the highly technical Program of Requirements.
• Training Center to feature professionally supported state-of-the-art audio/visual equipment and services including A/V equipment (multimedia projector), microphones (mounted, tabletop, wireless handheld, and lapel), video playback (DVD, VCR, Mini DV, wired lectern with presentation computer), and touch-screen controls (audio, video, lighting schemes, window shades). Video conferencing via ISDN phone lines, video recording, live or delayed webcasts, and other special services to be provided as requested.
• The Warehouse/Airplane Hanger to be at least 100 feet wide by 300 feet long by 45 feet high ceiling clearance.
• Warehouse to be free-span with no columns in the space.
• Significantly upgraded floor loads and electrical. Space to be fully conditioned.
• Warehouse to have entry doors on both ends of the space with opening clearance of 36 feet high by 60 feed wide, allowing easy opening to bring in and remove large wreckage pieces (i.e., TWA Flight 800 re-assemblage).
• Two 15-ton traveling cranes with a 40 feet high clearance to bottom of cranes able to operate the full length of the warehouse area.
• Warehouse to have area to accommodate full scale flight simulator.

Project Scope:
Capitol CREAG was able to successfully assist NTSB in developing its comprehensive Program of Requirements, perform Site Selection/Market Surveys of potential sites within 50 miles of their HQ, develop their Solicitations for Offers, manage a 20-year firm term real property procurement in accordance with their Charter (granting them statutory independent leasing authority from GSA) and the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), and ensure the site was built out per the lease.

We were also able to meet NTSB’s preference of space that is co-located or located near a world class institution of higher education with classes (and professors) on subjects of interest to the training center.
NTSB awarded Lease # NTSB-01-001 to The George Washington University for space located at their campus on Riverside Parkway in Ashburn, Virginia. The lease was the first lease known to have actually been executed by the NTSB directly.