The multinational architectural, urban planning and engineering firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill is the choice to design, create a master plan, and engineer the Bureau of Engraving and Printing’s new production facility in Beltsville, Maryland. The news was reported in The Architect’s Newspaper on Dec. 8.

The story states that the Chicago-based company said it will be joining a joint venture with the Capital Currency Team that also includes industrial engineer Ghafari Associates and mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineer Huitt-Zollars, and which is administered by the Baltimore district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The firm said, “The new building will consolidate many program functions, including administrative support and banknote manufacturing, onto a single floor to enable a seamless and more cost-effective operation. It will be equipped with the next generation of secure banknote production technologies, and with up to one million square feet of space, it will be future-proofed to accommodate the changing needs of currency production over time. Additionally, the facility will be designed in accordance with federal security standards.”

It also said that it was anticipated that the new facility will be up and printing in 2025, four years earlier than other reports.

The Capital Currency Team is listed as the recipient of two federal contracts, one worth $29.2 million, and another, called a potential 10-year $100 million contract in relation to the new BEP printing plant. The $100 million contract for multi-discipline architectural engineering services was awarded in February 2020 from among seven bids solicited on the internet. The contract has an estimated completion date of Feb. 5, 2030.

Despite the name, Capital Currency Team is a private for-profit entity with offices at 2001 K St. NW, Ste. 200, in Washington, D.C., the same address as Skidmore, Owings & Merrill’s Washington office. It began operations in September 2019. The commercial credit company Cortera says the firm has one to five employees and sales of under $500,000. Its named point of contact is Joseph P. Ruocco. Mr. Ruocco is also listed on the SOM website as an accomplished architect and responsible for leading the firm’s civic and government practice, with clients including the General Services Administration, the FBI, the U.S. Department of State, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

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