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Split Rock Studios Eco Discovery Center
Split Rock Studios specializes in creating cultural and natural history exhibits for museums, interpretive centers, aquariums, zoos, political institutions… you name it – they've done it. And they never stopped enjoying it.
Challenge: The projects at Split Rock Studios are usually one-of-a-kind displays that are artistically designed and need architectural engineering for the installation. The Key West Eco Discovery Center project had its quirks… It was an exterior installation on an existing building so it would be exposed to an outdoor, ocean environment. A canopy covered sidewalk ran along-side the building. The display elements would have to be installed without removing the canopy supports for the sidewalk.
 The final design included native fish, animals and plants, waterjet cut out of ½” aluminum. Each design element would be welded and powder coated. The largest element, a school of fish, was 48 feet long by 12 feet tall. The project included a somewhat long quoting process. However, once the project got underway the turn around had to be quick; approximately three to four weeks.
- Because of the powder coating we needed waterjet cutting so the paint would stick to the cut edge. The heat of a laser alters the chemical make up of the metal and paint will not permanently adhere to the edge.
- Because of the large size of the elements we needed a waterjet cutter that had a large cutting surface.
- Because of the artistic element we needed a waterjet company that could use their waterjet as an artistic tool to achieve the quality that our customer expected.
- Because we had to live with-in a budget we needed a waterjet cutter that would quote the job accurately, including all specifications, and then complete the job according to what they had quoted with regard to both price and timing.
Solution: JIT Companies was referred to us as a waterjet job shop that specialized in one-off, more artistically challenging jobs. Their six foot by twelve foot Dynamic Waterjet® could accommodate the twelve foot dimension of the largest element and their experience could accommodate how to cut the balance of the design on the longer dimension. We sent them a CAD file and they cleaned up the artwork to ensure smooth edges and sharp corners. JIT has more technology for dealing with artwork than the average waterjet job shop. JIT also engineered where to splice the elements to accommodate the installation around the canopy structure and the shipping of these large pieces to Florida. The job took four weeks to complete.
Result: The wall sculpture went together just as we planned. We were amazed at how incredibly easy it was to work with JIT Companies. We were impressed with their quality of work and their ability to understand the overall scope of the project, even to the extent that they could offer value-added engineering. JIT Companies has gained our confidence and we plan on continuing our relationship with them in the future.
Fabrication and photos courtesy of Split Rock Studios.
 Minnesota
Zoo Tiger Lair
In collaboration with the Science Museum
of Minnesota, JIT Waterjet cut and fabricated this
outdoor signage for the Tiger Lair at the Minnesota Zoo. The
material used is 1/2-inch plate steel with aluminum pin-mounted
letters.
To meet the deadline, JIT Waterjet
provided the mounting templates, so concrete pilings could
be poured prior to project installation. This insured that
panels and mounting hardware would align with mounting parts.
 The
final appearance of the sign was to have a weathered look.
After waterjet cutting all componets
and powder coating the letters, the sign was chemically treated
by JIT to evenly rust the sign in a matter of three hours
as opposed to several weeks.
Again, all done with a very short lead-time,
JIT was up to the task, completing the project just in time
for the opening of the new area at the zoo.
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