News + Ideas

MGAC was founded on a simple promise: to take the most interesting, ambitious project ideas and make them a reality. Getting there is a matter of countless small steps, conversations, and carefully-calibrated decisions, taking place between day one and that long-awaited delivery day. These are the moments that make a project. With our Behind the Build series, we take a closer look at the roads that lead to a final product, delving into the ways our talented, passionate team makes a project possible. Today, we revisit our work on Under Armour’s Global Headquarters Campus.

For nearly three decades, Under Armour has forged a name for itself in sportswear and athletic gear, fueled by a relentless dedication to innovation and performance. Under the leadership of CEO Kevin Plank, the company decided to make a major investment in the place where it all began: Baltimore. After securing a sprawling 50-acre industrial site in the city’s southern reaches in 2016, Under Armour began developing plans for a purpose-built headquarters that would embody its performance mindset and core company values. Recognizing the scale of the task, the sportswear brand’s real estate team knew assembling an expert project team would be critical to success.

Familiar with MGAC’s reputation for delivering large, multi-faceted projects, Under Armour enlisted our project management support straight away. The scope spanned construction of not only a new 280,000 SF headquarters building, but also an athletic field complex and a flagship store right on site.

It’s a good thing we run toward the challenging and complex. Everyone on the project team—which included Gensler, Whiting-Turner, Interface Engineering, Thornton Tomasetti, Kimley-Horn, Buch Construction, and CannonDesign—knew this would be a uniquely rewarding endeavor, with the rare potential for a far-reaching regional impact.

SUSTAINABILITY IN ACTION

Sustainability was at the forefront of the new HQ’s design, featuring sustainable and intelligent building design features that align with Under Armour’s commitment to environmental responsibility. As a result, these buildings are substantially lowering the brand’s carbon footprint and energy usage, while contributing to the overall success of the greater Baltimore community. In support of a 2050 goal of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, Under Armour opted to use mass timber for constructing its headquarters instead of traditional steel and concrete to lower the project’s embodied carbon. MGAC engaged with Whiting-Turner and Gensler to align the project’s budget to this innovative approach. With the company’s commitment firmly in place, and with the expert team that had been assembled, we began to spearhead the execution, ensuring all stakeholders were aligned on process.

A full mass timber project of this scale and scope was among the first of its kind. As such, there was much for our project team to learn, track, and coordinate to keep all logistics running smoothly, from shipment to installation. Timber safely ashore, we helped navigate new quality control requirements to ensure the wood was protected properly from exposure to the elements. Throughout the entire process, we continued to gather critical information as we leveraged MGAC’s global offices and tapped our external professional networks.

The bones of the 280,000 SF structure were just the beginning of Under Armour walking the sustainability walk, with full goals including achieving LEED v4 Platinum Certification, net-zero energy operations, and the WELL Building Standard. To meet them, the campus would need to become a case study in performance. The HQ’s facade is designed to maximize energy efficiency, and a massive array of over 3,000 solar panels positioned on the roof and across campus offsets electricity use. Meanwhile, more than 350 geothermal wells—some 500+ feet deep—provide energy for heating and cooling. Rainwater harvesting systems are expected to capture enough rainwater annually to meet all the project’s flushing water needs, a major source of water consumption.

MGAC’s sustainability support continues, as recognition metrics are measured after 12 months of occupancy—making the first full year of operations critical. Net-zero contingencies are often razor-thin, and the smallest of details like the hours of operation for a campus coffee shop or addition of a few LED screens can be all it takes to tip the scales. To ensure operators and teams continue to use intricacies to the best of their abilities, we continue to hold regular meetings with the team to review any new developments and track all uses against the energy model.

HIGH EXPECTATIONS AND A HARD STOP

Under Armour’s vision for this project was to build a space that embodies everything the Under Armour brand stands for – performance, innovation, and passion – with a mission to make products that make athletes better. This campus is designed to inspire people, strengthen culture, and create a unified home where their teams can collaborate like never before. As a proud Baltimore-based brand, their new home embodies Under Armour’s longstanding commitment to their hometown and to athletes everywhere.

Located at the entryway of the new campus, Under Armour’s new flagship brand house had its own earlier deadline. This 24,000 square foot store is not just a retail space—it’s an experience.

UA’s Flagship Store at Baltimore Peninsula enables their teammates to see the culmination of their hard work in a retail setting, just steps away from their desks. This store brings UA’s retail presence physically closer to UA’s athletes, product, and innovation teams – the homebase where UA teammates work to shape the future of sports, push boundaries, and inspire the next generation of athletes.

The experience our team brought to the table was critical in meeting the high mark set for this space. At MGAC, our people often have diverse experience in the field and tap that background every day on the job. In this case, our entire project team had all previously worked as general contractors. Having sat on the other side of the table, we could see potential issues long before they bubbled to the surface. We swiftly moved into action in those moments, working closely with the project team to secure a solution.