Kennedy Space Center Visitor Space Shop Renovations

Overview

Known as the world’s largest space-themed gift shop, the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Space Shop offers exclusive space memorabilia, NASA gear, and an interactive shopping experience. After serving as the central gift emporium for years, the shop received a well-deserved facelift. Key components of this design-build project’s facelift included special flooring, educational signage that covers formerly exposed columns and walls, and an enhanced layout that helps keep the store organized.

Features

Visitors will find a historic metal bridge, one of the many centerpieces of the store, that connects the two areas of the second floor. In traditional space-coast honor, the bridge is actual a section of the gantry used for Apollo 11, allowing shoppers to literally walk in the footsteps of NASA astronauts. In order to place the Apollo 11 gantry, TLC performed a structural analysis model of the bridge based on field measurements. A vibration analysis was also performed to make sure it is safe and suitable for a retail space. The existing steel framing was reinforced to support the gantry.