How Much Does a Zoo Exhibit Cost to Engineer?

Structural: animals and containment

Animal loads (the elephants, the rhinos — the dynamic impact factors on the barriers and the structures; the climbing primates — the mesh and the structure), the containment (the moats, the walls, the mesh — the engineered barriers; the hot-wire and the shift doors — the operable containment), and the public safety (the stand-off barriers — the keeping the visitors and the animals separated; the structural redundancy — the containment never failing).

Habitat and life support

Aquatic systems (the penguin, the sea lion, the aquarium — the filtration, the temperature control, the water chemistry — the life-support engineering), the climate (the tropical species in the temperate zoo — the heated rocks, the humidified air; the polar species — the chilled environments), and the naturalistic construction (the artificial rockwork — the shotcrete sculpting over the engineered structure; the pools' waterproofing).

Operations and welfare

The keeper access (the shift yards, the holding — the off-exhibit operations; the safety — the keeper-animal separation), the animal welfare (the AZA accreditation standards — the exhibit's complexity, the choice, the enrichment; the welfare informing the design), and the visitor experience (the sightlines — the immersive landscape; the accessibility). The zoological program (the species' needs — the design starting from the animal). Plan 18-30 months for major exhibits.

The bottom line

Budget $200,000-$1M+ for zoo exhibit engineering — the animal-load structures, containment barriers, and the aquatic/climate life-support per AZA standards.

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