In 2019, Berggren Architects and conservator Shelley Smith performed a Collections Assessment for Preservation (CAP) for the Museum of the Rockies on the campus of Montana State University. The hallmark of the Museum of the Rockies is its extensive collection of hundreds of thousands of fossils, including the largest collection of Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops in the world. The museum also hosts exhibitions on Yellowstone National Park and the histories and cultures of American Indians in the region. The museum has made objects in its collection available to researchers with an interest in archaeology. Object-based learning is a core ideal of the institution.

Many dust-producing activities take place in the museum including metal fabrication and fossil preparation. In our report, Berggren Architects provided specific recommendations for safer paths of travel, the creation of vestibules to control for dust and pests, and monitoring air systems to check for pollutants and particulates. 

The Museum of the Rockies also hosts the Living History Farm, an original 1889 homestead that will soon give visitors a look into the agricultural history and daily lives of Montana’s early settlers. In 2020, Berggren Architects performed a separate CAP for the historic structure.