2014 Best Intermountain Manufacturing and Award of Merit Safety: eBay Data Center
EBay's new 85,000-sq-ft Salt Lake City "data center of the future" deploys Dell's EPIC module, which packs more than 1 MW of IT power capacity into 24 racks, and HP's EcoPod module, adding 1.4 MW of capacity in 44 gear racks. The project included 15,000 sq ft of white-space build-out, a spine building and sitework to support two modular data containers, 6 MW of initial Bloom Energy fuel cells, a generator, uninterruptible power and high-efficiency cooling systems as well as infrastructure for future expansion to 18 MW.
In mid-summer the project changed from more of a traditional system infrastructure to incorporating 6 MW of fuel cells and replacing generators, UPS systems and large amounts of switchgear. This concentrated many duct banks and feeders in a confined location. The design change caused most of the underground work to occur in the middle of one of the coldest winters in Utah history—without jeopardizing schedule or quality.
At DPR, potential subcontractor partners are analyzed on the basis of previous and current safety performance before pricing is considered, and DPR's regional safety management team aims to bring only safe subs to a site.
DPR follows up with its partners to be sure that pre-task plans and machinery/tool inspections are completed daily. The contractor's "eyes in the field" and practice of applauding safe work practices and safe work areas helps DPR deliver a consistent message to workers.
eBay Salt Lake City Data Center
South Jordan, Utah
Key Players
Owner eBay Inc.
Architect Winter Street Architects
Structural Engineer KSI Structural Engineers
Civil Engineer Psomas
MEP Engineer AHA Consulting Engineers Inc.
General Contractor DPR Construction
