ENR California's 2017 Best Projects
Specialty Construction Award of Merit: Wilshire Grand Center
The 1,100-ft-tall Wilshire Grand is the tallest building west of the Mississippi River. Photo Courtesy of The Raymond Group
Wilshire Grand Center
Los Angeles
Award of Merit
Owner: Hanjin International Corp./Korean Air
Lead Design Firm: AC Martin
General Contractor: Turner Construction Co.
Structural Engineer: Brandow & Johnston Inc./Thornton Tomasetti (Consultant)
Subcontractors: The Conco Cos. and The Raymond Group
From top to bottom, the 73-story Wilshire Grand is breaking records. The 1,100-ft-tall tower is the tallest building west of the Mississippi River, and its concrete mat foundation was installed in a single pour that lasted 18 hours. Wilshire Grand consists of a cast-in-place concrete core with walls up to 4 ft in width, built on a four-day cycle. The tower was topped off in February 2016 with a concrete pour exceeding 150,000 cu yd. Wilshire Grand is part of a $1-billion-plus mixed-use complex expected to help revitalize downtown Los Angeles. The tower’s spire and exterior skin are filled with programmable LED lighting, which illuminates the entire building. The building is also structurally advanced, built with bucking restrained braces and designed to withstand a magnitude 8 earthquake.
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