2025 Texas & Southeast Best Projects
Project of the Year Finalist/Best Health Care: Cook Children’s Medical Center, Dodson Specialty Clinics
Cook Children’s Medical Center, Dodson Specialty Clinics
Fort Worth
PROJECT OF THE YEAR FINALIST and BEST PROJECT
Submitted by: Linbeck Group
Owner Cook Children’s Health Care System
Lead Design Firm HKS Inc.
General Contractor Linbeck Group LLC
Civil/Structural Engineer Dunaway
MEP Engineer Smith Seckman Reid Inc.
Electrical Engineer Fisk Electric Co.
Interior Design Keller Studios
This 240,000-sq-ft renovation and expansion added nine stories to Cook Children’s Fort Worth campus, with eight above grade and one below.
Under an integrated project delivery contract, the team navigated a constrained jobsite in the middle of an active pediatric health care campus. To avoid conflicts and safeguard the schedule, the contractor coordinated all work activities at least three weeks in advance. Crews also had to navigate around a separate ongoing job that surrounded the project.
Since the hospital’s existing facade was heavy precast concrete, crews had to use a crane to sawcut the surface and infill the removed portions of facade with temporary panels.
These panels were waterproofed and made durable enough to withstand the outdoor elements until the expansion was complete.
The new concrete structure features an EFIS facade, thin brick, cast stone and glass fiber reinforced concrete. Two new tie-ins between levels B1 and 5 connect the old and new portions of the building.
Photo by HKS Inc.
Scope also included multiple major utility relocations and upgrades. Improved public wet utility infrastructure (storm, sewer and water) will address capacity needs for the new building expansion in the public right-of-way.
The excavation scope, completed during installation of new underground plumbing and equipment, was particularly challenging thanks to hard rock sitting 3 to 6 ft below grade.
Construction crews added two new tunnels as well. One of them connects to a new parking garage, while the other leads to the hospital’s new West Tower location.
When the team discovered white rust in the hospital’s ductwork, a metallurgist was brought on to determine the cause. After discovering the problem was a result of manufacturing, some of the ducting was replaced and the rest cleaned and treated with a protective coating.
A rigorous quality control process proved vital for multiple items, from the facade to brick ledges, slab elevations, building and tunnel tie-ins, prefabricated items, underground plumbing and waterproofing.
Photo by HKS Inc.
Additionally, the team utilized mock-ups on multiple occasions. Full-scale room mock-ups allowed end-users to provide feedback before construction began. A 20-ft mock-up of the hospital’s exterior also verified building details before installation began.
Linbeck’s completion of the Dodson expansion required more than 621,000 worker hours, and no lost-time incidents were reported. For this project, the contractor supplemented its traditional safety program, which includes safety stand-downs, toolbox talks and daily huddles, with a plan tailored specifically for the hospital and Cook Children’s needs, which included requiring all workers to pass a background check and obtain a security badge.
Despite schedule constraints that included additional scope, 54 weather days, long-lead items and limited working hours, the project was completed on time and within budget in August 2024.
