When an ambulance rushed fatally wounded President John F. Kennedy to Parkland Hospital in Dallas in 1963, the facility sported the latest equipment and a skilled team of clinicians. Image: HDR+Corgan. An exterior design rendering of the Parkland Hospital, designed by HDR and Corgan. Image: HDR+Corgan. An aerial view of the massive Parkland replacement hopsital project, to break ground this fall. Even today, the 54-year-old hospital continues to excel in care delivery, but with the passage of time, the physical plant has struggled to keep up with changing technologies, codes and an increasing numbers of patients. But that’s about to
Texas 2010 design rank: No 27 Green rank: No. 3 Perkins+Will of Dallas was an early leader in sustainable design. “We have been on the forefront of sustainable design, and approach each project the same, regardless if the client wishes to pursue certification,” says Sean Garman, LEED AP BD+C, associate with Perkins+Will, which was founded in 1935 in Chicago. “[Our green market] continues to grow. Almost half our projects are pursuing certification.” Photo: Perkins+Will div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" The firm designed the $42-million Richland College Sabine Hall Science Building in Dallas, tracking for LEED-platinum. It designed the $117-million
Texas 2010 design rank: No 44 Green rank: No. 25 Pfluger Associates of Austin focuses on education projects. Photo: Pfluger div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" Denise Shaw, LEED AP, a project architect with Pfluger, says school owners continue to desire green buildings. “They have an obligation to stay within their budget on operations and maintenance,” Shaw says. “By having a more efficient building, they use less energy, and that money can stay in the school district and go toward better teacher salaries.” Pfluger, founded in 1973, designed the $25.5-million Cibolo Green Elementary School in Northeast Independent School District, which
With more than a decade of data on sustainability documented at pilot projects around the state, Texas school districts are buying into the promise of green building for K-12 facilities in a big way. Many independent school districts have pursued their first green projects in recent years, while early adopters are pushing for even higher performance standards on upcoming projects. Despite an environment of strained budgets, many observers note that school districts are looking beyond the initial costs of green building in order to reap the long-term rewards. Gail Vittori, co-director of the Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems in
Texas 2010 design rank: No 26 Green rank: No. 12 Owners’ interest in greener buildings helped propel Houston-based structural and civil engineering firm Walter P Moore to the 12th Top Green Design Firm. Photo: Walter P Moore div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" “An increasing percentage of our projects pursue registration with third-party rating systems,” says Dirk Kestner, LEED AP BD+C, senior associate, Walter P Moore in Austin. He sees this due to an increase in mandates for LEED-ratings and a desire to build responsibly with regard to the environment. Kestner adds that more clients are interested in the broader
Texas 2010 design rank: No 41 Green rank: No. 5 Dallas-based BOKA Powell began encouraging clients to design and build green about five years ago, and is fifth on Texas’ Top Green Design Firm rankings. Photo: Boka Powell div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" “We’re finding owners want green more than we thought they would,” says John E. Orfield, LEED AP, a principal with BOKA Powell. “Owners are realizing they have a competitive edge by having green.” BOKA Powell takes a pragmatic approach to design and aims for ensuring a project’s long-term worth. In fact, five office buildings BOKA Powell
Texas Construction presents its first-ever Top Green Design Firms list. The list ranks the top 25 design firms in Texas based on the amount of revenue each company reported earning from its green-building sector billings in 2009. The results were derived from the Top Design Firms survey, published in our previous issue (see Texas Construction, October, 2010). Image: Marmon Mok Architecture A rendering of the the Parman Branch Library at Stone Oak designed by Marmon Mok for the city of San Antonio. It is under construction. Related Links: Top Green Design Firms: Overall Ranking Company Snapshots: BOKA Powell Company Snapshots:
Health care remains one the state’s stronger market segments, with several megajobs under way at urban hospital campuses or soon to break ground. A few other projects are moving forward. “There are a lot of large projects starting to get going,” says Allan Dedman, vice president and regional director of health care for J.E. Dunn Construction Co. of Austin. “And I am starting to see some movement in rural hospitals.” J.E. Dunn, for instance, recently received a contract to build the $17-million Golden Plains Community Hospital in Borger, Texas. “It’s a pretty vibrant market,” adds Brian Freeman, executive vice president
As the year draws near its end, construction company owners and their fiduciaries should keep a close eye on an accounting change recently proposed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board ( or FASB). Depending on the industry’s response this year, the change could go into effect in 2011. The focus of the change is leasing, including equipment leasing. If enacted it likely will have a sizeable impact on construction companies, and here’s why: Under current standards, leases are split into two categories: capital leases, which must be reported on balance sheets, and operating leases, which are allowed to stay off
Bidding on public projects for state or local governmental entities involves a number of issues not necessarily present in the private sector. For example, confidentiality concerns exist when submitting information to a governmental entity. When submitting a bid or proposal, a contractor may be required to provide sensitive information, including but certainly not limited to financial information. Additionally, a contractor may have invested time and money in determining the best manner of presenting a bid or proposal. The contractor generally has an interest in keeping this information private and out of the hands of its competitors. But the Texas Public
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