While constructing Clemson University's $110-million wind-energy test center in North Charleston, S.C., the project owner and its builders were often working toward a "moving target."
Related Links: Best of the Best 2014 Builders Solve Calatrava's Florida Polytechnic Puzzle Soaring Polytechnic Project Lets Builders Stand Tall During construction of Florida Polytechnic University's $60-million Innovation Science and Technology Building—which more closely resembles a flying saucer than a citadel of learning—the flappable wings ruled. Santiago Calatrava, the designer of the iconic building and its sun-tracking shading system, challenged the building team to remain unflappable while wrestling with the 300,000-sq-ft job's operable rooftop louvers and other complex features, all the time maintaining quality, schedule and budget.The two-story elliptical-in-plan building is the signature architectural element of the new 171-acre campus
Photos courtesy of ODOT Photo & Video Services The 2,000-ft-long Interstate 5 Willamette Bridge is Oregon's largest single-arch span. Its construction called for complex logistics and close collaboration under a delivery method known as construction management/general contracting. Related Links: Best of the Best 2014 ENR Northwest Project of the Year While executing construction of the $152-million Interstate 5 Willamette River Bridge, project team members detoured into unfamiliar territory. The 2,000-ft-long span, bordering Eugene and Springfield, Ore., is not only the state's largest single-arch span but also one of only a handful of U.S. transportation projects to forgo traditional delivery for
Photos by Nigel Marson Photography Related Links: Best of the Best 2014 Building a new Atlanta headquarters for the manufacturer of popular children's clothing brands Carter's and OshKosh B'gosh required fitting 11 stories of tenant space into an otherwise occupied 20-story tower.Driven by a tight schedule, the project team had to build out and finish 275,000 sq ft on 11 floors of Atlanta's Phipps Tower in only 20 weeks. The vacant office space required minimal demolition work, but the architect's plan called for complex finishes, including extensive hardwood flooring. To accomplish the architect's design, the general contractor, early in the
Photos by Sam Barnes Related Links: Best of the Best 2014 Landscape/Hardscape/Urban Development: Best Project The Crest at Galvez Plaza, a 65,000-lb, 35-ft-tall cantilevered steel sculpture, is part of a $900,000 revitalization project for the city of Baton Rouge. A steel mass of roughly 16,700 sq ft comprises the structure and supports lighting and sound equipment. Covered in stainless-steel cladding, each hollow section is triangular, and no side has the same measurement.Arrighi Construction led work on the project, which went through multiple design iterations. The design consisted of a series of 14-ft-long segments paired with complex geometry on a simple
Related Links: Best of the Best 2014 Turnkey Procurement a Key to Success on Navy Hospital Job Representing a model for future military hospital development, the Clark/McCarthy-led design-build team planned, procured and installed all of the Naval Hospital at Camp Pendleton's medical equipment and furniture, in addition to training hospital staff on how to use the medical devices. This was the first time the Navy had relied on the contracting strategy, which helped the team deliver the $455-million facility $100 million under budget and six months ahead of schedule.Best Projects judges appreciated the integrated project delivery-type strategy, which they said
Related Links: FHWA ET-Plus webpage (with links to summaries of latest rounds of tests) Six senators seek GAO study of guardrail issues (press release) A type of roadside guardrail that has sparked controversy about its safety has passed a set of crash tests, and states can continue to seek federal reimbursements for the cost of purchasing it, the Federal Highway Administration says.The test results, which FHWA officials announced on March 13, aren’t the last word, however, on the ET-Plus guardrail end caps, made by Dallas-based Trinity Industries Inc. FHWA officials say that they will continue to review additional information about
Related Links: Link to USGS Feb. 24 report The U.S. Geological Survey detected changes in groundwater salinity near Florida's Lake Okeechobee following construction of a seepage barrier along the southeastern quarter of the lake. Contractors working for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built a cutoff wall to divert the path of water seepage discovered after hurricanes in 2004 and 2005. The flow damaged the 143-mile-long Herbert Hoover Dike, built in the 1930s around the lake for flood control.Seepage of this sort is responsible for about 20% of dam failures in the U.S., according to the Association of State Dam
Related Links: Spate of Lawsuits Flows from Nashville Inundation of 2010 Information on West Riverfront Park Plan The city of Nashville, still recovering from a devastating flood in 2010 that caused more than $2 billion in damages to Davidson County, Tenn., is planning to build a $100-million flood protection system over the next three years.City officials announced the plan on Feb. 25. The centerpiece of the program, originally unveiled in 2013, is a 2,100-ft floodwall intended to help protect the city from major floods."Like other river cities, Nashville can be protected by a floodwall system," said Metro Services director Scott
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