Despite the high-tech robots and building-size 3D printers being pitched at ENR’s FutureTech Conference on March 14 in San Francisco, one group of building experts presented a vision of the future that involves something a bit more old-fashioned: teamwork and communication. Photo courtesy ENR Gerald Hartford with Hartford Engineering says he prefers to work with subcontractors directly on the fabrication models as early in the project schedule as possible. Related Links: ENR FutureTech Conference Turns Heads With Process Innovation “We have a lot of great technology and have made a lot of shifts in process, but as an industry, we
Rendering courtesy Pelli Clarke Pelli The 1,070-ft-tall Transbay Tower will be the tallest building in San Francisco upon its completion in 2017. Related Links: Los Angeles Natural History Museum Gets Major Makeover ENR California: Project News As construction activity picks up in California, so does contract work for Los Angeles-based real estate law firm Allen Matkins. "The market is on fire," says attorney Delmar Nehrenberg, chairman of construction and development practice for Allen Matkins. "I've never seen anything like it." Nehrenberg, who is working on contracts for projects worth about $1.5 billion across the state says San Francisco and Hollywood are two
Move over US Bank tower; the $1-billion Wilshire Grand is coming to take the crown of tallest building in Downtown Los Angeles. Developed by Korean Air Lines Co., the new hotel and office project will contain 73 stories and will rise to 1,100 ft tall, with a distinctive architectural spire at the top. Related Links: View Other ENR California Project Stories "The Wilshire Grand Hotel and office development will change the corner of Wilshire and Figueroa with an iconic building that will redefine the downtown skyline," said Korean Air Chairman Yang-Ho Cho at a recent press conference.The roughly 2 million
The rainy season is upon us and that means it’s time for the Sacramento District of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to stop all of its levee work around the Sacramento and American rivers. U.S. Army photo by Todd Plain/Released Construction is shut down for the winter. “We can’t work on levees in the wintertime because of runoff,” says Tom Karvonen, project manager for Sacramento River Bank Protection Project (SRBPP). “When it’s raining it’s impossible to do the storm water protection required to keep soils from running in the river.”Karvonen, whose district is currently working on about eight projects or
Despite a difficult economy, Sacramento-based general contractor Tricorp Hearn Construction is seeing success in the hospitality sector with four large hotel projects under construction around the state. Tricorp Hearn Construction Hampton Inn & Suites in Mission Valley, Calif. “The economy has been great for us and we are extremely busy,” says Steve Hunter, president of Tricorp. “We found a couple of markets that are moving forward, hospitality and multi-family, and that’s what we are capitalizing on.”Hunter, who founded the company 10 years ago with Ken Cohen and Tony Moayed, says the trio’s decades of experience in the hospitality market has
The new $73.5-million bus facility for Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation is not an average garage. Built to achieve LEED Gold certification, the 442,265-sq-ft project will stack the vehicles in a state-of-the art three-story building. Courtesy of RNL Design Built to achieve LEED Gold certification, the 442,265-sq-ft project will stack the vehicles in a state-of-the art three-story building. “An interesting aspect is that this is a multi-level structure for buses which you don’t see too often,” says Aaron Kelly, project director with RNL Design, Los Angeles. “These projects are usually a large, flat surface lot that all the facility is parked
A new Solar Energy Research Center (SERC) in Berkeley aims not only to create green energy through artificial photosynthesis technology; it is designed to operate sustainably, shooting for a LEED Gold Rating. Courtesy of SmithGroup JJR Located on the campus of UC Berkeley, the $54-million SERC building broke ground October 19 and will become part of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. “This is a very high-tech project and the science on it is super exciting,” says Suzanne Napier, principal in charge for SmithGroup JJR, San Francisco, the project’s designer.Located on the campus of UC Berkeley, the $54-million SERC building broke
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