Kaiser Permanente announced three finalists in its hospital design competition: Aditazz, Palo Alto; Gresham, Smith and Partners, Columbus, Ohio; and Mazzetti Nash Lipsey Burch, San Francisco. KP says that some of the ideas presented for the firm’s “Small Hospital, Big Idea” competition included transparent roofs that produce energy and collect rainwater; interactive walls patients could use to Skype with family or physicians; and a pneumatic pharmacy distribution system that delivers medications to patients’ rooms. Each firm will receive compensation of up to $750,000 to flesh out their winning concepts over the next several months, KP says, with the final designs
Norwegian architect Sn�hetta released its preliminary design for the 225,000-sq-ft expansion of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Image courtesy of Sn�hetta General contractor Webcor Builders will have to grapple with a compact urban site, currently a maze of alleyways, that is 335 ft long but only 98 ft wide. The project includes a public promenade with an entrance to the wing, which will sit behind the Mario Botta-designed original that opened on Third and Howard streets in 1995. A more detailed design, executed in partnership with SF’s EHDD Architecture, is scheduled for completion by the end of the
California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom recently toured the under-construction UC Davis West Village student housing complex, claimed to be the largest zero net energy development in the country. Debuting this fall, the 130-acre mixed-use community will feature housing for 2,000 students. Its SunPower solar system will provide 4 megawatts of power, which will support 100% of the development’s electricity needs. The system is comprised of both rooftop solar power installations and solar canopies over parking areas. UC Davis West Village is the product of a public-private partnership between UC Davis and West Village Community Partnership, LLC, a joint venture led
Associated Builders and Contractors reports that its Construction Backlog Indicator (CBI) for the first quarter of 2011 averaged 7.3 months, a 4% increase from 7.1 months during the fourth quarter of 2010, and up from 6.1 months, or an increase of 21%, from one year ago. According to ABC, CBI is a forward-looking indicator that measures the amount of construction work under contract to be completed in the future. “If construction materials prices are better behaved going forward, the recovery in commercial and heavy industrial construction may accelerate,” says Anirban Basu, ABC’s chief economist. “However, infrastructure-related construction is largely dependent
AGC of California held its annual spring state and division board meetings and conference last week at the Monterey Plaza Hotel in Monterey. More than 150 AGC members and guests from across the state were in attendance. Matt Schmitz, special assistant to the division administrator at the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), addressed the AGC Joint Engineering Division. Pictured to his right are division leadership including Director Sam Hassoun, AGC; Chair Jim Troup, Monterey Mechanical Co., and Vice Chair Clint Larison, Reyes Construction, Inc. The two AGC division boards of directors tackled a range of topics during their quarterly meetings. During
The AGC Construction Education Foundation (AGC CEF) has formed an official partnership with the ACE Mentor Program in California. While the two organizations have partnered on the national level and have worked closely on local levels for years, this is the first formal statewide partnership between an AGC state chapter and ACE Mentor affiliate. AGC CEF and ACE will work together to address the full pipeline of workforce regeneration from high school through training and/or post-secondary education. AGC CEF Board of Directors Chairperson Michelle Loveall says, “The partnership just makes sense; it makes sense for both organizations when it comes
New construction starts in April were reported at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $400.2 billion, basically the same amount as March, according to a monthly report from McGraw-Hill Construction. Nonresidential building slipped back after its elevated March pace, while nonbuilding construction (public works and electric utilities) continued to retreat, MHC says. In contrast, residential building in April registered a moderate gain, helped by upward movement for multifamily housing. During the first four months of 2011, total construction on an unadjusted basis came in at $122.1 billion, down 9% from the same period of 2010. “The pattern of construction starts
Caltrans reports that workers last week placed the �world�s largest cable saddle� atop the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge�s self-anchored suspension span (SAS). The tower for the SAS, the signature element of the bridge’s new span, will stand tall at 525 feet. The cable saddle weighs approximately 450 tons, and while it has a rectangular flat base, two sides jut out, according to Caltrans bridge spokesman Bart Ney. “The top is curved to better carry the cable over the top not just once but twice, making it one of the few double cable saddles in bridge construction and the largest
After reviewing more than 100 design concepts from architects, design firms, students, health care companies, and engineering and construction firms from throughout the U.S. and the world, Kaiser Permanente says judges have picked nine finalists in its �Small Hospital, Big Idea� competition. Launched in February, the open design competition called for ideas for a small, eco-conscious, patient- and family-friendly hospital that would foster the collaboration and use of emerging medical technology that is central to care at Kaiser Permanente. The nine finalists are: Aditazz; Ellerbe Becket; Gresham, Smith and Partners; HGA; Lee, Burkhart, Liu; Mazzetti Nash Lipsey Burch; Perkins+Will; SmithGroup;
Following a tour last week of the San Bruno pipeline blast site, which killed eight people and destroyed 38 homes in September, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says that he�s called on congress to raise the maximum civil penalties against companies committing safety violations, boost the number of safety inspectors, and close the loopholes that allow pipeline owners to evade safety standards. “I’m asking for America’s pipeline owners and operators to take a good, hard look at their lines as part of a top-to-bottom review,” he told reporters and residents. “We want them to replace and repair those lines in
RSS