When the $80-million, 125,000-sq-ft Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects-designed expansion of the historic 1872 Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento opens this month, it will not be the first time that contractors see the building in all its three-dimensional glory. With the opening of the $80-million, 125,000-sq-ft expansion of the historic 1872 Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, it will not be the first time that contractors see the building in all its three-dimensional glory. Building Information Modeling was essential to saving both time and money on the iconic project, according to John Home, project manager for Redwood City-based Rudolph and Sletten,
One of the largest distributed commercial solar retrofit projects in California required creative planning, design and logistics. In April, Sacramento-based HMH Builders completed the first of 15 1 MW photovoltaic additions to health provider Kaiser Permanente buildings up and down the state as part of an engineering, procurement and construction agreement with San Francisco-based solar developer Recurrent Energy. Because the first application was on the 400,000-sq-ft rooftop of a regional distribution center in windy Livermore, HMH switched from a planned ballasted design that used weights to anchor photovoltaic trays to a connected system. Steel frames were attached directly to the
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which periodically inspects California’s Central Valley flood-protection network, released a report card on 10 of the state’s 26 levee systems, rating seven as “unacceptable” and warning some problems would “likely prevent performance in the next flood event.” Issues cited included encroachment, underseepage, vegetation and slope stability. The other three won “marginally acceptable” ratings; they retain eligibility for “active” status in a federal “rehabilitation and inspection” levee safety program and may receive federal aid to repair flood damage. The Corps is using $4.6 million in American Recovery and Investment Act funds to contract with GHT2—a
One of the largest distributed commercial solar retrofit projects in California required creative planning, design and logistics. In April, Sacramento-based HMH Builders completed the first of 15 1 MW photovoltaic additions to health provider Kaiser Permanente buildings up and down the state as part of an Engineering, Procurement and Construction agreement with San Francisco-based solar developer Recurrent Energy. Because the first application was on the 400,000-sq-ft rooftop of a regional distribution center in windy Livermore where gusts can reach 115 mph, HMH switched from a planned ballasted design that used weights to anchor photovoltaic trays to a connected system. Steel
West Coast solar power could get a major boost if the California Energy Commission approves as many as six of 13 proposed utility-scale solar projects in Southern California’s Mojave Desert by year-end. Photo: Courtesy Brightsource Energy Mirror arrays collect Southern California sunshine and convert water to steam to drive generators. Other systems under consideration use thin-film compounds and waterless thermal troughs. At a series of meetings in October and November, the CEC will consider authorizing construction for some of the largest solar installations since 354 MW went online in the 1990s. An additional 3,500 MW of capacity—an estimated $18 billion
Seven owners of contaminated sites in California, including the Sierra Nevada municipality of Nevada City, will use grants from an $80 million annual Environmental Protection Agency Brownfields and Land Revitalization program to clean up dangerous sites. Friends of Deer Creek, an environmental nonprofit, will subcontract with Nevada City to administrate three $200,000 grants to clean up heavy metals from the tailings of two abandoned mines in recreation areas. A four-year environmental study of the 40-acre gold mining area funded by a Community Assessment Grant detected lead level spikes as high as 1,700 ppm in popular hiking areas. The EPA limit
A new isolated bearing system designed to preserve the alignment of critical bridge structures while saving millions in construction costs may make its debut on a high-speed-rail project in Turkey. It has been proposed for California’s planned high-speed-rail system as well. Photo: Courtesy of EPS A new isolation system, tested successfully in California this spring, may be used on two Turkish bridges. CCCI Consortium—a design-build partnership of the China Railway Construction Corp., the China National Machinery Import & Export Corp., Istanbul-based Cengiz Insaat and Ankara-based IC Ictas Insaat—plans to include a segmental displaced control isolation system manufactured by Vallejo, Calif.-based
One of the tallest bridges in the U.S. is about to receive an extensive seismic upgrade, including 2.2 million lb of structural steel. Bids open on Sept. 7 for a $71-million seismic retrofit for the 1970s-era Foresthill Bridge in Auburn, Calif. At 730 ft tall and 2,428 ft long, its retrofit will pose dizzying challenges to the selected contractor. Photo: Courtesy Of Place County Public Works California’s tallest bridge will receive a $71-million seismic upgrade. “We are garnering a lot of interest from contractors,” says Ken Grehm, director of public works for owner Placer County. Grehm has led more than
Starting next month, California’s state capital campus, a complex of 23 buildings encompassing 5.5 million sq ft, will be cooled by water chilled in a 4.25-million-gal thermal-energy storage tank. The 140-ft-tall metal cone is the final phase of a $181-million central-plant replacement on course to receive the second-highest ranking—LEED Gold—of the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design green-building rating system. Photo: Todd Quam Digital Sky Aerial Imaging Payback period is three to four years for the energy-efficient systems in the state capital’s $181-million district heating and cooling plant. The 78,000-sq-ft California central plant is the largest
Contractors and government agencies in Arizona and Nevada are testing the public-private partnerships with mixed results in delivering buildings and roadways. Arizona has led the way in vertical P3 development. Alternative project delivery legislation that allows certain P3 projects goes back to 2000. The $455-million Arizona Cardinals stadium in Glendale was design-built by Phoenix-based Hunt Construction Group. It is owned by the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority and was paid for in part by the Cardinals as tenant. That joint venture is considered an early role model for P3. “P3 is a practical extension of design-build,” says Gary Aller, director