GBA’s Pat Prendergast Makes the Case for Commissioning When AIA KC Members Meet for ‘Chow & Tell’

How does an architect improve his or her client’s satisfaction? Provide a facility that meets or exceeds that client’s/owner’s needs and expectations. Provide a facility that works. Sounds simple enough, but that was the upshot of a lively and informative presentation made by our own Pat Prendergast before some 50 members of AIA Kansas City at the organization’s October 28 “Chow & Tell,” held at the AIA office at 18th and McGee in downtown KC.

 

According to Pat, architects are the team leaders and the owners’ confidants and, as such, are in a position to bring in a commissioning agent to ensure that the building and building systems work as intended. Obviously not all buildings need the same level of commissioning. Pat used the analogy of a lawn maintenance service. The lawn care needs of a warehouse in an industrial district differ dramatically from the needs of a commercial bank in the city’s financial district. The same is true for commissioning. Consequently, one of the first steps in the commissioning process is to determine the “depth and rigor” with which the commissioning activities should be performed to provide the level of assurance necessary.

Pat went on to talk about LEED, saying that it’s great – as long as the buildings are properly commissioned to work per the operational intent and energy model. He cited an analysis of measured energy use data from 100 LEED certified buildings that found that, while LEED buildings on average use 18-39% less energy per floor area than their conventional counterparts, 28-35% of LEED buildings use more energy than their conventional counterparts. Green buildings must be commissioned to ensure that they work as intended.

These are just a few of the highlights from Pat’s presentation. To learn more, contact Pat directly at 816.842-9225 or email at pprendergast@gbateam.com.

Unique Project Solutions Recognized with 'Excellence in Concrete' Awards

Two unique projects, one in the City of Olathe, Kansas, and the other in the City of Prairie Village, Kansas, have been recognized by the Concrete Promotional Group (CPG) with Excellence in Concrete awards. The awards are presented each year to recognize outstanding work in concrete construction!

Old 56 Highway Bridge over Cedar Creek, Olathe, Kansas – Concrete Restoration

The rehabilitation of the Old 56 Highway Bridge over Cedar Creek in Olathe received the award in the “Concrete Restoration” category. For those of you who are technically inclined - and that's many of our followers - poor drainage was causing significant deterioration along the edges of the bridge deck, while the rest of the bridge was in good condition. The best and most cost-effective solution involved removing and replacing the deteriorated areas of the bridge, allowing the City to upgrade the safety barriers on the bridge while maintaining the basic structure. The new portions of the bridge deck and the improved safety barriers were constructed using KCMMB concrete. Bridge deck drainage was improved by using variable depth milling to increase the cross slope on the existing structure. The completed bridge deck was then covered with a multi-layer polymer concrete overlay. This project provided the City with a cost-effective means of extending the life of the existing concrete bridge.

Mission Lane Bridge Replacement, Prairie Village, Kansas – Concrete Bridges

This new concrete bridge, which is located in a high-traffic area of the busy Prairie Village Shopping Center, replaced a bridge originally built in the 1940s that was structurally deficient due to high levels of corrosive de-icing salt. If you can't make out the bridge in this picture, it's because the J.C. Nichols Company, which originally developed the area, enclosed the creek in a culvert in the 1960s to create additional parking. 

KCMMB concrete was used on the abutments and deck for this bridge replacement. Precast prestressed double-tee beams were used to form a single-span bridge over Brush Creek, improving the hydraulic aspects of the creek. Complicating construction were the existing culvert structure and masonry channel walls, which had to remain in place. Shoring was used to support the walls during construction, while special tiebacks permanently anchor the walls to the newly constructed abutments. To conserve materials used, the new concrete bridge approach slabs were set on the existing footings; to provide long-term resistance to heavy salts applied during the winter, epoxy coated reinforcing steel was used exclusively and a multi-layer polymer concrete overlay was applied to create the final driving surface.

Congratulations to all involved in these interesting projects!

NASCAR Weekend: GBA Traffic Team Gets a Front Row Seat at the Kansas Speedway but the Cars They’re Watching Aren’t on the Track

On the weekend of October 2nd and 3rd, with the sun shining brightly and plenty of fuel, Greg Biffle took his second trip to Victory Lane at the Kansas Speedway. It takes every member of a race team to get to Victory Lane, and teamwork is the key to a successful race day.

If teamwork is critical on the track, it’s just as important off the track as hundreds of thousands of race fans converge, creating the potential for monster traffic tie-ups. This NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event went like clockwork off the track as well as on, thanks in great part to the team of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/KCKS, the KCK Police Department, Bob Budd of Budd Industries, and GBA’s traffic engineers, who worked from the roof of the press box to coordinate signals and facilitate traffic movement before, during, and after the event.

Members of the team used computers, cameras, and fiber optic networks to monitor traffic and change signal timing and function as needed to keep traffic flowing. The upshot: following Sunday’s race, with more than 100,000 fans in attendance, the entire parking lot was cleared in just two hours! Now that’s a race!

GBA's Bill Carter Receives 2010 WEF Excellence Award

Kudos to GBA Vice President Bill Carter, who has been honored by the Water Environment Federation (WEF) with that organization's prestigious Collection Systems Award! The 2010 WEF Excellence Awards, which were announced recently, will be presented during WEFTEC® 2010, WEF’s 83rd annual technical exhibition and conference, to be held in October in New Orleans. 

Bill, who heads up GBA's Water Environment Group with the zeal and commitment one would expect from a WEF Excellence Award-winner, currently serves on two national committees for WEF including Programs and Collection Systems. A member of WEF and the Kansas Water Environment Federation (KWEA) since 1983, he is active on the steering committee for WEF’s Private Property Virtual Library. This on-line library is a source of information for all types of private property sanitary sewer issues. In the mid-'80s Bill served as chairman of the Kansas Collection Systems Committee (KCSC) and was an active member of the KCSC during the '80s and '90s.

Bill's memberships also include the American Public Works Association (APWA) and the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA). Over the years he has been recognized by his peers with a number of special awards, among them the 1st Annual Ray Stillwell Award sponsored by KWEA in 2009; the 5S Award (2005) and Golden Manhole Award (1998) from KWEA; and the Golden Manhole Award (2000) from WEF’s Collection Systems Committee.

Bill’s more than 30-year career has focused on wastewater collection and treatment and includes more than 20 years with GBA and, earlier, more than 10 years with Johnson County Wastewater in Kansas. He earned a BS degree in Civil Engineering from K-State in 1976 and is a registered professional engineer in Kansas and Missouri and a certified Design-Build Professional.

Congratulations to Bill on being recognized by WEF with this significant honor!

WEF is a not-for-profit technical and educational organization with 36,000 individual members and 75 affiliated Member Associations representing water quality professionals around the world. 

Congratulations to Tawn Nugent, a Member of the Leadership Overland Park Class of 2010

Congratulations to Tawn, a senior engineer with our Highways Group, who recently completed the 2010 Leadership Overland Park program. Leadership OP is a program of the Overland Park Chamber’s educational foundation. GBA, a Chamber member, sponsored Tawn's participation in the Leadership program. 

Leadership OP informs participants about the critical issues facing the City, Johnson County, the Metro area, and the region, and helps them develop the leadership and stewardship skills necessary to successfully address these issues.

Tawn has taken a leadership role on a number of high-profile projects for GBA, including improvements to an eight-mile segment of Missouri Route 150 in Jackson County that encompasses the new interchange of Route 150 with US-71 Highway. The project has been ranked as the 9th largest project now under construction in the Kansas City Metro Area by the KC Business Journal!

Tawn also serves on the Board of Directors of Animal Haven, one of greater Kansas City’s largest no-kill animal shelters. A non-profit, Animal Haven serves as a home between homes for as long as the animal needs it, and works full-time to reunite pets with their owners.

Tawn is already putting into practice what she learned, both on the job and in the community!

GBA Team Provides Commissioning Services for First LEED Platinum Facility in Greensburg, Kansas

On the evening of May 4, 2007, Greensburg, Kansas, was devastated by a tornado that traveled rapidly through the area, leveling at least 95 percent of the city and killing eleven people. The tornado was estimated to be 1.7 miles wide with winds reaching 205 mph. After the damage was assessed and calm returned to the southwest Kansas community, the city council passed a resolution stating that all new city buildings would be built to LEED platinum standards. 

The Greensburg Business Incubator was the first LEED Platinum facility constructed in downtown Greensburg following the tornado. The two-story, 9,580 sf facility provides opportunity for startup businesses to obtain office space and meeting space.

A GBA team provided services to achieve LEED v2.2 EA Prerequisite 1, Fundamental Commissioning, and EA Credit 3, Enhanced Commissioning. The building achieved LEED Platinum certification with greater than 50% energy savings and innovative water-reuse systems.

Kudos to the citizens of Greensburg for making a commitment to “green” and for making it happen. The community is an inspiration and a model for communities everywhere. And kudos to the GBA team for being part of this important effort.

Thanks to Wikipedia for facts and figures cited about the tornado.

Business Journal Names Top Kansas City Area Construction Projects

GBA-designed improvements to an 8-mile segment of Missouri Route 150 in Jackson County – including the new interchange of Route 150 with US-71 Highway – have been ranked as the 9th largest project now under construction in the Kansas City Metro Area by the KC Business Journal!

MoDOT launched the $54.6 million project in 2006 to improve traffic safety and operations along the major east-west corridor, which provides access for Grandview, Kansas City, and Lee's Summit to the US-71 and M-291 highway corridors.

GBA’s Project Manager, Tawn Nugent, P.E., explains that the improvements involve widening what was mostly two-lane rural highway to a four-lane, median-divided urban highway with curbs and underground storm drainage. The project was phased to expedite construction, with the final phase accelerated to qualify for ARRA funding.

The interchange and first phase of the highway improvements are scheduled for completion in November of this year. The final two phases of the project will be completed in 2011.

This very complex project involved three municipalities, four separate TIF districts, and approximately 60 parcels, making communications key to its success. Tawn says that 3-D design was critical in communicating project impacts to stakeholders and coordinating within the project team.

Congratulations to Tawn and the entire GBA team!