MichiganConstruction.Net

D9 Systems, Inc.

D9 Systems is providing steel stud framing, exterior sheething, drywall and acoustical ceilings on this project.

 

Kent Companies, Inc.

Kent Companies won the competitive, open bid process to perform all of the concrete work at The Rapid’s expansion of their Wealthy Street Operations Center.  This opportunity allowed Kent Companies to once again partner with the professionals at The Christman Company on another time sensitive, multiple phased project.  This project occurred over the course of two years with many areas of the Operations Center still in full force while additions and renovations took place.  The largest part of the expansion was the addition of over 80,000 square feet of a very heavy structural concrete deck to provide parking for the buses with a new bus wash area, and a full depth basement underneath for onsite parking of employee vehicles.  Along with this additional space and other extensive remodeling, the existing maintenance bays and bus wash were reconfigured, the existing parking garage floor was removed and replaced, and an office build out within the existing bus parking garage took place.

 

The additional parking area and bus wash for The Rapid buses required the design of a beam and joist system that used some beams in excess of five feet tall and eight feet wide with massive amounts of reinforcing steel within them.  Kent Companies partnered with their formwork supplier to develop a hybrid forming system of tables and support posts to enable two weeks or less cycle times between pours.  The onsite space restrictions limited much of the placing of deck shoring to one of Kent Companies’ cranes and the use of motorized hydraulic hand carts. The perimeter of the structural deck rests on eighteen feet tall walls along three sides, with  columns and beams on the west side to create openings for ventilation fans for the underground employee parking.  The construction of the deck took place in the middle of a Michigan winter that saw temps below zero and multiple snow events of heavy accumulations.  Even in these adverse conditions, over 9,000 cubic yards of concrete passed through Kent Companies’ concrete pump trucks to fill the formwork and shoring for the floors, walls, and decks.

 

The office build out of the project was not only an addition onto the existing structure, but converted space within the existing parking garage to office space.  The owner of the project wanted LEED status for the building, and in an effort to meet LEED requirements, specified the use of the very unique “Terr-Con” floor system throughout the office area.  This system incorporates glass chips, a specially designed concrete mix, and diamond polishing to create a beautiful floor with high reflectivity that has minimal maintenance concerns.    To avoid any potential for cracking that would take away from the floor’s appearance, much attention was paid to the layout of the bulkheads, and multiple pours were made to eliminate any potential for cracking off from the many corners that were present in the layout of the rooms and hallway.

 

The Wealthy Street Operations Expansion allowed Kent Companies’ to once again show its depth of knowledge in the different facets of concrete construction; from the heavy construction elements of a structural concrete deck, to the architectural elements of a designer floor and exposed walls.

Pleune Service Company

The Rapid mass transit bus system is set to unleash the power of the wind.

The Grand Rapids agency plans to buy six roof-top wind turbines to help power its expanded operations center and bus garage, which is currently under construction on Wealthy Street SE.

The turbines will be located on the west side of the roof and visible from the street, said Rapid spokeswoman Jennifer Kalczuk. Power generated from them will be sent directly to the electric grid and will reduce the agency’s energy costs, she said.

“At maximum efficiency, each turbine is estimated to generate one kilowatt per hour,” Kalczuk said. “We don’t know how this will impact our energy costs — because of the expansion, we don’t have hard costs of the new power needs for the facility.”

The turbines are part of an effort to make the new building energy efficient and LEED “green building” certified. It also will include natural lighting, a water reclaim system on the bus wash, a snow melt system, solar heating and rain water collection.

The $32.4 million, two-year project began in December 2009 and will renovate the current facility at 333 Wealthy St. SE, increasing it from 117,500 to 205,000 square feet.

There are currently roof-mounted wind turbines in use at the nearby Kent County Recycling and Education Center at 977 Wealthy St. SW and at the Keller Engineering building at Grand Valley State University’s downtown campus.

Kalczuk said what the turbines will look like is unknown as appearance varies by manufacturer.

The project is currently on schedule for a December 2011 completion and on budget, she said.

The extra space is needed because in recent years The Rapids’ bus fleet has grown to at least 122 buses.

The old facility was built in the 1970s and designed hold about 100 buses. When complete, the expanded facility will be able to accommodate up to 170 buses. The new building will also have additional washing an maintenance bays and extra parking.

“We are currently working on the underground parking area (for cars), which will hold up the expanded bus storage area,” Kalczuk said. “We are also working on the expanded maintenance bays.”

The project is being funded with $28.1 million in federal funds and $4.2 million in money from the state.

Crites, Tidey & Assoc.

Lighting systems integrated with non standard ceiling supplied appropriate and energy efficient lighting levels for end user.

Products used: www.neoray-lighting.com

East Muskegon Roofing and Sheet Metal Co., Inc.

We are furnishing, assembling and installing the paint spray booth for the body shop.  We are also fabricating and installing the necessary ductwork.

 

The spray booth is 81’long, 22’-8” wide and 20’-8” high with four exhaust fans and stacks.  It will also boast two make-up air units totaling 72,000 CFM.