2011 Brasfield & Gorrie Book

STUDENT fall 2011 D E S I G N

mississippi state university | college of architecture, art + design

BRASFIELD & GORRIE

competition

STUDENT T fall 2011 D E S I G N

mississippi state university | college of architecture, art + design gn

BRASFIELD & GORRIE

competition n

MESSAGE FROM THE DEAN The Brasfield and Gorrie Student Design/Construction Competition was established to encourage and promote architecture, building construction, and interior design students and faculty to collaboratively work together on a building project. This twoweek collaborative project addresses issues related to integrated practice and project delivery within a studio setting.

The leadership at Brasfield and Gorrie General Contractors has been on the leading edge of project delivery innovation for a number of years. The company has become actively engaged in assisting the College of Architecture, Art, and Design at Mississippi State University to respond to these important issues. Shifts toward integrated practice and evolving design delivery solutions are affecting architects, designers, and constructors; and, as educators, we are privileged to help develop the individuals that will embody these changes. We have the imperative to prepare students to take on this critical collaborative role successfully. The College has responded in part to this imperative by providing a focus on the development of methodologies for implementing historically absent collaborative teaching/learning between architecture, interior design, and construction. Brasfield and Gorrie’s five-year commitment to fund a collaborative competition made up of teams of architecture, interior design, and building construction students targets this focus. Faculty members from each of the three disciplines team-teach throughout the competition. There is a singular project that all student teams engage and a panel of industry professionals, including constructors from Brasfield and Gorrie, and faculty from the three disciplines review the resultant building design, construction estimate, and schedule. The Brasfield and Gorrie Competition funds the operation of the studio, field trips, and cash awards to the top three winning teams as selected by the jury panel.

There are several major benefits that accrue to the students involved in this collaborative work. Students have a focused opportunity to learn and understand the complexity of collaborative interaction and to practice technical and social skills required to successfully complete this type of work. The students gain first hand experience working with the cohorts outside of their own professional discipline with the focus being ‘delivery’. The project scope helps develop students’ understanding of their professional role in the design and construction process, as well as an awareness of what other professionals value in a design build environment, and how they work. Finally, the projects expose students to the significant scope, importance, and use of the technology necessary to support this type of integrated project delivery.

The College of Architecture, Art, and Design is pleased to partner with Brasfield and Gorrie General Contractors to provide our students with this important learning opportunity.

Jim West, AIA Dean, College of Architecture, Art, and Design

Faculty Editors John Poros Suzanne Powney Design Suzanne Powney Typeset in Aller & Calibri Printed by Blurb Inc. Š2011 College of Architecture, Art + Design Mississippi State University All rights reserved All photographs and drawings are courtesy of the contributors and students unless otherwise noted. All efforts have been made to obtain lawful permission to reprint copyright images. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission from the publisher except for copying permitted by sections 107 and 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law and except reviewers for the public press. Every effort has been made to see that no inaccurate or misleading data, opinions or statements appear in this portfolio. The data and analysis appearing in the content herein are the responsibility of the contributors concerned.

Table of Contents Overview competition information guest reviewers faculty advisors student presentations smithville story

11 12 13 14 18

Research existing site conditions regional site research community research project collaboration

22 24 26 28

Design designs 32 top presenters 36

competition information project overview guest reviewers faculty advisors student presentations teams smithville story

overview SMITHVILLE 9

BRASFIELD & GORRIE STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION

Brasfield and Gorrie are a team of full-service general contractors, construction managers, and community minded people. B & G are ranked 28th among the nations top 400 contractors according to Engineering News-Record.

Some of their most recent achievements include being ranked No.1 among the nation’s “Top Contractors in the Southeast,” ranked No. 3 in the nation for “Top Green Contractor,” ranked No. 16 among the nation’s “Top 50 in Domestic General Building Revenue,” No. 28 among the nation’s “Top 100 Contractors by New Contracts,” as well as No. 2 among the nation’s “Top Healthcare General Contractors.” They employ 229 L.E.E.D. Accredited professionals and are responsible for 46 green projects.

Their involvement with Mississippi State University in the fall of 2011 was an unprecedented event for the College of Architecture Art and Design as well as the Carl Small Town Center. For two weeks, teams of students from the fourth year Architecture studio, Building Construction Science, and Interior Design were led through a series of lectures and collaborative design methods to help enhance the understanding and importance of teamwork, having clear goals, and making contentious design and developmental decisions from the very beginning of a project.

overview

Competition Information

The project presented was a civic complex for the town of Smithville Mississippi. Included in this complex would be a city hall, a police station, a volunteer based fire station, as well as a public library. Prior to this project the architecture students had been working with the town and residents proposing various master plans. These proposals focused on new ways of approaching the idea of rural downtown centers. There were four total master plans. Each group had to work within one of these plans. Zoning, infrastructure, and commercial business were considered when locating the Civic Complex within the master plans.

There was nervous and excited energy in the Giles Hall Harrison auditorium on the first day of the Brasfield and Gorrie competition, from students and faculty alike.

Students from the Architecture, Interior Design, and Building Construction majors were about to meet and be teamed up for the first time in their college careers. Not sure of how to approach a project of this scale and collaboration, the students sat and waited eagerly for guidance. Once the students were paired off into ten different teams made up of 2 to 3 Interior Design seniors, 2 to 3 Building Construction seniors, and 2 to 3 fourth year Architecture students, they split off to find their workspaces for the next two weeks.

SMITHVILLE 11

BRASFIELD & GORRIE STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION

Guest Reviewers Sam Hardie LEED AP of Brasfield and Gorrie Sam Hardie lectured on a review of Building Information Modeling (BIM).

Douglas Lee Chief Estimator of Brasfield and Gorrie As Vice President/Regional Preconstruction Director, Douglas works directly with the project manager to develop cost-effective, realistic budgets and schedules. He leads our estimating teams on negotiated, hard-bid, healthcare and commercial projects for construction and construction management work.

Douglas’s responsibilities include conceptual estimating, quantity surveys, final pricing, scheduling and buyout. Throughout preconstruction, he leads the estimating team to develop effective scheduling and value engineering strategies. After preconstruction, Douglas’ involvement in the construction phase helps our team ensure that the customer receives the highest level of cost efficiency possible. He has a proven track record for using his construction knowledge and skills to bring cost savings to all of Brasfield & Gorrie’s clients.

John T. Wood, AIA LEED AP, Vice President of CMH Architects, Inc. John Wood joined CMH Architects, Inc. in 2005 continuing a career as project architect. He has led the design of a wide variety of project types both foreign and domestic. Included in his resume are Class-A office buildings, high-end retail centers, educational facilities (primary, secondary and post-secondary), manufacturing facilities and mixed-use projects. He has extensive experience in all components of the building process including initial programming, design development, preparation of construction documents and construction administration. Wood has administered architectural services for federal and corporate clients as well as for financial institutions. Wood became a shareholder in the firm & Vice President in 2011.

Faculty Advisors Michele Herrmann Michele M. Herrmann, Esq. is an instructor in Building Construction Science at Mississippi State University focusing on construction law. She earned her Bachelor of Science Design from Clemson University and her Juris Doctor from New York Law School, where she worked at the Center for New York City Law. She is a member of the New York State Bar. Prior to joining the BCS faculty, she taught beginning design studios at the State University of New York at Delhi and has experience in real estate and land use law.

Beth Miller Beth R. Miller is a certified interior designer, associate professor and Director of Interior Design at Mississippi State University. She has completed all of her doctoral course at Mississippi State University and is currently working on her dissertation. She earned her Masters in Education with a concentration in interior design from Mississippi University for Women and her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design from Louisiana Tech University. Her professional experience includes working for various firms in Mississippi and Atlanta, Georgia as well as having her own firm in Natchez, Mississippi where she specialized in historic renovation and restoration. Her primary research area has focused on improving and developing the profession of interior design through education, accreditation and legislation.

John Poros John Poros is an Associate Professor in the School of Architecture at Mississippi State University. He is currently the director of the Carl Small Town Center, a community design and outreach component of the School of Architecture. The Carl Small Town Center is a nationally recognized community design center with awards from the American Planning Association and the American Institute of Architects. Work of the Center has been shown at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. and as far away as Berlin, Germany. Before joining the faculty at Mississippi State fifteen years ago, Prof. Poros worked with the internationally known architecture firm of Kieran Timberlake Associates in Philadelphia for seven years.

Prof. Poros received his Masters of Architecture degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Design and his Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University.

SMITHVILLE 13

BRASFIELD & GORRIE STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION

Student Presentations

SMITHVILLE 15

Teams Site 1

Site 2

Site 3

Team 1:

Team 2:

Team 4:

1. Katelyn Bennett (ARC) 2. Caitlin Wong (ARC) 3. Younju Choi (ARC) 4. David Morrow (BCS) 5. Nathan Boddie (BCS) 6. Rachel Taylor (ID) 7. Adrienne Glover (ID)

1. Nick Jackson (ARC) 2. Brennan Plunkett (ARC) 3. Brian Funchess (ARC) 4. Amy Bragg (ARC) 5. Jordan Perry (BCS) 6. Ben Bennett (BCS) 7. Annie Bryan (ID) 8. Aimee Grimes (ID)

1. Taylor Stewart (ARC) 2. Drew Ridinger (ARC) 3. Walter King (ARC) 4. Michael “Jeremy” Kelley (BCS) 5. Jeremy “Ryan” Doler (BCS) 6. Hettie Brewer (ID) 7. Britney Buie (ID)

1. Melissa Sessums (ARC) 2. Byron Belle (ARC) 3. Chris Rivera (ARC) 4. William “Murray” Poole (BCS) 5. Austin Holder (BCS)

Team 5:

Team 6:

1. Jonathan Hooker (ARC) 2. Michael Moore (ARC) 3. Kaila Pope (BCS) 4. Jonathan Horton (BCS)

1. Will Randolph (ARC) 2. Zachary James (ARC) 3. Robert “Durham” Jordan (BCS) 4. Wesley Rayner (BCS)

6. Allison Evans (ID) 7. Lorin Chancellor (ID)

5. Kristina White (ID) 6. Elizabeth Goodnite (ID)

5. Emily Ford (ID) 6. Caroline Cummins (ID)

Team 3:

Team 11: 1. Carolyn Ludermo (ARC) 2. Vanessa Robinson (ARC) 3. Philip “Patrick” McManus (BCS) 4. Michael Thomas (BCS) 5. Chris Ratzlaff (BCS) 6. Holly Davis (ID) 7. Jennifer Gates (ID)

Team 9: 1. Andrew Robertson (ARC) 2. Cody Millican (ARC) 3. Chris Newton (BCS) 4. Trenton “Cole” Walker (BCS) 5. Janay Jones (ID) 6. Lindsey Leggett (ID)

SMITHVILLE 17

BRASFIELD & GORRIE STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION

Smithville Story On April 27, 2011 an EF5 rated tornado touched down along Mississippi Highway 25 and damaged or destroyed a 3 mile long by 1/2 mile wide area of the Town of Smithville.

An estimated 25 percent of the town’s total housing stock was destroyed. The Town Hall, Police Station, and Post Office were destroyed. The largest employer, a furniture manufacturer, was destroyed and temporarily relocated.

The Smithville School and the town’s only grocery store were heavily damaged. The Town of Smithville was listed in a Federal Disaster Declaration on April 29, 2011.

Site 1 In Master Plan 1, the civic center is located at the intersection of Elm St. and Highway 25. The east-west rail line that leads to the industrial area also passes to the west of the site. This site was chosen by the teams and the town of Smithville because passing the rail intersection marks the beginning of the town center. This plot of land was also advantageous because it is already owned by the town. The teams that worked with this site emphasized not only the gateway nature of the site, but tried to create an urban pattern that would be the model for redevelopment for the rest of the downtown.

Site 2 In the second master plan developed by the students, a new downtown area was conceived parallel to Highway 25 to allow for faster through traffic on Highway 25 and a better pedestrian experience in the new downtown area. Site 2 is located in this new downtown area. With the new downtown area, three larger public green spaces, amenities lacking in Smithville before the tornado are proposed. The new civic center is on one of these public green spaces, taking advantage of this larger space for festivals and events in Smithville.

Site 3 In Master Plan 3, Highway 25 is divided by a green median meant to slow traffic down and allow for easier pedestrian crossing over this busy road. The civic center just as in Master Plan 1 is located at the western end of the downtown area. The civic center for Site 3 is meant to be a literal gateway into the town by spanning across Highway 25 on two sites to the north and south of the highway. The groups that worked with this site used this split site to change the character of Highway 25 from a fast, through road to a slower, moving boulevard.

SMITHVILLE 19

existing site conditions regional site research community research project collaboration

research

BRASFIELD & GORRIE STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION

Existing Site Conditions

SMITHVILLE 23

BRASFIELD & GORRIE STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION

Regional Site Research The teams immediately got to work, discussing each other’s strengths and weaknesses and learning how to rely on one another. Instantly, certain contributions to the project were made clear. Building Construction could offer up more realistic and fiscal approaches to a design conception, being knowledgeable in regards to material costs, feasibility and time lines for ground up proposals. Building Construction students helped their teams realize how important it is to design a building system that local vendors and construction workers can understand, build, repair, and maintain. The Interior Design students had an entirely different set of skills. They immediately set up standards of lighting and workspace needs. Interior Design students were able to create spaces that are defined not by walls or partitions, but materials, lights, and textures. The Architecture students provided design concepts, positions relevant to the community, city planning and life style of the people in Smithville. Guidelines and expectations of one another, and knowledge of code structure, space, and atmosphere were combined to achieve a complete project. The architecture students would be spending the entire semester on this project and shared their regional studies with their groups.

Airport Locations

Public Bus Routes

Community Stitches

Regional Proposal SMITHVILLE 25

BRASFIELD & GORRIE STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION

Community Research Prior to the tornado, there were little to no sidewalks found in the town, making walking unsafe for pedestrians and especially for children. Many of the proposed master plans include an extensive network of sidewalks as well as bike trails in an attempt to promote a more active and healthy lifestyle for the town’s residents. These trails are intended not only for youth, but also for all members of the community. The bike trails and sidewalks encourage connections not thought of before in Smithville. These paths cross through various key points in the streets of Smithville, lead directly to Smithville’s schools, and to points along the waterway and throughout the downtown. Ease of navigation and the safety of these paths will encourage use and ultimately result in a healthy and sustainable way of life in Smithville. Much like road way systems have intersections, the points in which these paths meet and join various parts of the town can help to encourage walking and discourage the use of vehicles as a primary means of travel within the immediate downtown area.

In one proposal the students designed a pedestrian walkway connecting residences to Main Street.

In another proposal, the students proposed a grid system of the new Main Street. Walking is encouraged with various outdoor public spaces.

SMITHVILLE 27

BRASFIELD & GORRIE STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION

Project Collaboration During the first week of the collaboration, Brasfield and Gorrie also participated in Mississippi State University’s School of Architecture’s Harrison Lecture Series. These lectures included a review of Building Information Modeling (BIM), given by Sam Hardie, L.E.E.D. AP of Brasfield and Gorrie. A presentation of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (L.E.E.D.) was given by John T. Wood, AIA, L.E.E.D. AP, Vice President of CMH Architects, Inc. A lecture on Integrated Project Delivery, (IPD) was presented

by Douglas Lee, Chief Estimator of Brasfield and Gorrie.

IPD is a contract system that involves all parties, designers, owners, and builders, and urges a collaboration of these disciplines early on in the design process. These lectures were beneficial to the students by showing not only the means of working within the three different disciplines, but also in using real world examples and expectations.

There are a few key points to note when embarking on a collaboration of this degree. It is important that expectations and goals are made at the very beginning so that a clear direction and end goal is evident. There should be no hesitation with a collaboration of this nature. Each field is proficient in their own nature and knowledge. It is perfectly acceptable to ask what someone’s strengths and weaknesses are and what their opinion is. There is always something someone can contribute to in a collaborative method of this nature. Communication is key and being able to rely on one another is important. If you expect everyone else in the group to contribute what you need of them, you too must put forth the effort and enthusiasm necessary. The strengths in working in these means are that decisions are made quicker, correlations are lined up earlier in the process and expectations are made clear. The end result will prove to be a whole project, physically, and as a conscious collective.

The collaboration culminated in a day long event and presentation to the CAAD faculty as well as the Dean of the college, Kristin Murray from the Seattle architecture firm Olson Kundig, and to members of the Brasfield and Gorrie team including Sam Hardie. The ten student teams stood together and proudly presented proposals for ten very different and innovative civic complexes for Smithville.

Examples of project time lines, budgets, square footage costs, material choices, lighting features, floor plans, structural systems, building form and elevations, L.E.E.D. objectives, as well as a multitude of other information was presented.

SMITHVILLE 29

designs top presenters

design

Library and Town Center Design

Fire Station Design

Top Presenters Here are some of the ways the Brasfield and Gorrie exploration impacted some of the involved students.

Each team was asked to prepare a presentation with the following products: a schematic design with plans, elevations, sections, interior and exterior rendered images, a construction schedule with takeoffs and estimates, a lean construction / constructability analysis and a LEED checklist

Three teams showed that they could accomplish these objectives as well as working well together as a team. The teams were Team 6, Team 7 and Team 11.

“The collaborative project gave each field of study the opportunity to communicate and share ideas, which encouraged the critical thinking process needed to have a successful group. The idea of partnering the three industry related majors allowed each group to openly discuss project differences and possible solutions that surround real world applications.”

-M ichael Thomas, Building Construction Science senior “The Brasfield and Gorrie competition stimulated collaboration across our departments, created vital partnerships within our college, and provided us with the opportunity to gain practical experience in preparation for the professional world.”

- J ennifer Gates, Interior Design senior

SMITHVILLE 37