10 minute read
Foam Blocks Solve Mountainous Problem
Advertisement
Extruded aluminum sunshades at the Sacramento Airport aided in achieving LEED-Silver certifi cation for one of the terminals.
larger or wider sunshades are used in areas that experience more sunlight and on the western and southern exposures.
Sunshades are used extensively at the airport in Sacramento, CA. The facility used extruded-aluminum sunshades to achieve LEED-Silver certification for Central Terminal B, along with maximizing daylight and reducing internal energy use.
Extruded-aluminum sunshades not only upgrade the appearance of a building, they are an integral part of achieving required LEED accreditation. In addition, their use adds a different architectural element that provides long-term durability and refinement.
In a glass-dominated building, double-skin facades capture heat between the glass walls to decrease heat loss in the winter and ventilate in the summer to lessen heat gain. Combined with the extruded-aluminum sunshading system between the glass walls, energy performance in summer is further enhanced. Additionally, sunshades deliver a complexity to the building’s appearance, providing a different flair than the
flat, monotonous look of the original box-like design. For window retrofitting, extruded-aluminum-clad vinyl has grown in popularity, including a hybrid casement window fabricated as a vinyl-only window, an aluminum-clad vinyl unit, and a vinyl window with aluminum on the outside and wood on the inside. The use of aluminum extrusions in retrofitting older buildings is a trend that will continue. Architects see its value in keeping the original, while updat
ing the building at the same time.
CA
Sapa Extrusions Inc., Rosemont, IL, sapagroup.com, provided information for this article.
Want more information? To download the information listed below, visit commercialarchitecturemagazine.com/1709sapa.
Circle 10 on the Reader Service Card.
Get information on Anaha Tower. Download information on Sacramento Airport. Access information on technologies mentioned.
Far left. A structural barrier between the foundation and the mountain was achieved by filling the void with EPS Geofoam blocks.
Left. Foam-Control Geofoam was set in place and then covered with four inches of free-draining gravel and a concrete patio slab.
Above. The Summit is a high-altitude guest-services center and mountain restaurant with views of spectacular surroundings.
Foam Blocks Solve Mountainous Problem Lightweight Geofoam secures foundation on a steep build.
Projects have challenges, purpose, and meaning, yet some projects mean a lot more to owners. It takes a visionary to leave a legacy, and Richard “Dick” Bass, founder of Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort, Sandy, UT, was such a man. Bass is acknowledged as the first person in the world to climb to the highest point on each of the seven continents, which he completed in 1985 at the age of 55.
He also spent almost 45 years building Snowbird into a world-renowned, year-round destination mountain resort. It’s no wonder that, after a lifetime of overseeing the development of approximately 2,500 acres of steep hillside just 25 miles from downtown Salt Lake
City and climbing the world’s highest peaks, Dick
Bass would want to build his legacy on a summit.
Snowbird’s acreage is covered by an average of 500 in. of low-density, dry Utah powder annually and accessed by a collection of ten chairlifts and one aerial tram. The tram takes passengers along a 1.6-mile cable up 2,900 vertical feet to the resort’s highest point,
Hidden Peak, at 11,000 ft. It was here at the peak that Bass envisioned The Summit, a high-altitude guest-services center and mountain restaurant with limitless views of spectacular surroundings.
“Designs for The Summit have been under consideration for roughly 20 years,” said Tang Yang, principal with GSBS Architecture, Salt Lake City. “We partnered with Luis Ulrich of Lu’na Design Studio [Salt Lake City] to conceive what is now a 23,000-sq.-ft., glass-enclosed lookout capsule perched high above the resort sprawling below.” The Summit accommodates cafeteria-style dining totaling 400 seats, service areas and ski-patrol offices, staff space, and mechanical equipment. A large outdoor patio and a wraparound deck allow visitors to peer over the Wasatch Range and Mineral Basin below.
“The vision was to provide non-skiers with panoramic mountaintop views in a comfortable, secure space that is in an environment that [experiences] winds of as much as 135 miles an hour and temperatures in the low negatives. These are not everyday design challenges and that really speaks to what it takes to build on such a site,” continued Yang.
Layton Construction, Sandy, UT, a general contractor that has been building large commercial projects in Utah since 1953, joined Snowbird and GSBS on the project in 2013. The construction schedule was phased over two summer seasons. In 2014, crews raced from the earliest spring thaw to clear the site and put in most of the structure’s concrete footings, foundation, steel structure, floor decking, and concrete work. In 2015 roofing, glazing, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, drywall, interior finishes, and concrete finish work, including a unique snowmelt system integrated into the upper decks, was completed.
“On the construction side, the biggest challenge was simply getting men, materials, and equipment to and from the site,” said Layton’s assistant project manager, Cooper Darling, who had previous experience working on mountain projects, but never at such steep access. “The site is only accessible by either the aerial tram or an unpaved mountain road and that made things a lot more complicated,” he said. As an exam
ple, Darling noted that a concrete-hauling truck making the round trip took six hours, mainly due to the sharp switchbacks and brittle, icy conditions. Throughout both building seasons, snow and ice were continually cleared from the road to avoid slide offs and many of the switchbacks required drivers to back up in sections where there wasn’t sufficient turning radius.
A key to solving the logistical challenges for material hauling came during the pre-construction phase, when Layton took the unusual step of hiring their client as a subcontractor on the project.
“Snowbird’s drivers know the road and the mountain far better than commercial drivers ever could,” explained Darling. “It made a lot of sense to use their people and equipment to get things to the top.” Simultaneously, the tram carried most laborers to and from the summit each day and was also used on a more limited basis to transport construction materials. On a few rare occasions, the mountain road was impassable with snow, and a helicopter was used to get materials to the top.
A COMPLICATED SITE While the complexities of the site and situation made design and construction more complicated than normal, there was one component of the project that was surprisingly uncomplicated. During the fi rst season of construction, excavation for the new foundations stretched across the site to the tram-structure’s existing foundation wall on the edge of the mountain. Built some 43 years earlier with CMU block, Yang and the designers at GSBS Architecture knew the tram’s foundation represented a possible vulnerability. Backfi lling with the excavated soil would potentially expose the foundation’s walls to lateral pressures caused by natural soil resettling after construction.
“We didn’t want any additional loading in the form of settlement to be added to the tram’s foundation walls as a result of the new building,” says Yang. “We developed a structural barrier between the foundation and the mountain by filling the void with EPS Geofoam blocks from ACH Foam Technologies [Westminster, CO]. EPS Geofoam is a lightweight material with high compressive strengths and predicable performance.” Builders, such as Layton Construction, often find the foam to be particularly well suited to difficult circumstances where a lightweight structural fill is needed.
“ACH Foam developed shop drawings for configuration of the Geofoam blocks,” said Darling, who worked with the vendor to develop a just-in-time delivery schedule to be accommodated in a single trip up the mountain. “Once the Geofoam was on the top, it was surprisingly easy to work with,” he continued, remarking that the large, dense blocks were moved into place by hand with just two laborers. His team also used a hot-wire cutter to customize blocks as needed. Once the Foam-Control Geofoam was set in place it was then covered with four inches of free-draining gravel and a concrete patio slab.
“Special considerations require special products,” said Yang. “This was a special project for all of us for many reasons and we’re all proud to have played a part in realizing Mr. Bass’ dream.” CA
Want more information? To download the information listed below, visit commercialarchitecturemagazine.com/ 1709achfoam.
Circle 6 on the Reader Service Card.
Download information on Geofoam.
Get installation guidelines.
A Silver Ion, Antimicrobial Coating for Demanding Floors.
Patient Rooms
Bathrooms
Waiting Rooms Doctors’ Offices
Operating Rooms
High Traffic Areas
SPARTACOTE ™ FLEX PURE ™ Clinical Plus
n Mitigates microbial growth n Fast return to service n Dozens of colors and textures n Safe, high traction flooring n Easy maintenance
www.laticrete.com l 866.966.1329 A-1062-0817 ©2017 LATICRETE International, Inc. All trademarks shown are the intellectual properties of their respective owners. A product brand of LATICRETE International, Inc.
Outdoor table
GO outdoor table:
Large work surface with power Hardwired or solar models Standing or dining height
GO outdoor table provides a focal point, gathering place, and a large work surface with access to data and power on or off the grid. An optional canopy adds lighting. Available in three configurations, including dining height, standing height, and standing height with canopy, the product is available in hardwired and solar versions. Standing-height models have two small power garages located on the exterior leg panels or inside canopy panels. The garages close automatically, making them weather and corrosion resistant. The table uses aluminum construction that dissipates heat, keeping the surfaces comfortable to the touch, reportedly even in hot climates.
Landscape Forms Inc., Kalamazoo, MI Circle 50 landscapeforms.com
Roof coatings, materials Duro-Shield roof coatings are 100% elastomeric acrylic with brilliant white finish that reflects the sun’s rays. Duro-Shield 20 provides ultimate protection with 35-mil coverage when dry and a 20-yr. limited warranty. Products with 24-mil coverage/10-yr. warranty and 20-mil coverage/5-yr. warranty are also available. Additional products in the line include primer, brush-grade mastic, and polyester reinforcement fabric.
Duro-Last Inc., Saginaw, MI Circle 51 duro-last.com
Universal attachment anchor
PowerGrip Universal is a rooftop attachment anchor for mounting solar racking systems and other products to reportedly virtually any commercial roof. Designed to reduce or eliminate the need for ballast, the product provides less weight, material handling, and labor on the roof. The product provides 3,300 ft.lb of tensile strength, 2,500 ft.lb shear strength, and 2,000 ft.lb compressive load strength. A base ring is secured through the roofing cover and into the structural roof deck. A waterproof cover plate keeps water from infiltrating the roof assembly.
OMG Roofing Products, Agawam, MA Circle 52 olyfast.com
Spray-foam insulation Foam-Lok 400 spray polyurethane foam insulation is an open-cell solution for a range of structures. The material seals the structure, providing a continuous air barrier and providing reported exceptional performance in the reduction of heat transfer. The foam adheres to framing members and substrates and fills studwall construction in a single application.
Lapolla Industries Inc., Houston Circle 53 lapolla.com
Technical-services platform The company offers an advanced support site for commercial users. By registering and creating a free account, multi-family and commercial architects, engineers, general contractors, and consultants have immediate access to a vast online resource. Information available includes that of products, technical documents, specifications, BIM/Revit, alternative design supplements, technical briefs, and an individualized project library.
