Skyscrapers Keep Pushing the Limits

Early this year, Conco will provide concrete services for a record breaking skyscraper being built in downtown L.A.  Not only will Conco execute the largest continuous mat pour ever done over the course of three days, but the new Wilshire Grand Center will become the tallest building in the U.S. west of the Mississippi.   

According to a global forecast from the Council of Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat  (CTBUH), 2013 was a robust year for new skyscrapers and 2014 is looking to be even better.  In 2013 the One World Trade Center, after much controversy, was designated as the tallest building in the U.S. at 1,776 feet.  The new tower is scheduled to open in 2014 and has replaced the Willis Tower in Chicago as the tallest building in the U.S. 

The CTBUH’s job is to document the progress and trends of skyscrapers built throughout the world.  Their publication estimates that 75 skyscrapers at least 650 ft. tall or higher were completed in 2013, and that there will be approximately 100 buildings at least that height or taller that will be finished by the end of 2014. 

The editor of CTBUH, Daniel Safarik, cites their reasons for the increased activity in skyscrapers as, “The advancement in high-strength concrete technology, combined with land scarcity and plenty of billionaires willing to spend a great deal of money for single-or double floor unity high in the sky has made this a new reality.”

 

One of the newer trends in skyscrapers is to build extremely narrow, very tall structures that carry a small footprint.  Several examples are currently being built in New York City.  Another new construction trend is prefabrication, which is helping to speed up the building process.  Furthermore there is a concerted effort to develop fully sustainable skyscrapers referred to as zero net energy buildings that have zero net consumption and zero carbon emissions annually. 

Mumbai and China will be the strongest markets for new skyscrapers in 2014 with continued growth in skyscraper construction throughout the Middle East.  

Conco is a leading supplier of concrete services for the Western United States. We have built our reputation in the Los Angeles area with superior concrete formwork, reinforcing, place and finish, shotcrete and other ancillary services that benefit from our vast experience.  Our concrete services include commercial, educational, parking and other construction development as well as public works projects and highways.

Great Progress Achieved Thus Far on the 49ers Levi Stadium

The new San Francisco 49ers Levi Stadium construction project is progressing at the fast pace needed in order to meet the approaching August 2014 opening date.  When the Levi was awarded the 2016 NFL Super Bowl game, it required the stadium to be operational for at least two years before the big game.  Hosting the Super Bowl is an honor for the stadium and will be the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the championship game.

Conco was awarded the concrete package for the $1.2 billion project that broke ground in April of 2012.  The new stadium is being built by the construction/design team of Turner Construction and Devon Construction.  Due to the aggressive timeline, construction is being handled differently.  In most cases, stadiums are built like a wedding cake with one tier on top of another.  For the new Levi, the stadium was divided into four sections and each section is concurrently being constructed as separate projects. 

Conco had to jump right into the project with the enormous task of excavating 60,000 yards of dirt, reinforce and pump 18,000 cubic yards of concrete, backfill and build a half-mile of perimeter wall – all in 40 calendar days.  According to an article in the Concrete Pumping, Fall 2013 publication, the design specifications “made the level of difficulty extremely high for what is the largest structural steel building under construction in the U.S.”  To demonstrate how large the project is, the foundation took twenty-three semi truckloads of anchor bolts to complete.  Crews worked basically day and night starting at 5 a.m. and finished up at 1 a.m. 

Concrete pumping was constant throughout the construction of the foundation and was skillfully accomplished with the help of Conco’s recently acquired, Schwing S 58 SX boom trucks, equipped with a 188-foot reach and easy set-up.  The Schwing KVM 52 and S 47 SX were also utilized.  The foundation portion was done as a series of smaller pours rather than a large slab pour.  On a typically day, 500 yards of concrete were pumped with most of the concrete a standard 4,000 psi mix, and 8,000 psi at shear lugs.  

The Schwing 58 meter boom trucks were a valuable asset on the project.   Pumps were located both inside and outside the structure and the narrow-front spread and curved outriggers provided the crew the ability to shoot around any obstacles that were in the way.  There were times that a pump ran almost 24 hours a day with one operator quickly replacing the prior operator to start pumping again.  Conco successfully met the Phase 1 foundation deadline in July 2012.  The whole team pulled together for the difficult project and has done an excellent job!       

Conco is a leading supplier of concrete services for the Western United States. We got our start in the San Francisco area in 1959 by offering clients the best value on a wide range of concrete services and products.  Since that time, we have steadily taken a leading role as one of the Bay Area’s top concrete contractors. Our concrete services include commercial, educational, parking and other construction development as well as public works projects and highways.

The Beautiful Ashton in Downtown Bellevue, WA

This mixed-use, luxurious apartment building, located in downtown Bellevue, WA was constructed to include all the amenities and finishes generally only found in high-end condominium properties.  Conco was a part of the skilled team that constructed the beautiful, 20-story Ashton Bellevue Towers. 

The sleek, contemporary Ashton was designed with an urban concept and has 202 sizable apartments with 14 townhouse/lofts.  The offerings include 115 one-bedroom homes that come with or without a study, 61 two-bedroom units, and 12 penthouses.  The units provide residents with spectacular views of the Cascade and Olympic Mountains, Lake Washington, and downtown Seattle.  

This was another project from the award-winning contractor, The Hanover Company, who built the Ten20 Tower located just across the street.  CollinsWoerman, a leading expert in sustainable architecture and infrastructure, was the architect on the project and was also a part of the Ten20 Tower.  The engineer was the S.C.A. Consulting Engineers.   Once again Conco delivered premium concrete services for the 20-story structure. 

One of the biggest differences the Ashton offers from other apartments is a very large 9,000 sq. ft. amenity space that has a fitness center complete with a spinning room, aqua lounge, conference room, and a movie screening room.  The building has a 5-level, private parking structure that can accommodate 354 cars.  The ground floor is 2,650 sq. ft. of commercial retail space.     

In addition, the Ashton Bellevue offers residents 24-hour concierge services and an elevated outdoor great room equipped with grills and a dual-sided fireplace.  The building’s location allows residents to conveniently walk to restaurants and boutiques as well as access to Bellevue’s cultural district.    

For over 50 years, Conco has been providing premium concrete services and is one of the most trusted concrete contractors in Seattle.  We partner with clients on every project from the pre-construction stage right through to final completion to maximize efficiency and ensure goals and budgets are met.  Our concrete services include commercial, educational, parking and other construction development as well as public works projects.

Cal Poly’s Student Housing Achieved LEED Gold Certification

Today many universities require new student housing that is being built to be “green” and utilize sustainable practices that save both energy and water consumption.  Conco was part of the team that constructed the award winning 2,670-bed Poly Canyon Village at Cal Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. 

The architecture firm, Niles Bolton & Associates designed the Poly Canyon Village, which became the one of the largest student housing projects in the country to achieve LEED Gold certification.  The finished construction even performed 50% better on the base building standard of ASHRAE (International technical society organized to advance the arts and sciences of heating, ventilation, air-conditioning and refrigeration).  The contractor on the project was the Clark Construction Group, LLC.  The engineer was Nabih Youssef Associates.  Conco provided the expert concrete services. 

Bob Kitamura, Executive Director/University Architect (retired), Cal Poly said of the project, "Poly Canyon Village has been a great example of what can be done to further the green initiative in a living-learning environment. Both the builder, Clark Construction and the architect, Niles Bolton Associates, did a fantastic job for us in bringing this dream to a successful reality."

The Poly Canyon Village was built on a 30 acre agricultural site and consists of nine residential buildings that form a community that is somewhat removed from the rest of the campus.  The project also included on-site retail stores, ATMs, a swimming pool, mail center, study rooms, and administrative student support services.  Two parking structures provide 1,926 parking spaces. 

According to the document for the ENERGY EFFICIENCY PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM BEST PRACTICE AWARDS, the project’s “use of materials with a high amount of pre- and post-consumer recycled content, such as doors, gypsum wall board, steel decking, and composite wood cabinetry, reduced the impacts of processing new materials.”  Additionally the  “regional materials and resources, such as local concrete, steel, and metal stud trusses resulted in lower carbon emissions due to the reduction in transportation needs.”   Overall more than 12,000 tons or 90% of construction waste material was reused or recycled.  

Discover the experience of working with one of the top professional commercial concrete contractors in the San Jose area.  Conco has been in business since 1959 delivering first-rate concrete services and has all the experience and expertise to handle even the most challenging projects.

Berkeley Bowl West Filled a Need in the Community

 

 

Conco has provided concrete services for an array of construction projects including that of helping to build a large grocery/produce store in Berkeley, CA.  The $30 million Berkeley Bowl West was built as a sister store following the popularity of the original Berkeley Bowl.  The new store is more spacious than the original one and at 140,000 sq. ft. became the largest grocery operation in the East Bay Area. 

The Berkeley Bowl West was built with both surface and underground parking, and provides a total of 211 parking spots that is twice the amount of parking at the original store.  The careful attention to parking was to ensure that the crowded parking situation at the Berkeley Bowl would not occur at the new store.   

The contractor for the project was Oliver & Company and the architect was Kava Massih Architects.  The engineer was Rutherford & Chekene and Conco provided the concrete work. The building was constructed with many sustainable features and was equipped by the Sun Light & Power company with 636 solar panels that powers much of the building’s operations.    

The interior of the Berkeley Bowl West is designed to have wider aisles to make for easier navigation than the original store and the produce and bulk food sections are both larger to meet the demand.  The store does not just offer groceries but has a wide range of prepared foods as well as a large café and kitchen area.  The building is spacious enough to house the offices for both of the stores, a warehouse, and a 3,000 sq. ft. community room.  A portion of the produce and meats sold are organic and much of it comes from local farms.

When your project demands exceptional services and the best value, Conco can deliver.  We have been offering premium concrete services throughout the Western U.S. since 1959, and have a regional office in the San Jose area.  With state-of-the-art equipment and modern facilities, we work diligently to meet goals and stay within budget.

 

The Importance of Safety Regulations in Construction Work

All of us understand that a construction site can be a hazardous place if there is not a strict adherence to all safety regulations.  Construction work is safe when workers are educated to the hazards and effective training and safety procedures are followed.  Utilizing best practices and conducting safety inspections has been proven to greatly reduce the risk of serious injuries or death. 

 

OSHA has extensively studied safety at jobsites and several years ago developed an Alliance Program to partner with construction companies to make workers’ safety a top priority.   One of the early collaborations was with the Turner Construction Company on the $295 million renovation of the Lambeau Field stadium project.  Even though stadiums are considered more hazardous to build, the partnership paid off with fewer injuries and a more than 20% reduction in workers’ compensation costs.  The plan required all contractors involved to have an effective safety and health program, and that all hazards were addressed daily.  There was also an increase in training for both supervisors and workers. 

At Conco we have always taken safety seriously and continue to do so every day.  We have built partnerships with our contractors in an effort to maintain the highest standard of safety on all project sites.  To achieve that end, Conco provides all projects with a Site Specific Safety Plan and Pre-Task Planning, along with our standard Injury and Illness Prevention Plan (IIPP)/ Accident Prevention Program (APP).  Managers and crews alike are trained in various safety related  topics including Fall Protection, First-Aid/ CPR, Forklift Operation, OSHA 30, Material Rigging, Traffic Control, etc. In addition, safety professionals are employed in all business locations to carry out frequent worksite safety inspections and to provide direction and training.

Our team of safety and risk management professionals works diligently with the entire company to eliminate and mitigate all construction and “over the road” related risks.  The focus of the team is on employee safety, claims management and regulatory compliance.  Our goal is to provide customers and the general public with the safest and most efficient construction and trucking services in the industry today!

 

As one of the leading commercial concrete contractors in the Denver area, we have been involved with large-scale projects in the area including the Mineta Airport.  Our concrete services include commercial, educational, parking and other construction development as well as public works projects and highways.