A Concrete Example
Students Get New Model Architecture Building at UNM

By Scott Blair

As any professor knows, it's not easy inspiring students, especially if the subject is architecture and it's being taught within a decades-old furniture store or medical clinic building.

 

advertisement

That is exactly what the University of New Mexico's School of Architecture and Planning has had to endure since the program's inception in the mid-70s.

But things are about to change as the school breaks ground on the new $21.5 million School of Architecture and Planning and Fine Arts and Design Library, also named the George Pearl Hall.

"The primary theme of the design is: building as teaching tool," said Graham Hogan, senior associate and project manager with Albuquerque-based Antoine Predock Architect, who did the design of the building. "We wanted to reveal the building so the teachers could use it and reference it, so all the building material, ductwork and conduit is expressed in the large studio spaces."

Also working on the design was executive architect Jon Anderson. Jaynes Corp. is the general contractor on the 108,000-sq.-ft. cast-in place concrete and steel-framed building.

The structure fits into a tight site near the university bookstore and major streets.

"We're right against the main access to campus, so we've looked really hard at making sure everyone coming through the site is safe," said Brian O'Connell, senior project manager with Jaynes.

The building will have four stories above ground and one below, and will sit on a Geopier system foundation.

"The architectural concrete on the south wall is a big feature on this building," said Darrel Massegee, senior superintendent with Jaynes Structures, a division of the company that performs as concrete contractor on the project. "This is a very difficult concrete job with cantilevers, shafts and block-outs."

The wall features a 40-ft. cantilever and massive 4-ft., 6-in.-thick walls. However, they are not solid all the way through - a shaft penetrates the middle. "The actual thickness is only 12-in. to the hollow area, and it is filled with massive amounts of rebar," Massegee said. "You have to build it piece by piece rather than building big mats and flying them in by crane."

"The wall was a sacred piece for us, and we are thrilled it will be realized," Hogan said. "It was always on the chopping block due to cost. The wall acts as a transition from campus to the city urban environment." >>

The wall contains a large opening that features a recessed glass curtain wall. "The building will look like an illuminated lantern behind this monumental wall, revealing students working 24-hours a day behind this protective layer," Hogan said.

The design originally included many green building techniques that were later value-engineered out due to budget constraints, Hogan said. Some key green elements remain, such as louvers that block direct sunlight but reflect light deep into the building's interior.

"There are also controlled-dimming lighting which automatically reads the natural light outside then dims various areas so it maintains a specific level," O'Connell said.

The building will be assembled starting on one end, with the elevator and seismic concrete core section built first all the way to the fourth floor.

"After that, we are going to build the third floor of the middle section first, and then fly the steel down through that to build the second and first floors, because some of the beams and columns that support the lower floors are actually attached to trusses that don't go all the way down to the ground," Massegee said.

Crews will use 93-ft.-long, type-one trusses for the third-floor steel. Four, 650-lb.-per-ft. steel beams will also be utilized. The 34-ft.-long beams are not manufactured in the U.S. and had to be shipped from Belgium.

Since the building is intended to be scrutinized by future students, most of the structural elements will remain exposed. "Ironworkers will love this building, because their work on other projects always gets covered," Massegee said.

"Here, they can bring their wives and say, 'Hey, we built that, right there!'"

Key Players

Owner: UNM Dept. of Facility Planning
General Contractor: Jaynes Corporation
Architect: Antoine Predock Architect; Jon Anderson Architect
Electrical: McDade-Woodcock, Inc
Mechanical: Yearout Mechanical
Concrete: Jaynes Structures, Inc
Steel: W & W Steel Co

 
Click here for next Albuquerque Activity Report Feature>>