Frankfurt Short Bruza (FSB) was selected as the recipient of OKC Beautiful’s 2013 Community Spirit Award for its donation to the Myriad Botanical Gardens.
To commemorate its 65 years in business, FSB donated $50,000 for the acquisition and placement of 65 trees for the Myriad Gardens.
A luncheon honoring FSB and other award recipients is scheduled March 28 at the Oklahoma City Golf and Country Club. For information on the 30th Distinguished Services Awards Luncheon, visit okcbeautiful.com.
By Bridget McCrea
Trying to piece together a dome on top of a building is a lot like putting pieces of pie back into a pan: The task starts out relatively easy, but becomes progressively harder as the structure takes shape. “It’s not the first piece that bothers you – it’s the last one,” says John Jamison, project executive at Oklahoma City-based Manhattan Construction Co.
And Jamison should know. His firm, along with Tulsa, Okla.-based Flintco, came together in a joint venture known as “Capitol Dome Builders” to construct a dome for the Oklahoma State Capitol building. A monumental undertaking, the project required more than 1,200 precast concrete pieces that altogether weighed more than 1,300 tons: The heaviest pieces weighed almost 8 tons. These pieces contributed to what is now an 80 foot-diameter-dome, which projects 157 feet above the existing roof and weighs more than 2,500 tons.
Hoisting the panels 280 feet in the air, then situating them one-eighth of an inch away from one another around the entire circumference of the dome was no easy task, says Jamison, particularly when it came down to the last few pieces. “We didn’t have a saw or jack hammer to get them in place,” he recounts, “so it had to be perfect all the way around, or we knew we’d have a problem in the end.”
Thanks to the controlled environment of manufacturing and curing the panels at a precast plant – Arkansas Precast and Structural Stone LLC, of Jacksonville, Ark. – Jamison says those final moments of completion went without a hitch. Additionally, he says precast ensured flexibility when shaping the dome, durability, speed of construction and precise color matching with the existing structure.
“We put a lot of effort into matching the color of the building – but what color do you put on a building that’s 87 years old?” Jamison asks. “By combining technology with the precast – with its adaptability of colors – we were able to find the right match.”
Dusting It Off
For much of the 20th century Oklahoma’s state capitol operated in an “unfinished” state due to a lack of funding and steel spurred by World War I. Though the capitol itself was completed, the limestone dome with its cast-in-place concrete structure as envisioned by the original architects in 1914 never came to fruition.
That was, until the state dusted off those original plans and decided that the structure should be completed by the state’s centennial in 2007. Six years ago, Frankfurt-Short-Bruza Architects P.C. of Oklahoma City completed a feasibility study for the project and determined that the existing structure could indeed support a dome. At that point, the Oklahoma state legislature approved an act that would allow the project to proceed using a design-build process.
Before construction could begin, the dome would be redesigned to include the latest building materials. “We changed a lot of systems,” says Jamison. Concrete frame and ashlar stone, for example, was changed to precast concrete. The switch helped lighten the structure considerably, says Jamison, and allowed the builders to match the new dome’s colors to the existing limestone-covered building.
Construction began in April 2001 and finished in November 2002, just in time for Oklahoma’s Statehood Day. During that 18-month stint, the capitol remained open and two different legislative sessions proceeded in a “business as usual” fashion. “The building never shut down,” says Jamison.
When the original saucer dome was removed, it left behind a 80-foot-diameter hole in the top of the building, which was sealed by closing off an area of the capitol, then soundproofing it. Additionally, various historic murals and a stained-glass skylight had to be protected from damage during construction.
“Due to these and other factors, we had to build everything up and out,” says Jamison. “This project was about creating a logistical solution: how to get the panels to the top, how to keep the building in operation and make sure that the open hole in the roof remained watertight and secure.”
Precast, Please
Before any precast panels could be installed on the dome, the construction team had to erect a 280-foot-tall freestanding tower crane with a 230-foot boom length. With it, they were able to raise the panels, each of which weighed more than 15,500 pounds, and then position them around the dome. The precast portion of the project took about a month, says Tim Dolf, senior structural engineer at Frankfurt-Short-Bruza Architects.
Dolf says precast made the most sense by today’s standards compared to limestone, which he calls “the only other alternative.” It was historically necessary to make the dome look like the original limestone material, says Dolf, and that made precast the most practical alternative. “The decision to use precast was made almost instantaneously,” he adds. “We had complete confidence that we could make it work.”
In addition to the panels, Arkansas Precast delivered approximately 800 precast pieces, including ornate items, to the job site. Using the materials helped cut down on overall construction time and guaranteed durability and a finished building that looked to be constructed of the same material, despite the fact that its major components were built nearly a century ago.
Jamison says the design-build team added components like silicone sealant, epoxy-coated rebar and stainless steel connections to the precast structures in order to create a “100-year structure” and guarantee adequate waterproofing.
“We didn’t want to worry about rusty connections or the penetration of water through the panels,” says Jamison.
“It was all handled very easily at the precast plant, and when they arrived on the job site all of the molds, shapes and sizes fit perfectly with what we were looking to do.”
Although construction of the dome progressed as planned and finished ahead of schedule, Jamison says the project was delayed somewhat by Mother Nature. Wind was the biggest issue, he says, since erecting heavy precast panels 280 feet in the air is not an option when the wind reaches 50 mph. He estimates that the job was shut down for about 45 days due to such forces.
“At times, we had crews out there working at 2 a.m. because the wind had subsided,” says Jamison, who calls the overall project a tremendous success based on the fact that it was finished under budget, ahead of schedule and beyond expectations. The latter is particularly important since the project had more than its fair share of opposition.
“A lot of Oklahomans thought it would be ridiculous to add a dome to the capitol now, 90 years after the building was constructed,” explains Blake Wade, executive director of the Oklahoma Capitol Complex and Centennial Commission. “Today, I can honestly say that it exceeded the expectations of the entire state, and that it’s now the No. 1 tourist attraction for our great state.”
Wade credits precast concrete with helping to make the dream a reality and with an affordable, manageable and enduring product. “It was a thrill to be able to work with all of these fine companies,” says Wade, “and know that because of precast, it was all able to get done,” he says.
Jamison says the camaraderie of the group that designed and built the dome was above par and resulted in such a successful project that he’d do over again, if he could – despite the challenges that could come from trying to get that “last piece” in place. “We’d like to build another dome,” he says, “but that’s the last one for Oklahoma.”
– Bridget McCrea
“If you don’t have that experience and familiarity with federal regulations or LEED standards and you try to learn it on the job, you’re in trouble—you won’t be able to properly focus on the client’s project,” FSB Federal Market Principal Gene Brown said. “That’s just something you have to know in advance. Our team is very detail-oriented, and we fully embrace the regulatory challenges.”
Government agencies typically require new facilities to be built to high standards of sustainability in accordance with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a rating system to evaluate the environmental performance of a building and encourage sustainable design. Brown said the federal government began using LEED in an effort to demonstrate environmental stewardship without having to maintain their own independent rating system. The number of LEED points a facility receives determines its LEED rating level, either Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum. It is a holistic rating system covering everything from energy efficiency to sustainable building materials. For example, a building might receive four LEED points under the water efficient landscaping credit and another point for encouraging building occupants to bike to work by offering bike storage and changing rooms with showers.
“When FSB plans to meet a certain LEED level for a federal client, we always ask ourselves what credits make the most sense for our client and the building’s environment,” Brown said. “The federal government’s budgets are often tight and scope is driven by mission, so we aren’t able to add cost to the project just in the name of sustainability alone. We work hard to be fiscally responsible by finding those sustainable solutions that are also life-cycle cost effective and support the federal government’s mission.”
Silver to Gold: Improvising additional sustainable features mid-project
Creative sustainable design abilities are indispensable when architects and engineers must amend building designs mid-project. This flexibility was required when the Navy’s sustainability standards changed from LEED Silver to LEED Gold during FSB’s design phase for a project in Coronado, California. Although the design was sixty percent complete, FSB was asked to augment the building’s plans to achieve the new LEED Gold standard and at the same the budget was cut approximately five percent.
Because of their expertise in federal regulations and LEED standards, FSB was able to improvise to provide additional sustainable features and maintain the project’s schedule. One part of this solution was to provide the absolute minimum parking capacity required for the current facility; by not paving additional areas the project team was able to both reduce construction cost and add two LEED points for reducing impermeable surfaces. In the end, FSB was able to successfully achieve the Gold rating and provide all mission-required scope while continuing to honor the original unique design aesthetic, which reflected the rich history of the Naval Air Station.
When the building opened in May 2014, it was equipped with solar panels to provide both renewable energy and heating of water. The building’s energy consumption was reduced through the use of a well-insulated building envelope, light-reflective roofing, energy efficient heating/cooling equipment and daylight harvesting to name a few. Water consumption was reduced through the use of low flow fixtures and water efficient landscaping; storm water was collected and treated on-site through permeable paving areas and landscaping features called bioswales.
For its creatively achieved sustainable design, the project received a 2015 Federal Energy and Water Management award.
When Department of Defense clients need defending
Brown said because of the firm’s decades of experience designing for federal clients, combined with their efforts to keep on top of rule changes and updates to code, FSB tends to know regulations as well as, or in some cases even better than the regulators. This knowledge was put to use in 2016 when the firm was submitting an Air Force hangar in Little Rock, Arkansas for LEED Silver certification.
To achieve Silver, FSB incorporated materials made with recycled content and locally sourced to reduce related carbon emissions. The designers required their construction teammates to reduce construction wastes possible by diverting as much as possible from landfills by recycling. For these and many other actions, the project would be able to achieve the required points toward its goal of Silver.
When the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) reviewed the design-related credits, it initially denied several energy points instrumental in achieving Silver certification. FSB appealed this decision on the grounds that the cited LEED criterion was developed based upon an office building and not that of a similarly functioning aircraft maintenance hangar. FSB then referenced and proposed the proper criterion which should have been considered as the basis during the review of the team’s energy analysis. The combination of diligent documentation and a deep understanding of the energy codes and rating system helped convince the USGBC to grant the Department of Defense’s project the energy credits it deserved which led to the hangar being able to achieve LEED Silver certification.
“I think the big secret is knowing the requirements and expectations better than the people who are charged with enforcing them,” Brown said. “And not only can FSB’s architects and engineers sustainably design in accordance with the intent of LEED—we can partner with our clients to help guide them through the numerous requirements, decisions and, when necessary, we can defend their projects.”
Interested in learning more about sustainable design and your next project contact:
Federal Market Principal, Gene Brown, PE, LEED AP BD+C at federal@fsb-ae.com or directly at 405.840.2931
Overview
• Privatization Summary
• Utility Master Plan Purpose
• Utility Master Plan Analysis
• Central Plant Design
• Utility Distribution Design
• Construction Progress
• Program Timeline
• Successes and Challenges
• Q&A
Presented at IDEA 2016 Conference in St. Paul, Minnesota by:
James Rosner, PE, CEM
Director of Energy Services, Oklahoma State University
Brian Sauer, PE, LEED AP BD+C, CxA
Utility Master Plan Project Manager/Principal, FSB
Mike Isch, RA
Central Plant Project Manager, FSB
Justin Grissom, PE, CEM, LEED AP
Utility Distribution Project Manager, Burns & McDonnell
The award, named for the noted architect who designed the Skirvin Hotel and the Oklahoma Capitol, is presented once every two years to a firm that has distinguished itself over the past five years, to the betterment of the profession and community through leadership, vision and design, the firm said.
Over the years, FSB said it has played a major role in the growth and development of Oklahoma City, most notably in the last 10 years.
In 1994, then-Mayor Ron Norick turned to FSB to help create a master plan for the future of Oklahoma City that ultimately became the Metropolitan Area Projects, or MAPS, the firm said. The firm said its “creative concept designs for the nine projects of MAPS helped gain early momentum for the sales tax that eventually funded the projects.
FSB also said it was the first to suggest and create a plan for state officials for the relocation of Interstate 40. That project, still in its early planning stages, has not resulted yet in construction.
“Because of FSB’s national reputation in aviation design and background in helping communities plan for the future, FSB was called upon again in 2002, this time to assist the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce and Battelle-Oklahoma in their aviation growth plans for the city,” the firm said. “FSB rolled up their sleeves and began the process to help develop what has now become known as the Oklahoma MROTC project or Oklahoma Maintenance Repair Overhaul Technology Center.”
“This project will ultimately become the key to the metropolitan area’s future as an aviation leader.”
Matt Maile welcomes your comments and contributions. You may reach him by phone at 278-2838, by fax at 278-2890 or by e-mail at matt.maile@journalrecord.com.
PONCA CITY – From its similarities to an old-fashioned oil can, Carla O’Neill suspects some people may hesitate before stepping through the 35-foot-tall cylinder to enter Ponca City’s Conoco Museum. Their imaginations just don’t think big enough.
“The entry was kind of an abstraction of the Conoco cylindrical petroleum tanks that are directly across the street to the south,” said FSB Senior Design Project Manager John Osborne, who oversaw the 9,000-square-foot museum project.
That $5 million effort put Osborne in a team with the honored British museum exhibit designers Bill Haley and Haley Sharpe, whose firm Haley Sharpe Design also worked on the Oklahoma History Center. Together the designers used the Ponca City building structure for symbolic references to Conoco’s history. The shiny metal and glass entrance, lighted glass blocks in the corners, circular sidewalk and eye-popping interior graphics provide both a contemporary and futuristic atmosphere meant to convey Conoco’s long use of cutting-edge technologies. The traditional brick and stone walls parallel older surrounding structures, links to the company’s proud past as both Conoco and Marathon Oil. Built over a utility easement, the Conoco Museum required a removable rear canopy that presented both regulatory and design challenges. But since the building is dominated by 7,000 square feet of open space, primarily meant for static exhibits, Frankfort Short Bruza’s role involved many technical elements dependent on Haley Sharpe’s product demands. Still, Osborne enjoyed the project. “They came at it with a slightly different tack on design,” Osborne said of Haley Sharpe. “It was just a fun, unique experience.”
O’Neill, who manages the museum, said the design team did a remarkable job of maximizing their resources. “The building does not look large from the outside, but because of the setup and the circular flow, we were able to cover so many areas,” she said. “There’s not very many 90-degree corners. It’s very curved. It’s not completely curved to make people dizzy, but there’s a definite flow to it so that when people come in they are pleasantly surprised at the depth of the displays.”
That starts once visitors step through that petroleum tank entryway to encounter a curved wall covered with graphics. “The first thing people see tells a story, and opens you up to the rest of the museum,” she said. With 3,000 artifacts on display, O’Neill said many people find themselves needing a second visit to take it all in. “All this was printed in England and had to be shipped over by boat because it was too heavy to ship any other way,” she said.
Haley Sharpe also sent their own installation team to make the audio-visual displays work just right. “It’s fabulous,” she said. “This museum far exceeds the expectations of everybody who comes in. I can say that truly, without a doubt.”
The project started three years ago, when ConocoPhillips decided to celebrate Oklahoma’s centennial by giving the state two free museums, one telling the story of Conoco, the other detailing the history of Phillips Petroleum. Both opened in 2007, the Bartlesville gift taking up shop in a former Arvest Bank location, while the Ponca City depository opened in the structure built by hometown contractor Rick Scott Construction.
Jim Mulva, ConocoPhillips chairman and chief executive officer, said the museums reaffirmed the Houston company’s Oklahoma roots. With one full-time employee and a few part-times, the Conoco Museum recorded 15,000 visitors its first year, operating on a $500,000 budget. “The entire design is meant to showcase quality,” said O’Neill. “I think it’s a very inviting place. And with the landscaping, it makes it kind of pretty.”
A ribbon cutting ceremony was held Tuesday, where Lt. Gen. Charles E. Stenner Jr., Air Force Reserve Command commander officiated. He was joined to cut the ribbon by Col. Patricia Blassie, Commander, ARPC; Col. Daniel Dant, Commander, 460th Space Wing, Mr. Robert Michaels, Chief of Construction Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; Mr. John Sampson, president of Sampson Construction; Mr. Art Austin, Project Principal from Frankfurt Short Bruza Architects and Engineers; and Mr. Mark Ringenberg, Project Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville District.
The center will relocate to Buckley Air Force Base, Colo. and open its doors August 1, 2011. The new 80,000 square foot facility, estimated at $17 million will house personnel who provide administrative support to more than 980,000 Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard forces to ensure they are available in the event of a national emergency. The Center provides support throughout their military careers, from initial entry to retirement, including assignments, promotions and separations.
The mailing address for the new facility is HQ ARPC/(Office Symbol), 18420 E. Silver Creek Ave, Bldg 390, MS68, Buckley AFB CO 80011. Telephone numbers have also changed, contact us by calling 800-525-0102, option 3.
The state award recognizes a lifetime of distinguished leadership and dedication in the architecture profession and in the community. The award is AIA Oklahoma’s highest honor, and only three such awards have been presented to date. Schmidt’s involvement in the architecture industry is most notable in his passion to advance the architecture profession through public awareness of quality architecture, through educational programs focused on architecture for K-12 students and by mentoring college architecture majors.
“We are so extremely proud of Fred,” Rick Johnson, FSB COO, said. “It is an honor at FSB for one of our principals to be recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award by peers in the industry. Fred is most deserving for what he has done for the industry and for his body of work that has improved the quality of many communities.”
Schmidt also is highly involved in the community through the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce Board of Advisors. He is a Leadership Oklahoma City alumnus — Class XXII, a past president of the AIA Central Oklahoma and is active on many other community committees and boards. Much of his career has been devoted to youth in our community and his positive impact in many young lives through mentorship, guidance and leadership by example is immeasurable.
“As architects, we are stewards of the built environment and must be diligent in creating public awareness of the positive virtues of a quality built environment and of the value of the architect’s role and contribution to that environment, We must also lead by example and work with those young people that come behind us to inspire, mentor and help in any way we can,” Schmidt said.
Schmidt has 38 year’s experience providing leadership, management and business development services to the design industry. He is a distinguished author and guest lecturer. As a principal at FSB, he leads the market sector for the firm’s education division. Some of Schmidt’s notable project highlights include the state capitol dome, the Advanced Technology Center at Oklahoma State University, The Center for Transformative Learning at University of Central Oklahoma and the Chickasaw Visitor Center. His educational materials on architectural learning have found their way to schools and homes around the world through the students he has enlightened.
His published work includes “In Shape for Learning — Oklahoma Capitol Dome Curriculum,” “The Architectural Mentor Guidebook,” and “Oklahoma City by Design / Architecture by Alphabet,” among others.
Considered a thought leader in the architecture community, Schmidt created and maintains the Design Matters blog that educates numerous readers. Schmidt has single handedly published weekly posts for nearly three years. The blog has received more than 35,406 hits and has been viewed in more than 110 countries. Schmidt graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a degree in architecture, where he also won the Outstanding Alumni award in 2010 from the College of Architecture.
He is active at the University of Oklahoma, having served eight years as an adjunct professor with the College, where he taught design and professional practice curriculum. His students recognized Schmidt as the most inspiring and among the best design instructors they had at OU. He served on the OU College of Architecture Board of Visitors and is currently the chair of the Professional Advisory Board of the Division of Architecture.
Schmidt is a Norman resident of 46 years. He and his wife, Kathleen, have three children.
These 84 bed, 20,000 square feet dormitories are the first new residential construction for the college in 30 years. Students will be outfitted with modern semi-suite dorm rooms consisting of four beds and a shared bathroom, walk-in closets, and Wi-Fi available throughout the building.
The interior of the two residence halls will be very similar, but building exteriors will vary to match the architectural style of each campus. There will also be a recreation room in each hall that doubles as a storm shelter. Designed to FEMA standards, the storm shelters are above ground with reinforced concrete walls.
The central lobbies will have informational screens about the campus’ activities and flat screen TVs. In order to provide students with a balance between communal and private space, study nooks were designed into the building, including space in the laundry facilities. Construction for both projects will continue simultaneously and is scheduled to open in July 2015.
FSB utilized Hollis & Miller Architects in Overland Park, Kan. as a design consultant and Nabholz Construction’s Tulsa office was selected as the construction manager. FSB competed against several other firms to have the opportunity to design these modern, up-to-date living environments for Northern Oklahoma College students.
“FSB is honored to design these much needed modern residential halls for NOC,” said Jason Holuby, FSB senior associate and project manager.
“These students will be able to live and study in comfort with modern, new living quarters. Projects like these show the NOC administration’s commitment to providing a full college experience to students in smaller communities.”
NOC was established in 1901 in Tonkawa, Okla. In 1999, it added the former Phillips University to open the Enid campus. Enrollment has increased and NOC recognized the need for additional student housing due to their current housing being close to or at capacity and the current housing stock being dated.