Mortenson Construction officially completed Phase II of the Bill Snyder Stadium Master Plan on the Kansas State University campus in Manhattan, Kan., on August 21, 2013. The transformation was completed ahead of schedule, a full week before the defending Big 12 Champion Wildcats take on two-time defending FCS?National Champion North Dakota State in the first game of the season.
The largest project in K-State Athletics history will greatly improve the game-day experience for Kansas State University fans with new amenities, concessions, ADA seating, restrooms, premium seating, improved media and broadcast facilities, new field lighting – levels meet Bowl Championship Series (BCS) Games and high-definition TV broadcast requirements, a Hall of Fame, plaza improvements, and an enhanced tailgating experience.
"The Mortenson | GE Johnson team put an impressive amount of work in place in an aggressive eight-month time frame," said Derek Cunz, vice president at Mortenson Construction. "This accomplishment would not have been possible without the seamless collaboration between the design team, construction team, trade partners, University facilities and University athletics."
Other contributing factors cited by Cunz include:
- Selection of Mortenson | GE Johnson as the single CM for the entire project, including FF&E, food service, signage, and furniture.
- Early involvement between planning and design.
- Focus on interim milestones.
- Integration of Virtual Design and Construction into the daily planning.
- Prefabrication of many exterior elements, plumbing, mechanical, and electrical.
- Mortenson | GE Johnson self-performed the concrete and site work to manage the schedule, safety, and quality from the beginning of the project.
"We've sold a record number of season tickets," said K-State's Athletics Director, John Currie. "We'll have the most fans ever to come to the stadium this season, about 400,000, and set the all-time attendance record. We appreciate our partners Mortenson and GE Johnson and the great job they've done for our fans." Tickets for the opening game on Friday against North Dakota State are sold-out.
Project Statistics
- 218,000 square feet of new construction
- 12,000 cubic yards of concrete
- 78,000 square feet of stone veneer
- 390 peak workers on site every day during construction
- 750,000+ craftworker hours worked
- 1,250 tons of rebar
- 479 days to build Kansas State's Northwest Gateway
- 2,500 tons of structural and misc steel
- 44 new private suites
- 37 new loge boxes
- 713 new club seats
- 56 bid packages / trade partners
- New lighting for East & West parking lots
- Entire project funded by donors, premium seat gifts, and athletics revenue; NO State or University dollars.
- Demolition of the existing press box December 15, 2012; first game being played August 30, 2013.
- Zero disruptions/cancellations of events due to construction
Other team members include: AECOM / HEERY, Henderson Engineers, Olsson Associates, Bigelow Consulting, LeJeune Steel, Torgeson Electric, Central Mechanical, Bamford Fire Protection, Midwest Drywall, Gallegos Stone, Performance Masonry, Griffith Lumber, and Manko Windows.
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Construction unemployment rises to 17.1% as another 64,000 construction workers are laid off in September
The national unemployment rate for the construction industry rose to 17.1 percent as another 64,000 construction workers lost their jobs in September, according to an analysis of new employment data released today. With 80 percent of layoffs occurring in nonresidential construction, Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, said the decline in nonresidential construction has eclipsed housing’s problems.
| Aug 11, 2010
Billings at U.S. architecture firms exceeds $40 billion annually
In the three-year period leading up to the current recession, gross billings at U.S. architecture firms increased nearly $16 billion from 2005 and totaled $44.3 billion in 2008. This equates to 54 percent growth over the three-year period with annual growth of about 16 percent. These findings are from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Business of Architecture: AIA Survey Report on Firm Characteristics.
| Aug 11, 2010
CHPS debuts high-performance building products database
The Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) made a new tool available to product manufacturers to help customers identify building products that contribute to sustainable, healthy, built environments. The tool is an online, searchable database where manufacturers can list products that have met certain environmental or health standards ranging from recycled content to materials that contribute to improved indoor air quality.
| Aug 11, 2010
ICC launches green construction code initiative for commercial buildings
The International Code Council has launched its International Green Construction Code (IGCC) initiative, which will aim to reduce energy usage and the carbon footprint of commercial buildings.Entitled “IGCC: Safe and Sustainable By the Book,” the initiative is committed to develop a model code focused on new and existing commercial buildings. It will focus on building design and performance.
| Aug 11, 2010
Green Building Initiative launches two certification programs for green building professionals
The Green Building Initiative® (GBI), one of the nation’s leading green building organizations and exclusive provider of the Green Globes green building certification in the United States, today announced the availability of two new personnel certification programs for green building practitioners: Green Globes Professional (GGP) and Green Globes Assessor (GGA).
| Aug 11, 2010
Potomac Valley Brick launches brick design competition with $10,000 grand prize
Potomac Valley Brick presents Brick-stainable: Re-Thinking Brick a design competition seeking integrative solutions for a building using clay masonry units (brick) as a primary material.
| Aug 11, 2010
Outdated office tower becomes Nashville’s newest boutique hotel
A 1960s office tower in Nashville, Tenn., has been converted into a 248-room, four-star boutique hotel. Designed by Earl Swensson Associates, with PowerStrip Studio as interior designer, the newly converted Hutton Hotel features 54 suites, two penthouse apartments, 13,600 sf of meeting space, and seven “cardio” rooms.
