flexiblefullpage

HORIZONTV FEATURING BD+C: WATCH EPISODES ON DEMAND AT HORIZONTV

Menu View Full Menu
Subscribe Here
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Lake Washington STEM school combines modular and site-built construction to meet ambitious schedule

Lake Washington STEM school combines modular and site-built construction to meet ambitious schedule

New high school built in just seven months thanks to modular construction

By M SPACE | June 10, 2013
Continue Reading
When the Lake Washington School District outside Seattle needed a new high school built on an ambitious permitting and construction schedule of seven months, modular construction proved to be an ideal solution.
 
“Conventional construction just wasn’t an option,” said Allan Long, Sr. Project Manager for M SPACE, the modular contractor for the project.
 
The LWSD ran into various permitting issues restricting site work on a new Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) school that was set to open in the fall of 2012. Since the modular process allows the bulk of construction to be done offsite in a factory, with minimal site disruption, the LWSD chose modular as the solution to its challenges.
 
The school is now serving 300 students, and by 2014, will be at near capacity with 600 9th-12th graders.
 
Integrus Architects, the designer on the project, began working the modular aspect of the project into it from the beginning, according to Yong Sun Lee, project manager with Integrus.
 
 
 
 
“In schematic design, we met with and toured various modular manufacturers’ facilities to understand the fabrication process,” Lee said. 
 
“It was in the early stages that we were sensitive to issues of modular dimensions (transportation widths and heights), structure and material types.  In design development, we maintained communication with the participating modular manufacturers and dealers with constructability/design insight,” she said. 
 
Blazer Industries in Oregon began building the “mods” in April 2012, and M SPACE started craning them into place in July 2012.  The school was constructed in two phases, with the first phase ending in August 2012. M SPACE contracted with Absher Construction as the onsite GC for the civil work, modular construction, roofing, sprinkler system and mechanical, electrical and plumbing.
 
 
 
 
M SPACE began setting the second phase in September 2012 and finished the following month, with the remaining site work completed by March 2013. With the two phases combined, the permanent 65,000 square-foot two-story school has 24 classrooms, a presentation hall, common areas, administrative offices and a nurse’s office. Additional features include photovoltaic panels in part of the roof, storefront windows, power cord reels in the science studios, two-hour rated walls, and light dimming ballasts in fixtures.
 
Four spaces in the school were site built, allowing modular and traditional construction to be combined to best suit the client’s need. The site-built commons has 22-foot ceilings, offering an open and inviting space for students. The top of the commons – the roof mods – were built in the factory, reducing the amount of time that workers had to spend at significant heights, according to Alan Duer, M SPACE Pacific Northwest Territory Manager.
 
“Mixing modular construction with conventional construction proved to be a valid alternative to the old ways of building,” Duer said. 
 
To learn more about the school, please visit the M SPACE website.
 
 
 

Tags

Related Stories

| Oct 10, 2013

Behind the scenes at the U40 Summit: See the $5,000 U40 Vision competition in progress [slideshow]

Sixty-five up-and-coming AEC leaders are battling for $5,000 in prizes today at BD+C's Under 40 Leadership Summit in San Francisco.

Gensler founder Arthur Gensler (right) talked with BD+C Editorial Director Rober
| Oct 10, 2013

Arthur Gensler to architects: Don't give away your ideas

The founder of Gensler advises dozens of up-and-coming AEC professionals at BD+C's Under 40 Leadership Summit in San Francisco.

Located adjacent to a regional rail stop and near good roads, Ambler Boiler Hous
| Oct 9, 2013

From power plant to office: Ambler Boiler House conversion

The shell of a 19th-century industrial plant is converted into three levels of modern office space. 

The Williams Selyem Winery metal building
| Oct 7, 2013

10 award-winning metal building projects

The FDNY Fireboat Firehouse in New York and the Cirrus Logic Building in Austin, Texas, are among nine projects named winners of the 2013 Chairman’s Award by the Metal Construction Association for outstanding design and construction.

| Oct 7, 2013

Progressive steel joist and metal decking design [AIA course]

This three-part course takes a building owner’s perspective on the range of cost and performance improvements that are possible when using a more design-analytical and collaborative approach to steel joist and metal decking construction.

Sponsored | | Oct 7, 2013

Bridging the digital divide between the BIM haves and have nots

There's no doubt that BIM is the future of design. But for many firms, finding a bridge to access rich model data and share it with those typically left on the sidelines can be the difference between winning a bid or not. 

| Oct 7, 2013

How to streamline your operations

The average U.S. office worker generates two pounds of paper each day, according to the EPA. Ninety percent of that trash is made up of printed materials: marketing reports, project drafts, copy machine mistakes, and unwanted mail. Here are a few ways AEC firms can streamline their management processes.

| Oct 7, 2013

Reimagining the metal shipping container

With origins tracing back to the mid-1950s, the modern metal shipping container continues to serve as a secure, practical vessel for transporting valuable materials. However, these reusable steel boxes have recently garnered considerable attention from architects and constructors as attractive building materials. 

| Oct 4, 2013

Sydney to get world's tallest 'living' façade

The One Central Park Tower development consists of two, 380-foot-tall towers covered in a series of living walls and vertical gardens that will extend the full height of the buildings. 

| Oct 4, 2013

Nifty video shows planned development of La Sagrada Familia basilica

After 144 years, construction on Gaudi's iconic Barcelona edifice is picking up speed, with a projected end date of 2026. 

boombox1
boombox2

Top Articles

native1

More In Category

Sustainable Design and Construction

Northglenn, a Denver suburb, opens a net zero, all-electric city hall with a mass timber structure

Northglenn, Colo., a Denver suburb, has opened the new Northglenn City Hall—a net zero, fully electric building with a mass timber structure. The 32,600-sf, $33.7 million building houses 60 city staffers. Designed by Anderson Mason Dale Architects, Northglenn City Hall is set to become the first municipal building in Colorado, and one of the first in the country, to achieve the Core certification: a green building rating system overseen by the International Living Future Institute.

3D Printing

3D-printed construction milestones take shape in Tennessee and Texas

Two notable 3D-printed projects mark milestones in the new construction technique of “printing” structures with specialized concrete. In Athens, Tennessee, Walmart hired Alquist 3D to build a 20-foot-high store expansion, one of the largest freestanding 3D-printed commercial concrete structures in the U.S. In Marfa, Texas, the world’s first 3D-printed hotel is under construction at an existing hotel and campground site.

University Buildings

Des Moines University Medicine and Health Sciences opens a new 88-acre campus

Des Moines University Medicine and Health Sciences has opened a new campus spanning 88 acres, over three times larger than its previous location. Designed by RDG Planning & Design and built by Turner Construction, the $260 million campus features technology-rich, flexible educational spaces that promote innovative teaching methods, expand research activity, and enhance clinical services. The campus includes four buildings connected with elevated pathways and totaling 382,000 sf. 

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021