|
Site Utility
Communications
Environmental
Completed Projects
Team Leaders
Trenchless Technology
Hourly Services
|
Site Utility Project Summary
Project:
Henry Doorly Zoo Desert/Nocturnal Dome
Owner/Client:
Omaha Zoological Society
3701 South 10th Street
Omaha, NE
General Contractor:
Kiewit Construction Company
3921 Mason Street
Omaha, NE
Dee Ciati, Project Manager
Description of Work:
The sitework completed by General Excavating was part of a much larger project completed by Kiewit Construction Company, the General Contractor. The overall project consisted of creating a desert-like, nocturnal dome as an addition to the existing Henry Doorly Zoo. The Desert Dome will be the largest glazed geodesic dome in the world. The steel structure will be a 13-story building where visitors can see plant, animal, reptile and insect life found in three remote deserts in the world: Namib Desert of South Africa, Great Sandy Desert of Central Australia, and the Sonora Desert of North America.
A nocturnal exhibit in the dome's basement will be part of this massive construction project. Eventually, snakes, alligators, bats, beavers and lizards will live in the basement exhibits.
The portion of the project that is being submitted for an Associated Builder's and Contractor's Excellence in Construction Award is the sitework package subcontracted from Kiewit Construction Company to General Excavating.
Construction:
General Excavating was hired by Kiewit Construction Company to install the underground sitework for the nocturnal desert dome. The actual sitework consisted of over 900 feet of reinforced concrete pipe, ranging in size from 24-inches to 72-inches with a slope for the underground mechanical ductwork system. Installation of 4" drainage tile was required in the pipe trench and an 8" minimum layer of insulating concrete was formed around the supply piping.
General Excavating also formed and placed twenty concrete duct riser boxes required for the project. The tops of the riser boxes were cast to the bottom of the finished floor collar at the locations where the riser extended above the finished floor elevations. The riser boxes had 8" thick concrete walls. Two access ladders were provided at the inspection openings.
All of this construction was installed in a circular building less than 200 feet in diameter, creating a very tight workspace.
Kiewit Construction also asked that we place a 15-foot deep precast pool. This pool was 10 feet in diameter and included foundation, joint sealants, saw cuts and backfill as per the design.
Method of Construction:
 Backhoes were utilized to dig the trenches required for the small and large storm sewer pipe. Placement of pipe was also led by General Excavating backhoes. Excavation on site was used to backfill the pipe, while the left over soil was trucked off site. Tedious handwork was required for installation of the riser boxes. All of the work was self-performed. At times, General Excavating had three crews on site, as well as project management staff scheduling in the office.
Summary:
This project was directly negotiated with Kiewit Construction Co. before final construction plans were approved and completed. Design changes continually increased and changed the scope of our work as we continued throughout the project. Kiewit favored our construction methods and asked us to complete some hourly digging for them while we were on site that was not part of the contract.
The purpose of this project was to provide a proper atmosphere for temperature and humidity control for the Henry Doorly Zoo with the addition of the Desert / Nocturnal Dome. General Excavating successfully completed the project and is working with Kiewit on another Henry Doorly Zoo project to be built this Fall.
Project Management Team:
Lowry Ehgstrom, Project Manager
Todd McMann, Project Foreman
Tom Rogge, Project Foreman
|
