American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska Archives - School Construction News https://schoolconstructionnews.com Design - Construction - Operations Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.7.11 Q&A: Best Practices for Building on an Active School Campus https://schoolconstructionnews.com/2016/06/08/q-best-practices-building-on-active-school-campus/ Conducting both small- and large-scale projects on an active school or university campus is a delicate process. Project teams must consider student, faculty, parent and visitor safety from all angles, while also ensuring the security of the project site itself.

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]]> Conducting both small- and large-scale projects on an active school or university campus is a delicate process. Project teams must consider student, faculty, parent and visitor safety from all angles, while also ensuring the security of the project site itself so you may need to get the contract looked at by a firm like Roberts Legal to ensure everything is correct and safe.. Successfully planned and executed projects can not only enhance the facility, but can have a positive impact on education as well, giving students an opportunity to participate in the construction process.
Marc Ciaramitaro, director of field operations for Windover Construction of Beverly, Mass., has long served as a construction supervisor managing a wide range of construction projects in the academic/institutional market, and provides expertise overseeing teams, schedules and safety. Ciaramitaro spoke with School Construction News to share best practices for building safely and securely in the midst of an active campus.

Q: What safety criteria should design and construction teams consider when planning a project for an active school or university campus?

Ciaramitaro: First and foremost, it is important to understand what will be beyond the construction fence. Many builders know how to manage what happens within the limits of construction and how to source their materials from a Construction Supply Store, but it is attention to all details around the project that really ensures safety on active campuses. This is why it is often important to get something like this commercial construction management team to help you keep track of things and make sure that everything runs smoothly. This starts with understanding adjacencies to the construction site, whether they be interior spaces such as classrooms, hallways, libraries, etc., or adjacent structures or buildings. Getting to know the typical circulation patterns in and around those spaces and examining daily vehicular traffic flow is an important factor in the overall construction process. Having this information allows the builder to set up a site in a way that causes the least disruption to the school community and allows people to move around the construction site safely.
The builder can also work with the school to establish pedestrian wayfinding patterns around the site and maintain safe accessibility to buildings. In addition, it is essential to understand what the schools individual safety protocols entail, such as specific requirements for CORI/SORI or badging. These details can be folded into the site-specific safety plan that the builder creates.

Q: Can you describe a typical logistics and phasing plan for construction on an active school or university campus?

Ciaramitaro: A typical logistics and phasing plan for a campus is a series of graphical illustrations, ordered by date, of the proposed building area showing the progression of construction from one area to the next. They are extremely helpful for the planning, but also for the school to visually understand how construction may impact specific building areas or adjacencies. They are visual platforms that allow the builder and school to collaborate and discuss spatial requirements for the project. For example, if a specific classroom is identified as coming offline on the plan by a certain date, and the school has a specific need for it to be online, the builder and school can rearrange the phasing plan to accommodate for that.

Q: How can design and construction teams turn a campus construction project into a learning opportunity for students?

Ciaramitaro: There is no simple formula, however, the ability to integrate construction with learning really derives from the partnership that the builder and the school share. Weve seen this evolve in many different ways from students touring the construction site, to having our construction professionals teach in the classroom, to involving students in the design process. Each school is different in its approach because of the age of its students. If the school sees value in the educational opportunities construction presents, we will come up with creative ways to facilitate the process and support that initiative. We are energized by these types of relationships with our academic clients because it makes what we do far more meaningful.

Read more of this Q&A in the June Safety & Security issue of School Construction News, available soon.

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]]> Building a STREAM Facility: It’s All About Communication https://schoolconstructionnews.com/2015/10/28/building-stream-facility-it-s-all-about-communication/ When computers first started appearing in classrooms across America, the “technology integration” problem was relatively simple: where do we plug them all in?

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]]> When computers first started appearing in classrooms across America, the “technology integration” problem was relatively simple: where do we plug them all in? Before this time, classrooms needed very few outlets. The solution, as some of us remember, was a mass of black extension cords snaking down from missing ceiling tiles in the computer room.
Today we may be a little savvier, but to build a school facility that can meet these ever-changing trends while facilitating collaboration and human interaction is a complex undertaking. Take for example St. John’s Prep, a Xaverian Brothers-sponsored 6-12 boys’ school, in Danvers, Mass. Windover Construction of Beverly, Mass. partnered with Boston-based Flansburgh Architects to build a new high school academic building and performed an extensive renovation of the middle school. The new and improved facilities are fulfilling the school’s vision of cross-curricular collaboration, also known as the STREAM (science, technology, religious studies, engineering, arts and humanities, mathematics) approach.
Although STREAM (along with the related STEAM and STEM) doesn’t by default mean high-tech, the teaching method often takes full advantage of new technology. The challenge in preparing for the project was integrating these innovative tools in a way that worked for both students and teachers. The answer was to take a bottom-up approach, creating a design that was flexible enough to ensure that the digital tools work with the learning environment without getting in the way. Perhaps most importantly, this required talking with students and teachers to ensure the space would meet their needs — today and tomorrow.
Device Strategies
Mobile devices rule. Almost every student today has a phone, tablet and/or laptop, and is comfortable learning with technology — in fact, they prefer it. Teachers are integrating these innovative tools, along with smartboards, TV screens and other technology, into the teaching process.

The new St. John’s Prep high school academic building features thirty classrooms, science laboratories, a robotics laboratory, Makerspace, and computer laboratories along with collaborative work and study areas. The middle school was also upgraded with new entry lobby, dining hall, digital commons, video classroom, team collaborative spaces, and art and music classrooms as well as refreshed science labs and offices. The project team took special care to ensure that everything interacted as it should, and “future-proofed” the design as much as possible so the school could integrate new technology down the road.

New School, Old School
Technology is nothing more than a tool, and old technology is still just as good in some cases, if not better. For example, the key elements of the STREAM method (collaboration, community, and experiential learning) are often best conveyed in the physical space. All interior and common areas in the new academic building are surrounded by glass with wide open spaces and study rooms. The high-tech campus feel is reminiscent of that found at Google or Apple, yet is guided by the very human need to be together. Essentially, it’s a space where students and faculty feel as much at home firing off a text as they do sitting together for a face-to-face chat.

Engaged Students
Involving students in the process helped guide some technology integration decisions. But the build was also a great opportunity to allow students to become a part of the construction process, applying lessons taught in the classroom to the construction happening just down the hall. Under the guidance of their teachers, students were encouraged to glean real-life examples of physics, earth science, geometry, algebra, religion and art from the jobsite. Members of the Windover team stepped into the classroom to lead discussions on teamwork, collaboration and the construction process, and to facilitate lesson plans on 3D modeling. The students used that knowledge in their own design and construction project — a memorial sanctuary built behind the new academic building.

Use Defines Design
It’s easy to get overwhelmed when integrating all the technology requirements of today into construction, never mind trying to guess what they might be tomorrow. The Windover team decided to put that aside and focus more on how people would communicate with each other within these spaces, and build from there. We want to enhance those interactions, whether it’s high-tech cyber-learning tools or traditional, face-to-face group spaces.

The result is extremely satisfying. St. John’s is now the epitome of high-tech education integrated in a space designed for good old-fashioned academic — and social — interaction.

Stuart Meurer is vice president of Windover Construction of Beverly, Mass.
 

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]]> Ensuring a Successful Campus Construction Project https://schoolconstructionnews.com/2015/06/26/ensuring-successful-campus-construction-project/ A modern student center, a high-tech science wing, a classroom filled with natural light — these are the features that make each school or university campus distinctive.

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]]> A modern student center, a high-tech science wing, a classroom filled with natural light — these are the features that make each school or university campus distinctive. Just as graduation is achieved through a long process of study and hard work, the facilities inhabiting a campus are the result of a long process of master planning, fundraising and construction.
Each phase of this process is accompanied by its own set of challenges, and construction creates many that are highly visible and impactful. When that first shovel hits the ground, it is incumbent upon school or university officials to ensure the project does not compromise the campus, detract from the student experience or deter prospective applicants.
But these challenges can be addressed. Successful campus building begins with a solid foundation of communication and camaraderie, scheduling and integration (not separation) between the school administration and construction team. Building a strong relationship with your construction manager or contractor can make all the difference.
Communication & Camaraderie
Having a builder on board that maintains fluid communication channels with your school is the most important feature of any campus project. Sharing an open-book process with your builder and staying invested in all the details ensures there are no surprises at any point for either party.
Be sure to select a builder you feel comfortable with and perceive as a good fit with the campus culture. Camaraderie within the project team is essential to facilitate an open dialogue where your institution’s needs and concerns are heard. Consistent daily check-ins, weekly meetings and site walks hosted by the project team are a great way to streamline essential information.
Recently completed by Beverly, Mass.-based Windover Construction, the Endicott College Callahan Center project in Beverly exemplifies how well-defined communication channels can easily trump construction challenges. A rehabilitation of an occupied building, the project encountered multiple unforeseen conditions that threatened to stall progress. Windover and the college successfully managed these obstacles through timely discussions of identified risks and action plans to resolve them. This allowed a project destined for delays to finish on time.
Just-In-Time Project Scheduling
Work with your builder to cultivate as much information as possible about your typical campus behavior, such as traffic patterns, pedestrian flow and occupancy. Having a builder understand your campus allows that builder to develop a meticulous schedule sequence that accommodates campus activities. Take the Callahan Center again as an example. As the sole campus dining facility, the Callahan Center had to stay open throughout construction to provide meal service. Windover carefully staged work so that one area was completed before moving onto the next. This allowed access to the facility despite construction wrapping around all exterior walls of the existing structure.
Similarly, Windover recently completed a lower school and dining addition at Brookwood School in Manchester, Mass., where construction wrapped around occupied classrooms. A just-in-time schedule allowed learning and activities such as student pickup or drop-off to continue uninterrupted despite the proximity to construction.
Use Your Imagination
You cannot ignore construction, so rather than making it the elephant on your campus, embrace it and encourage students to do the same. This change in perception harmonizes the relationship between “them” (the builders) and “you” (the school) and makes it about “us” sharing the experience.
At Brookwood, construction became a part of the students’ curricula. Students toured the construction site, interviewed the workers and created weekly video reports. At St. John’s Preparatory School in Danvers, Mass., where Windover is constructing a STREAM building and middle school, students are reinforcing their classroom learning by applying disciplines such as mathematics, environmental sciences and physics to the construction site.
The landscape for campus construction is clearly changing. It is not just about getting to the end product; it is about embarking on an enriching process that engages teamwork and planning. It’s about a partnership that makes the final result distinctly you.
Stuart Meurer is vice president of Windover Construction, a construction management firm headquartered in Beverly, Mass. The firm specializes in creating sophisticated commercial and institutional spaces and refined custom homes throughout New England. For additional information, call 978-526-9410, visit the company website at www.windover.com or email info@windover.com.

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]]> Brookwood School Turns Construction into Education https://schoolconstructionnews.com/2015/02/25/brookwood-school-turns-construction-education/ MANCHESTER, Mass. — A nearly 21,500-square-foot renovation and expansion of the Brookwood School in Manchester, Mass. was completed in late 2014 after just 18 months of construction. The project wrapped up three months ahead of schedule and came in under budget.

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]]> MANCHESTER, Mass. — A nearly 21,500-square-foot renovation and expansion of the Brookwood School in Manchester, Mass. was completed in late 2014 after just 18 months of construction. The project wrapped up three months ahead of schedule and came in under budget after fears that the concrete in the cold conditions would delay the process.

Brookwood School, a PK-8 coed day school, was initially founded in 1956 and served just 65 students. Today it maintains an enrollment of 400 students supported by 65 faculty members. The school administration identified a need for more classroom space in the lower school, as well as expanded dining facilities, and selected Windover Construction of Beverly, Mass. to lead the design-build project. Windover collaborated with the design firm of Siemasko + Verbridge, also of Beverly, and several other subcontractors.

Alongside improving the physical space, the project’s overall goal was to create a feeling of welcoming and inclusivity within the school community. Construction took place during the school day and was completed in two phases. Phase I included the construction of four new classrooms, as well as a temporary student drop-off/pick-up.

Once students and teachers moved to the new areas, Phase II began with the demolition of the vacated kindergarten and first-grade wing for infill construction. This phase added new second and third grade classrooms (for a total of nine new classrooms), offices and skills rooms, updated locker areas, a large atrium “town square” area for assemblies, renovations to the existing kitchen and construction of a more than 7,400-square-foot, 220-seat dining hall with vaulted ceilings.

Each classroom was also equipped with a projector, screen and sound system while the town square area includes a large, 8-by-13-foot screen recessed into the ceiling and a distributed sound system, transforming the space into a high-tech multimedia area.

“Turning an elementary school into a construction site has its challenges of course, but that means it also offers an opportunity for innovation,” said Stuart Meurer, principal-in-charge of the project and vice president of Windover Construction, in a statement. “With careful planning, temporary access ways and a just-in-time orchestration of deliveries and subcontractors we were able to work around the school’s schedule rather than ask them to work around ours.”

“Safety around an active worksite was of course an issue, but it was never a concern – we’ve worked safely in tight and occupied sites before,” Meurer continued. “The real challenge was how to limit distractions for the students.”

In an effort to turn the process into a learning opportunity, the school administration and Windover representatives elected to incorporate the design/build project into the students’ curriculum. Instead of cordoning off the space through the duration, students assisted in the school’s groundbreaking, then participated in weekly tours of the construction site, created update reports, shot weekly videos of the progress and attended the topping out ceremony, signing the final beam before installation.

“A lot of credit has to go to the school administration and teachers for this project,” Meurer said. “Not every school would be open to allowing students to regularly tour a construction site. But they saw the value of this unique learning opportunity and created interesting programs to engage the students.”

Student videos of the construction process are available on the school’s website.

Learn more about the Brookwood School expansion and renovation project in the March/April issue of School Construction News.

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