HANOVER, N.H.—With a completion date slated for this month the new Dartmouth College Dana Hall renovation in Hanover is targeted for LEED Gold certification.

This $25 million project reuses and adds to a vacant library in the heart of the medical school quad, that will transform it into a vibrant faculty center.

Leers Weinzapfel Architects is the architect on this impressive project and Windover Construction is the construction manager.

Located at the heart of 1960s medical school buildings on the school’s siloed north campus, the 32,995-square-foot Dana Hall project — as well as new entrances for its surrounding buildings, a wide pedestrian bridge, and new circulation between buildings — is transforming the college’s least compelling area into a well-scaled, inviting north quad. The initiative will generate an accessible, seamless link between north campus and the historic green and main campus, allowing it to be shared with undergraduate sciences.

The demolition of an unused laboratory adjacent to Dana Hall made way for its new addition, which reorients the building to create inviting campus connections to the south. Comprising the new social center of north campus, the addition houses the building’s lobby and a café, with an adjacent terrace overlooking a green.

Tied together by a spiral object stair visible from the south lawn, the building’s upper floors contain faculty offices, classrooms, and places for student gathering. The penthouse level features a solar-paneled canopy and a south-facing planted terrace that overlooks the iconic main campus. The walkout graduate student lounge in the basement opens to a protected courtyard below a pedestrian bridge.

Existing hazardous materials in Dana Hall required removing the interior down to its concrete columns and slabs before construction could begin.

As a reused structure in a cold climate, the choices of high R value terra-cotta-clad walls, solar panel canopy triple-glazed windows, and south-facing glass with an expanded metal interlayer to limit summer sun — along with reusing the existing concrete structure — create a building with a low embodied energy that approaches net zero energy usage.

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BABSON PARK, Mass. –– Windover Construction, an award-winning construction management firm specializing in academic building, recently completed construction of the Weissman Foundry at Babson College.

The 10,000-square-foot building is Babson’s newest and most innovative academic center. 

The Weissman Foundry is an open-door design studio inspiring transdisciplinary innovative collaboration between Babson, Olin and Wellesley students for the advancement of new or existing projects. It was made for the curious — the entrepreneurs, engineers, artists, and academics alike. Designed as an intentional mashup of student interests, the Weissman Foundry is meant to ignite forward-thinking idea exploration, iteration, and design, and to facilitate meaningful knowledge transfer between the three college communities.

School Construction News spoke with Randy Catlin, EVP & COO of Windover Construction, to discuss the project.

Q: When did construction begin and when was it completed? Architectural firm/general contractor?  

Catlin: Construction began in January of 2018 and was completed in August of 2018.

Builder: Windover Construction
Mechanical Engineer: Vanderweil Engineers
Architect: William Rawn Associates
Structural Engineer: LeMessurier

Q: What was the overall goal of this construction project?
Catlin: The overall goal of this project was to create a 10,000-square-foot open-door design studio to inspire transdisciplinary innovative collaboration between Babson, Olin, and Wellesley college students for the advancement of new or existing projects! It was made for the curious—the entrepreneurs, engineers, artists, and academics alike. Designed as an intentional mashup of student interests, the Weissman Foundry is meant to ignite forward-thinking idea exploration, iteration, and design, and to facilitate meaningful knowledge transfer between the three college communities.

Windover led the preconstruction and construction and collaborated with the design team to execute Babson’s vision for the advanced facility. Featuring areas for project work, large and small, this new creative space provides access to workbenches, advanced fabrication equipment, traditional tools, robotics, AR/VR, and sought-after connections to expertise and training.

Q: What are the major design elements/features? (Sustainable, if any?) How will this design influence/improve the student learning/teaching environment? 

Catlin: The facility features several complex and contemporary design elements. With meticulous upfront preconstruction planning, Windover prepared for the successful build of these elements despite facing a condensed, eight-month construction schedule. The stunning building envelope, consisting of the convergence of curtainwall, masonry, and metal panel at every elevation with dramatic wood canopies, required tight coordination across multiple trades to execute.

Interiorly, the space features polished concrete floors, open and connected spaces divided by louver-operated doors, wood slat ceiling accents, exposed ductwork, and moveable furniture, fixtures, and worksurfaces all contributing to the flexibility and utility of the space. As the name “Foundry” suggests, it is an industrial concept tempered by contemporary, stunning design features.

Set within a wooded landscape, the industrial-looking Foundry has abundant natural light, wood canopies, and a “living roof” that supports the college’s sustainability commitment and is registered with the certification goal of LEED® Silver. The facility also incorporates high-performance MEP systems, including a custom energy recovery unit.

Through these unique design elements, students and teachers alike enjoy a versatile and open environment that ignites forward-thinking idea exploration, iteration, and design, and knowledge transfer. The Foundry is a place for learning and hands-on experimentation.

Q: How does this project follow other national school construction trends? What is unique about this project compared to other school construction trends? 

Catlin: For many years now, the trend of experiential and transdisciplinary education has continued to grow and shape the way academic campuses are looking at their academic buildings and spaces. Learning environments are becoming more flexible, adaptable and integrated in response to this trend with buildings dedicated to STEM, STEAM, and STREM curriculums. With a focus on hands-on and collaborative learning, traditional classrooms are transforming into open-concept spaces with moveable furniture and makerspaces, and academic buildings are now being designed and programmed to host multiple disciplines under one roof.

Unlike STEM, STEAM, and STREAM buildings which are dedicated to select disciplines, the Weissman Foundry was intentionally designed to support a mash-up of student interests and a diverse spectrum of entrepreneurs, artists, engineers, and academics alike. Through experiential and transdisciplinary approaches, the Foundry is a place that equips students to use their collective business, engineering, and liberal arts educations to create impactful social and economic value everywhere.

Q: Are there any innovative technological/electronic systems or solutions integrated into this new facility?

Caitlin: Yes. Due to the unique industrial and open design, Windover facilitated the intricate MEP/HVAC infrastructure, including moveable fixtures, high power loads, and complex ductwork connections. All of this was made possible by using 3D BIM coordination and prefabrication of selected elements.

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The recently completed center, named for the famous conservationist, features a 134-seat, state-of-the-art recital hall along with practice spaces, classrooms and gathering spaces. After years in the basement of the school’s library, the Middlesex School music program has essentially quadrupled its space. The adaptive reuse project led by Windover Construction, based in Beverly, Mass., turned the campus’ old steam plant into a state-of-the-art music facility to match the school’s high caliber programming.

Having experienced expansive growth in its music and performing arts program, Middlesex was in need of dedicated music instruction, practice and performing spaces. As a trusted partner for campus projects, Middlesex turned to Windover to manage the preconstruction and construction for this project in close collaboration with Boston-based CBT Architects.

Converting a former steam plant into a state-of-the-art music center wasn’t without its challenges, however. “The conversion was challenging because structurally what remained of the existing building had to be stabilized with bracing and underpinning in order to integrate the new structure and construction,” said Stuart Meurer, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Windover Construction.

Among the unique issues facing the project was respecting the aesthetic integrity of the building while implementing contemporary construction practices — not to mentioned preserving the iconic smokestack that has long festooned the building’s profile.

“The only part of the existing steam plant that still visually remains is the smokestack, which offers the building a very unique visual element,” said Meurer.

The campus community was unanimous in its desire to keep the smokestack, which ventilated a steam plant originally fueled by coal. The plant provided heat and domestic hot water to the growing campus via an elaborate, underground network of steam lines. After WWII, the plant switched to heating oil as its primary source of fuel. In the 2000s, long-term deferred maintenance of the campus heating system as well as the economic and environmental impact of the central steam plant against, led to a transition to natural gas as a fuel source and a decentralization of the entire campus heating infrastructure.

“This investment eliminated the need for further maintenance of the aging steam pipe and heat exchanger network and dramatically improved the efficiency of the system,” said Middlesex School Chief Operating Officer Matthew E. Crozier. “This switch helped the school reduce its overall carbon footprint by 25 percent, eliminating nearly 1,000 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere each year.”

The new upgrades follow upon this early green initiative. Throughout the reimagining of the structure, Meurer and his team took the opportunity to implement several green-themed upgrades, which is to be expected given the fact that the building’s namesake, the Rachel Carson Music and Campus Center, honors Carson’s early pioneering in the areas of marine biology and conservation. Among the new elements are three geothermal wells that provide for the building’s heating and cooling as well as a green roof and LED lighting throughout.

To make for a ready-to-use performance theater, Windover worked with Marvin Windows and View Dynamic Glass on the ionized window glazing or “dynamic glass,” which automatically tints to limit solar gain and provide environmental control. Windover also worked with theater consultant, Martin Vinik, and Boston-headquartered acoustic consulting firm, Acentech, to perfect the layout and acoustics of the space. The result is a performance center that its booster say rivals Massachusetts’ other prestigious music institution, the Berklee School of Music.

“As always, we work to have our program drive the spaces we create — not the other way around,” said Crozier. “We are a school of 400 students — medium sized in our market — and not committed to dramatic growth in that student population.”

That said, the school’s music program has grown dramatically over the past 20 years and boasts more than 150 students every year.

“For us, the new space was built to address the programmatic needs those students have,” said Crozier, who points to increased practice rooms, flex spaces and a performance venue dedicated to choral and instrumental music among the improvements. “We also have five humanities classrooms in the building, and that is where the flexibility and future-proofing come in.  Today, we use those spaces for Spanish classes to give the building a broad range of use. If, in the future, our music program were to grow further — a summer institute, for example — we could transition those spaces easily to music use.”

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When an academic institution embarks on a construction project — whether it’s an expansion, renovation, new building or other undertaking — the first step is choosing a construction manager (CM). After research, company interviews, cost comparisons and a final decision, you’re good to go, right? Not quite.

There’s still the matter of trade partner selection. This process is often less familiar to school administrators, and is typically handled by a CM. That said, it’s a process schools should be involved in.

Below are the top-five questions school administrators should be asking CMs ahead of trade partner selection:

What criteria are most important in trade partner selection?

Trade partners are the backbone of success for any construction project, and CMs should only select partners that have been fully vetted and interviewed. They should look for trade partners with expertise that best matches the specific trade scope, availability and capacity to perform the work; an exceptional reputation; and the right cultural fit for the school. The ultimate goal is to provide the best value; so it’s important to weigh these criteria along with overall cost.

How important is it to choose trade partners with relevant experience?

It’s essential to have trade partners with experience working on school campuses. This ensures they’re familiar with operating in academic environments and can manage the logistics of working on an occupied campus. Priority should be given to trade partners with relevant experience and it can be equally beneficial to select those that have previously worked with the CM. That familiarity results in shorter learning curves and an increased sense of safety, security and trust.

Are background checks necessary?

When it comes to construction on school campuses, safety should always be the No. 1 priority. As such, academic clients (especially K-12) are urged to require background checks when not already required by law — even if workers may not have direct contact with students. Ultimately, background checks are a low-cost risk mitigation tool that builds in another layer of safety for the school community. If schools don’t take the lead on a background check process, CMs should implement a process in which trade partners manage the background checks of their own employees. In this scenario, CMs should include in contractual agreements that trade partners need to provide proof of passed background checks prior to working on site.

How will the project team limit disruptions and ensure campus safety?

To minimize campus disruption during construction, it’s important to have processes in place, create open lines of communication and ensure all workers are easily identifiable.

• • Processes
    Before construction begins, create isolated parking and entry points. This limits worker contact with students and faculty, and minimizes overall disruption. Add another layer by staggering construction start and finish times to align with school opening and dismissal. When construction activity begins before school, vehicle traffic won’t interfere with normal school traffic.
    
    Lastly, enforcing a strict sign-in/sign-out process that is safeguarded by the CM’s superintendent is another key safety recommendation. In case of an emergency, the superintendent has a complete count of all people on site.

• • Communication
    The Critical Path Method (CPM) schedule is a great tool and visual to manage myriad project details and provides the school with a granular look at what to expect during construction. All activities and adjustments should be proactively communicated to eliminate surprises.
    
    Weekly meetings with key project stakeholders are also crucial to forming open lines of communication. Facilitated by the CM, the goal of the meetings is to discuss the project and provide updates or changes. Regular meetings ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page and up-to-date on the project’s progress.

• • Wearables
    Next, think about making trade partners identifiable to students and faculty. Especially in today’s world, it’s extremely important that students and faculty are aware of who has been cleared to be on campus. One of the easiest ways to do this is through wearables and other visual identifiers.
    
    In addition to traditional identifiers such as high-visibility vests, jackets and T-shirts, provide hardhat stickers to workers who have completed a mandatory safety orientation. Without participating in the orientation, workers cannot receive a sticker or set foot on site. Finally, lanyard and badging systems can be used to authorize access to certain areas of the campus. This is vital within occupied buildings where workers are not separated from school activities by a construction fence.

Do trade partners carry their own insurance?

As a key risk mitigation tool, the CM should make sure that trade partners have appropriate insurance to safeguard the school from any liability. This is done by carefully evaluating insurance limits on key items such as worker’s compensation, liability, and umbrella coverage and proper indemnification.

Trade partners should be prohibited from the construction site until they have provided proof of insurance and signed a contract that complies with the school’s requirements.

Marc Ciaramitaro is director of field operations at Windover Construction. For additional information, call 978-526-9410, visit the company website at www.windover.com or email info@windover.com.

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“As OSU alumni and Central Oregon homeowners, Connie and I are very committed to the success of OSU-Cascades,” said Lee Kearney, a retired executive of Kiewit Construction who also serves on the advisory board of the Oregon State College of Engineering, in a statement. “This sustainability initiative will provide a living laboratory for students and faculty interested in energy conservation and independence, and is very aligned with Central Oregon’s values.“

“This commitment marks a first significant step toward the creation of a campus that sets the standard for sustainability and net zero energy and resource use,” added OSU-Cascades Vice President Becky Johnson in a statement. “We are thrilled by the Kearneys’ visionary leadership and their commitment to higher education in Central Oregon. We are also deeply grateful that other Central Oregon leaders have pledged their support for this innovative vision of a sustainable future for OSU-Cascades.”

The university has also received a $75,000 gift from Rod and Laurie Ray to support the initiative. An OSU alumnus, Rod Ray also serves as a trustee of the OSU Foundation and is chair of the advisory board of the College of Engineering. Deschutes Brewery, a long-time supporter of the university, has committed a further $50,000 towards the initiative.

These gifts will support sustainable design approaches for the campus’s first academic building, reducing energy demand as much as possible, and installing monitoring equipment that will help to motivate energy saving behavior by building occupants, according to a statement by the university. Design and mechanical features made possible through these gifts include a highly efficient building envelope, the highest efficiency heating and cooling system, and functionality to incorporate solar, biomass and geothermal energy sources. These design features will result in approximately 40 percent less energy usage compared to similar structures built to meet current energy code standards.

“A sustainable campus isn’t just about going green,” said Matt Shinderman, a senior instructor in natural resources who leads the sustainability degree program at the branch campus and served as co-chair of the OSU-Cascades Campus Expansion Advisory Committee, in a statement. “It can also serve as a living laboratory for study and research, and attract students and faculty who care about energy and resource independence.”

The OSU-Cascades branch campus currently offers 18 undergraduate major programs, 30 minor programs and options, and three graduate programs. The branch campus plans to expand to a four-year university beginning in fall 2015.

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