KA Block Update – July 2016
Progress continues on the KA Block, with site excavation hitting a milestone and concrete work in full force. Project Manager Rody Lageson, P.E. provides this report.
Q: We reached the deepest point of excavation in June- how deep did we go?
RODY LAGESON: 35 feet below the surrounding street grade, at a pair of footings near the office elevator core.
Virtual jobsite visit June 29, 2016
Q: How much total dirt has been removed from the site?
LAGESON: About 250,000 tons.
Q: Where did the dirt go? Has it been used for infill elsewhere? What kind of soil is on the site?
LAGESON: The top layer of contaminated soil removed during the site cleanup was used as cover at local landfills. The remaining clean sand material is well suited for structural fill, and has been hauled up to Blaine for use in building pads.
Q: Talk about the concrete pour operation.
LAGESON: A pour day starts with the pump setting up on the street above the hole, and running the boom out to first pour of the day. Concrete trucks are usually not far behind, and start feeding the pump two at a time. It only takes five minutes to unload a full concrete truck into the pump. With warm summer weather hitting in force, the placing and finishing crews must work quickly to get the concrete finished before it sets up.
Q: What Lean construction approaches are being implemented on the site?
LAGESON: On a weekly basis we meet with our project team (project managers, project assistants, superintendents, subcontractor foreman and designers) to plan the next week’s work, and remove constraints that could impede that work. The lean process emphasizes coordination and communication to create flow in the work, and minimize waste.
Also, every few months we meet as a team to pull plan the next phase of the project. This event uses team input to develop the upcoming schedule, procurement and logistics.
Q: What’s on deck for the coming month?
LAGESON: Decks are on deck! In the next month the site will transition from excavation and footings, to a focus on building elevated decks. The deck pour process requires a certain rhythm between crews to work quickly, safely and efficiently. We’ve been planning this process for several weeks, and look forward to executing.
Q: When does steel erection begin?
LAGESON: We are planning to start structural steel at the office by the end of August/early September.
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