ST. LOUIS (Jan. 9, 2015) – Tarlton recognized for expertise in materials management and front-end planning
The Olin Business School expansion project team, with Tarlton Corp. serving as construction manager, received a 2014 Construction Industry Best Practices Award for materials management and front-end planning on the construction of Knight and Bauer Halls at Washington University. The annual awards, presented by the St. Louis Council of Construction Consumers, honor successful use of Construction Industry Best Practices validated by the Construction Industry Institute to improve project quality, budget and schedule.
The 177,000-square-foot Olin Business School Expansion recently earned LEED® Gold Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council®. It is the largest single project completed on the Washington University Danforth campus in the shortest time span, nearly doubling Olin’s footprint on the campus. Successful completion of the construction on the fast-track schedule was a project management triumph for the design-construction team. Project merits cited by the SLCCC include:
- The project team plotted the critical timeline and coordinated storage of materials for a tight site surrounded by campus buildings and traffic.
- The intensive schedule included demolishing an older building, excavating a basement and constructing new buildings in only 20 months—all on an occupied college campus.
- Tarlton worked closely with subcontractors to pre-purchase mechanical, electrical, plumbing and structural packages months ahead of time, including the fabrication of the structural steel frame and pre-casting of concrete, installed simultaneously with the use of two tower cranes.
- The project team employed the just-in-time delivery process, with prefabricated materials transported from off site for immediate use in construction.
- Stones from neighboring McMillan Hall were painstakingly removed, numbered and reinstalled in one of several ancillary projects supporting the Olin expansion.
- Even with its fast-track schedule, the Knight and Bauer Halls project was completed within budget and with early turnover of two full floors to facilitate early move-in by Olin Business School.
“Tarlton and Olin Business School delivered a successful project that consisted of a number of significant challenges regarding critical structure and concrete components, materials and scheduling—all on an extremely tight work site,” said Tracy Hart, president, Tarlton Corp. “It is an honor to be recognized by the council for our excellence in project management and collaboration.”
Other members of the award-winning Tarlton team on the Olin Business School expansion project include Mackey Mitchell Architects; Moore Ruble Yudell Architects & Planners; BuroHappold Engineering; Cole; KPFF Consulting Engineers; William Tao & Associates Inc; and more than 50 subcontractors.
In business since 1946, Tarlton Corp. is a St. Louis-based general contracting and construction management firm and WBENC-Certified Women’s Business Enterprise with 2014 revenues topping $177 million. Tarlton completes projects up to $150 million for wide-ranging clients in the institutional, life science, health care, commercial, power and industrial markets. In addition, Tarlton is recognized among the region’s top builders in concrete construction, repair and renovation of all types. The award-winning firm is consistently recognized for sustainable construction and business operations.