Stacks on Stacks: Apt Building Rises in 19 Days

Prefab construction has made a spectacular entrance in New York City. Nineteen days. That is all the time it took to put up a 28-unit, seven-story apartment building in the Inwood section of Manhattan this summer. This summer, prefab is yielding its first real fruits. The secret? Modular construction. The Stack, a 38,000-square-foot project comprised of 56 modules, was constructed on a 50x150 foot lot at Broadway and Academy Street, and is one of more than 17 modular projects underway in the city.

Working Monday through Friday from June 20 to July 18, a crew of just eight iron workers, a crane operator, and half-a-dozen helpers installed the 56 modules that make up the apartment building at 4857 Broadway.

Each 12-foot-wide prefabricated box was easily guided by the workers with a slight push, as it was suspended from a crane.

In a bow to the property's innovative construction technique, the building is to be known as The Stack. It was created by a partnership of developer/builder Jeffrey M. Brown Associates and Gluck+ architects.

Despite the touted economy of off-site, prefabricated housing, the methodology has made limited inroads in New York, stunted for decades by bureaucracy and a public that preferred flashy condominium projects.

Recently, interest in modular construction is catching on in a big way. That interest grew more urgent after Hurricane Sandy devastated parts of the city, leading officials to re-examine prefab disaster-housing schemes.



Part of modular construction's appeal of is that by building in a factory, the modules—as well as carpenters, plumbers, electricians and others building them—are protected from the elements, which helps ensure quality control and quicker construction. Door bells, lights, switches, bathrooms, tiles, kitchens, everything's in there already - even the first coat of paint.

And when it comes time to put the pieces together, a building can blossom in just a few weeks.

In the case of The Stack, it only took a few months to prepare the site and lay the foundations, and all the while crews were busy building the modules at a factory in Pennsylvania. The small modules do mean low ceilings, however—necessary, in part, to make it across the bridge to the city.

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Why Skanska Dropped its Membership in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce

On July 9, Skanska resigned as a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to protest the organization’s backing of a chemical industry-led initiative to effectively ban the future use of LEED for government buildings. The initiative, linked to the lobbying efforts related to the Shaheen-Portman Energy Efficiency Bill , threatens to halt years of progress in energy-efficient and environmentally responsible construction.

Sustainability is one of Skanska’s core values. And we will not be a part of an organization that supports the American High-Performance Building Coalition (AHPBC), which harbors the American Chemistry Council and opposes the implementation of a new, stronger LEED certification program.

LEEDv4 encourages transparency in reporting the chemical composition of building materials, something we at Skanska think is essential for anyone wanting to build responsibly.

The LEED program is the most recognized and widely used green building program globally. It is maintained and implemented by the independent U.S. Green Building Council through a public and transparent comment and balloting process engaging a diverse group of nearly 13,000 members, who voted last week in favor of LEEDv4.

We have asked the Chamber to reconsider its support of the chemical lobby, whose anti-LEED stance would:

• Significantly undermine the LEED program
• Impact more than 196,000 LEED Accredited Professionals
• Cripple the progress of environmentally responsible construction across the country.

The Chamber is on the wrong side of this issue, and its support of the AHPBC is misplaced as well as misguided. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce was created to advocate for pro-business policies that create jobs and support our economy. The numbers prove that LEED and green building do just that. Because a few companies don’t like the current LEED program, they want to involve the government and create an entirely new system for government buildings. This is exactly the kind of redundancy and bureaucracy that we pay the Chamber to fight.

Michael McNally
President & CEO
Skanska USA

$300M Condo Soon To Grace Downtown Miami Skyline

    

One Thousand Museum, a $300 million condo tower designed by world renowned architect Zaha Hadid, will soon be gracing the Downtown Miami skyline.1000 Biscayne Blvd in downtown Miami will ideally display the new 62-story tower. Offering super spacious full floor plans, the tower will be set between 900 Biscayne and Ten Museum Park, taking over a prime spot now occupied by a gas station.

Preconstruction

With only 83 residences ranging from 5,400 to 11,200 square feet, each residence will have 3 parking spaces assigned plus its own helicopter landing pad which is the only residential tower in Miami with this feature.

Prices for the luxury apartments are expected to start between $4 and $12 million for a half-floor unit, rising to $30 million for a full floor. The two top floor 5-BR/ 7-Bath duplexes units are being offered at more than $50,000,000 each.

All units will be offered fully-finished, including flooring, custom closets and high-end lighting. Construction is expected to be completed in 2016.

The Developer

1000 Museum is an amazing project designed by internationally renowned architect Zaha Hadid. Pritzker Award winner, Stirling Prize winner, and appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth, her architecture is very distinctive, futuristic and recognized around the world.
Her firm has built mostly in Europe, Asia and Middle East. One Thousand Museum is her first American project and highly anticipated by the super-wealthy from around globe.

	Click images to enlarge

Features

• Sun deck with a billiards room, a cardio room, a screening room
• Rooftop event spaces, a cigar lounge, a relaxation lounge
• Oversized hot tubs, hot and cold plunge pools, spa
• Indoor pools, outdoor pools, sauna, steam room, cabanas
• Three restaurants and a nightclub
• The first residential building with a helipad

Contact ElectricWeb-Southeast for more details on this project.

Contractors Selected on Howard University Projects

Power Design, Inc. has been named as the electrical contractor on Howard University’s newest student housing development located in Washington, D.C. 

The development will accommodate more than 1,000 students and will help establish a residential neighborhood for them.

Power Design recently started construction on another student housing project that will include approximately 1,360 beds in 700 units.

The new residence halls will feature two-person semi-suites, a communal social and study lounge, and game rooms.

Electrical Contractor: Power Design, Inc. 11600 Ninth Street North St. Petersburg, FL 33716           Phone 727.210.0492 Fax 727.210.0503

General Contractor: Clark Construction Group, LLC 7500 Old Georgetown Road Bethesda, Maryland 20814 Phone (301) 272-8100 Fax (301) 272-19283

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Howard University Interdisciplinary Research Campus

Howard University and Turner Construction Company, will break ground on a new Interdisciplinary Research Building at 2201 Georgia Ave., NW, Washington, D.C.

It is a cornerstone of the University’s academic renewal initiative, and its prominent gateway location on the Georgia Avenue Corridor is a public expression of Howard’s commitment to 21st century research.

The new 81,000 square-foot mixed-use academic building will support and promote interdisciplinary research and educational collaboration.

The IRB is designed as an energy-efficient (LEED) facility which will incorporate cutting-edge technology and the latest educational, environmental and research standards.

It will include wet and dry laboratories, instructional space, research support space, ground floor retail, and centralized offices for faculty, students and academic staff.

The Interdisciplinary Research Building is slated to open in the Fall of 2014.

General Contractor:
Turner Construction Company
1110 Vermont Avenue NW, Suite 200
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 789-0770

E-J Electric Flying High at JFK’s Terminal 5

E-J Electric Installation Company is in the midst of a multiyear project for Turner Construction at New York City‘s John F. Kennedy Airport. The contractor is wiring the newly constructed $875 million, 635,000-square-foot JetBlue Airways terminal, which includes 26 gates.
The terminal has begun servicing 360 flights in and out daily. E-J Electric is providing the electric installation, including switchgear, feeders, low-voltage data and fire safety, and supplemental power from three generators. 

The Y-shaped Terminal 5 building connects to JetBlue’s previous location, Terminal 6, once the Trans World Airlines Flight Center used by TWA. T5 offers modern facilities and room for growth, as the airline continues to expand its operations and both domestic and international flights.

JetBlue, JFK’s fastest growing airline, started flying in and out of the airport a decade ago with just one gate for a handful of flights. Since then, JetBlue grew a gate at a time, reaching the 13 gates maximum that were available to it at Terminal 6.

In 2005, the airline added seven temporary gates in a separate facility, requiring passengers to take a JetBlue bus to access their planes. As a result, the airline needed a permanent space and began planning T5, making allowances for continued expansion.

The airline’s architect designed T5 to include 26 gates, with 13 on each end of the Y and room for 10 more. The company’s T5 master plan included up to 20 security lanes, the departure and arrival gates, free Wi-Fi access throughout the entire terminal, 22 restaurants and food outlets, retail stores, and large children’s area.

JetBlue hired Turner Construction as general contractor, and Turner employed a total of 80 subcontractors, including E-J Electric for the electrical portion.

E-J Electric and Turner already have completed numerous projects together, including Yankee Stadium, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Interfaith Hospital and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

E-J Electric, whose electricians have worked at JFK for years, was selected to do electrical wiring tasks, including both normal and emergency power in addition to low voltage.

Since E-J Electric’s workers already had considerable experience in airport work, getting them to comply with Federal Aviation Administration and Port Authority regulations was fairly straightforward. For instance, each electrician must gain security clearance on a job-by-job basis. This project required all workers to take a safety training class before starting work on the project. They also had to carry a picture ID badge at all times.

Manufacturing Ends for the 75-Watt Light Bulb

Happy New Year, and Welcome to 2013!
 
As with 100-watt incandescent bulbs (which were phased out last year), it is now illegal to manufacture 75-watt incandescent bulbs - or to import them into the United States. While some people have little or no strong feelings either way, there are those who are wholeheartedly in favor of the new law, and others who are adamantly opposed.

View our exclusive Guide to Energy Efficient Lamps, which outlines all the costs factors to consider before you make a purchase.

 The Law: Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007

Light bulbs from 40 watts through 100 watts must be 25% more efficient, by the following dates:

- January 1, 2012 for 100 watt bulbs
- January 1, 2013 for 75 watt bulbs
- January 1, 2014 for 60 watt bulbs 
- February 28, 2014 for 40 watt bulbs

Since most current incandescent lamps do not meet this standard, this effectively bans them as of the above dates.
  

CFL's - Compact Fluorescent Lamps                                                                                          

At about $4.00 a pop, compact fluorescent lamps are about four times more expensive than standard lamps. Those cute little curly shaped CFLs do last longer and will save you a lot of money...

But, if the bulb is broken, they can create a hazardous waste nightmare in your home. And while they do come with a disposal warning label - few people read a warning label on a light bulb. Furthermore, many of the CFL’s made in China can start a fire when the ballast burns out.

 

Recent studies have linked CFL lamps to a number of health problems including fatigue, eye strain and migraine headaches, and if broken, compact fluorescent are hazardous to your health. Some manufacturers have started to label their boxes with warnings on how to deal with a broken bulb. In fact, some states will now require that you recycle these bulbs at special facilities because of the large amount of mercury contained in each bulb.

The problem is the toxic mercury inside and which poses a big problem for landfills and if the bulb breaks, for homeowners.
  

 LED's - not CFL's - are the Future of Lighting

Replacing just one incandescent bulb with an LED lamp from Lighting Science can save more than $430 over the lifetime of the bulb.

 

LED lamps are brighter, don't flicker, don't require special handling, and last up to fifty times longer than incandescents! What's more, they use even less energy than hazardous compact fluorescent bulbs. An LED 75-watt equivalent lamp puts out as much light as a 75-watt incandescent bulb, but uses only one-tenth the power. Plus, it can burn for 11 years.

Sure, LED's will cost more than a standard bulb. But because they last so much longer and save so much more in electricity costs, they more than make up for it in less than a year's usage.

View our exclusive Guide to Energy Efficient Lamps, which outlines all the costs factors to consider before you make a purchase.  

Find about NSTAR Rebate Programs available in the Greater Boston area for lighting upgrades.. 

 

 75 Watt Incandescent Light Bulbs Are Still Available... For Now

Many have already embraced the new light bulbs, while others will use the old fashioned bulbs as long as they possibly can. Americans are stockpiling 75 watt incandescent lamps for their own use. As the deadline has passed, it's only logical that the price of these lamps will increase as the available supply decreases.

 

If you are among those who might wish to have a light bulb choice in the future, that choice will need to be in your pantry, as eventually, it will not be on the shelves of your local supply house. 

As of January 1, 2013, these bulbs can no longer be made in, or imported into, the United States.

1M square-foot Tremont Crossing Proposed for Roxbury

The $300 million project would include 500,000 square feet of retail, 200,000 square feet of office space, an 11-story apartment building with 240 units, and a new museum for the National Center for Afro-American Artists. The development will also include a large public plaza and a multi-level parking garage with 1,700 spaces.

Elma Lewis Partners and Feldco Development have proposed "Tremont Crossing," a 1-million-square-foot, mixed-use development in Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood.

If approved by the city, the $300 million project would include 500,000 square feet of retail with smaller shops and boutiques along Tremont Street, 200,000 square feet of office space, an 11-story apartment building with 240 units, and a new museum for the National Center for Afro-American Artists. The development will also include a large public plaza and a multi-level parking garage with 1,700 spaces.

Tremont Crossing will be located on the 8-acre parcel bounded by Tremont, Whittier and Downing streets. 

According to the filing with the Boston Redevelopment Authority, the project seeks to integrate a mix of uses in a “highly-functional, urban context; creating a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly environment that is conducive to the success of its commercial and cultural tenants, as well as enhancing the quality of life in the neighborhood of which it will become a part.”

The museum and cultural space will be at the center of the development with a public plaza to include sculptures and outdoor seating. The office tower will rise above the museum, but will maintain its pedestrian access on Tremont Street and offer unobstructed views of downtown Boston.

The Gund Partnership in collaboration with and Stull and Lee Inc., created the design for Tremont Crossing.