{"id":4630,"date":"2015-06-26T08:18:45","date_gmt":"2015-06-26T12:18:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.consigli.com\/?p=4630"},"modified":"2020-12-09T11:06:07","modified_gmt":"2020-12-09T16:06:07","slug":"strong-foundations-for-urban-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.consigli.com\/strong-foundations-for-urban-growth\/","title":{"rendered":"Strong Foundations for Urban Growth"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/a><\/p>\n BOSTON, MA <\/strong>–<\/strong> Lovejoy Wharf<\/a>. Chinatown<\/a>. The South End<\/a>. Longwood\/Mission Hill<\/a>. Waterfront wharves, where the ocean is just a few feet beneath; dense urban neighborhoods built on tidal marshes; urban districts packed with mixed uses and mixed needs\u2014building on and in these distinctive Boston environments, takes some doing.<\/p>\n This summer and fall, Consigli teams will top-off the structural systems for three Boston residential high-rise projects, with a fourth close behind. From building ocean floor foundations to the use of innovative pre-fabricated structural systems, the construction solutions for these projects are as diverse as the neighborhoods in which they are being built. Together these projects are an intriguing snapshot of booming residential construction, and of the many ways Consigli builds.<\/p>\n While snow was flying this past January, construction was underway at Lovejoy Wharf, underwater.<\/p>\n Installing a caisson foundation system beneath this North End wharf\u2014one able to support the 17-story, 250,000-square-foot residential building rising above it\u2014was the first step in Consigli\u2019s construction of Related Beal\u2019s Lovejoy Wharf waterfront condominiums. With views of the Zakim Bridge and a stone\u2019s throw from TD Garden, the new 131 Beverly Street 185-foot high-rise, was designed by Robert A. M. Stern Architects, with local architect of record, ADD Inc. Abutting the already-transformed 160 Washington Street\u2014now the new headquarters for sneaker giant Converse\u2014this 162-unit tower is the final piece of the wharf\u2019s redevelopment.<\/p>\n Working with sub-contractor Hub Foundation the Consigli team kept up a strong pace from late January to early May to complete this deep foundation so the next step, work on the building\u2019s concrete super structure, could begin promptly this summer. This underwater support system replaces the wharf\u2019s original wooden pile foundation, now much decayed. Now, beneath the new building\u2019s 37,500 sq. ft. site, there is a system of 61 caissons, four-foot diameter underwater shafts filled with concrete. Building this support required drilling to depths of 80 to 120 feet\u2014the equivalent of eight-to-twelve stories underground\u2014beneath the wharf and eight feet down into Boston Harbor\u2019s bedrock.<\/p>\n Once each shaft was drilled, it was pumped full of slurry\u2014a mixture of water and clay\u2014to keep each cylindrical hole intact before it was filled with concrete. Next, each shaft was filled with six truckloads\u2014about 60 cubic yards\u2014of concrete. Working at the steady clip of a caisson a day, this new foundation was completed in May, and the team is now readying the site for the arrival of its 220-foot tower crane, to begin the building\u2019s cast-in-place concrete structure in July.<\/p>\n Over the next 21-months, Lovejoy\u2019s final transformation will unfold with this high-end condominium\u2019s 12- and 17-story structures going up, with its utilities\u2019 infrastructure integrated, curtain wall set in place and elegant interior finishes installed.<\/p>\n One thing these new condos won\u2019t have: parking. This is a first for a residential project of this scale in Boston\u2014and it seems a fitting detail of this redevelopment that has already created three-quarters of an acre of new public waterfront at the wharf\u2019s edges. Open to pedestrians this spring, this new water\u2019s edge open space facilitated the reopening of the North End\u2019s Harborwalk, bringing even more urban vitality to this reinvigorated corner of Boston.<\/p>\n Remember the classic board game, \u201cOperation\u201d? Where players pick up awkwardly shaped objects with tweezers and move them oh-so-carefully out of small, cramped spaces? It turns out Consigli\u2019s construction of the Chinese Economic Development Council\u2019s new affordable high-rise housing in Chinatown\u2019s tight quarters, requires similar skills\u2014on only a slightly larger scale.<\/p>\n At the best of times, building in Boston\u2019s Chinatown is a construction challenge: for Consigli\u2019s Oxford Ping On team, whose postage stamp-sized site sits between two alley-like streets, it calls for innovative scheduling and site management. The 11-story, 60,000 sq. ft. high-rise sits on a 6,500 sq. ft. site, and it will fit with just a foot to spare between adjacent buildings. With 16 months scheduled for construction and little room on-site for material storage, the precise management of material deliveries and crew scheduling is crucial.<\/p>\n The Oxford Ping On project shot out of the gates in mid-November 2014. From installation of a steel-pile and lagging retaining wall, and digging deep to solid soil, to preparing this former urban fill site for its cast-in-place concrete foundation, to figuring out the geometry needed for the site\u2019s 270-foot crane for maneuvering steel beams in place directly from truck beds, to this July\u2019s placement of the final beam, the team is speeding toward the March 2016 finish line.<\/p>\n What\u2019s minimizing the impact of construction and keeping the project going at a fast clip? A variety of Lean project delivery techniques\u2014from tried-and-true techniques including just-in-time material deliveries and use of the Last Planner System\u00ae for managing on-site work, to the use of Line of Balance (LoB) scheduling to graphically illustrate the connection between production lines on a project and vPlanner\u2014one of the industry\u2019s most progressive software offerings for managing projects as production systems.<\/p>\n Consigli\u2019s Project Manager Matt Lagowski explains that the Oxford Ping On project is perfect for the benefits of Lean project delivery techniques. \u201cScheduling needs to be absolutely reliable for this project\u2019s sequencing of materials and crews, and this is where the use of the Last Planner System makes the difference. The Last Planner System provides a framework for Consigli to work with our trade partners to create more precise look-ahead schedules\u2014and are especially useful for projects with repeated blocks of construction activity such as high-rise construction. Adding LoB to our lean toolbox allows us to see the gaps on the schedule that symbolize inefficient labor projection. This forewarning guides the collaborative scheduling efforts with our trade partners. Then, LoB also helps us coordinate material deliveries so they arrive just-in-time for installation and don\u2019t take up precious space on site for long periods of time.\u201d<\/p>\n Other strategies speeding the construction of these 67 much-needed apartments include a creative pre-fabricated steel package and an innovative approach to getting the building weather-tight three months early\u2014creating a host of other benefits.<\/p>\n First, the Consigli team\u2019s customized pre-fabrication approach for the building\u2019s 11-stories of stairs streamlined the installation process and created an even safer work site. By combining the pre-fabrication of the building\u2019s stairs with the structural steel package, the stairs were installed with the structure, instead of later as part of the project\u2019s miscellaneous metal work, which is a more standard construction approach. And, with the stairs in place, ladders are not needed to access upper levels, another safety plus.<\/p>\n Second, the team recognized that the addition of a second vapor barrier to the roofing system\u2014one that would function as a temporary roof membrane\u2014would allow them to enclose the building sooner. With the building weather-tight, a neat sequence of expedited work falls into place, like dominoes: the installation of electrical systems and interior finishes could begin sooner and then the installation of the interior freight elevator moved ahead a month, allowing the team to free the site of the project\u2019s monster hoist sooner\u2014whose 200 sq. ft. base also takes up valuable site real estate.<\/p>\n One more project efficiency: the team\u2019s use of swing-staging suspended from the roof to provide access to the exterior of the building, allowed the project to avoid the need for scaffolding on site. Together, all of these strategies are making 67 new homes for Chinatown\u2019s community possible and sooner than originally planned.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n The really big hole in the ground\u2014420 feet long by 60 feet wide, to be exact\u2014at 600 Harrison Avenue will soon be the South End\u2019s SoWa district\u2019s newest hip housing in this former industrial neighborhood, now in transition. Being built for New Atlantic Development and designed by architects from Boston\u2019s Utile, Inc., Consigli\u2019s team is using innovative construction techniques to turn this 35,000 sq. ft. brownfield site, formerly a parking lot for the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, into seven-stories of urban living.<\/p>\n Essentially a new city block, Consigli\u2019s Project Manager Jeff Cammuso, talks about the work underway with a lot of energy and enthusiasm, comparing the seven-story by 420-foot-long residential development to building a \u201c40-story high-rise\u2014on its side!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnother \u2018Green Monster\u2019\u2014that\u2019s what it looked like we were building at first, before we had the block-long wall of 45-foot-tall sheet piles driven into the ground for the foundation\u2019s outer edge.\u201d<\/p>\n Building this multi-family housing\u2019s foundation and its two-level, 162-space underground parking, is taking a level of care and attention that will be invisible to passersby when the project is complete, yet vital to turn this former tidal marshland into a watertight foundation.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause this edge of the South End was built on marshland, our site\u2019s water table is at just beyond four feet. To make sure the below-grade parking is watertight, we used the \u2018Ultra Seal\u2019 process, installing a waterproof mat below the foundation slab and along the sheeting. After each step, we implemented a rigorous quality review with envelope engineers at Gale Associates. To streamline the foundation\u2019s construction, we developed a Lean-inspired assembly-line process for the 232 concrete piles, working east to west. At any one time, we were driving piles, cutting them to required elevations and installing walers and cross-lot bracing to support the excavation,\u201d Cammuso explained.<\/p>\n Next up: with the building\u2019s underground levels almost complete, the installation of its innovative pre-fabricated structural system, The Infinity Structural System. The system will begin to be installed in August, bringing the Harrison Avenue project the benefits of pre-fabrication\u2014shortening overall construction and creating a safer building environment by reducing work done on site. And, ideally, because the system is designed to reduce energy consumption, it will also reduce the building\u2019s future operation costs.<\/p>\n Perfect for mid-rise buildings like the seven-story 600 Harrison, The Infinity Structural System combines the Epicore Multi-Story Residential (MSR) Composite Floor System with pre-panelized, load-bearing metal stud walls. Infinity Structures explains that Epicore\u2019s floor system, which can clear span up to 27 feet, is \u201ca two-inch deep, high performance long-span composite metal deck, which acts as a permanent form as well as the positive reinforcing within the slab.\u201d It is uniquely suited for load-bearing metal studs because it inherently distributes loads evenly. Consigli\u2019s team is coordinating the work of the four subcontractors installing the system.<\/p>\n When it opens in summer 2016, the new 600 Harrison block will add 160 rental apartments to the neighborhood\u2019s housing stock, as well as 3,600 sq. ft. of street-level retail. Only a few steps from the South End Open Markets\u2019 farmers\u2019 market, arts market and food truck fiesta held every summer Sunday, this could be a pretty great place to call home.<\/p>\n One of the city\u2019s newest residential developments is rising up on Boston\u2019s Riverway, the ribbon of Emerald Necklace park that runs past Longwood Medical Area. Underway with all the hustle you\u2019d expect building next door to Brigham and Women\u2019s Hospital\u2014a major teaching and research hospital for Harvard Medical School\u2014this project is the vision of Roxbury Tenants of Harvard, one of Mission Hill\u2019s non-profit, neighborhood-controlled housing corporations. Brigham and Women\u2019s, also a partner in the project, provided the land for the 11-story development. Come next summer, this edge of the Riverway will be 145 new high-rise homes, in a split of affordable rental units and affordable and market-rate condos.<\/p>\n Given Longwood\u2019s status as the city\u2019s second largest employment area with its 21 health care, research and education institutions\u2014not to mention the dense Mission Hill residential neighborhood it adjoins\u2014it isn\u2019t surprising that managing a 160,000 sq. ft. construction project here is a lot like a 3D chess game.<\/p>\n From the get-go, the project\u2019s been all go. The first step, transforming this urban site into one with a solid soil-base for the building\u2019s foundation. Beginning February 26, over just 17 days (and some of them very snowy days), the team completed the soil-stabilization process required before the foundation work could begin, installing the site\u2019s 790 rammed-aggregate piers (RAPs), at a rapid pace of 50 piers per day. Actually looking a lot like a chess board, this grid of 20-foot-deep piers, created a dense soil-base and prepared the way for the building\u2019s spread-footing and slab-on-grade foundation.<\/p>\n Fast forward to June and the building\u2019s 11-story concrete elevator and stair tower has risen up a floor a day and the site\u2019s biggest chess piece\u2014its 165-foot tower crane\u2014has now taken up residence, ready to begin structural steel erection.<\/p>\n And if preparing a building\u2019s strong foundation on a tight urban site is a game of 3D chess, then Consigli\u2019s project team is a team of 3D chess masters. As Jay Rodriguez, Consigli\u2019s Project Superintendent, describes it, \u201cAt any given moment, we are simultaneously coordinating the site access we share with the project being built next door, placing concrete, staging the next piece of work and making sure construction deliveries get in and out quickly while bypassing the nearby residential streets. It\u2019s about managing each moment and knowing what the next series of moves needs to be.\u201d<\/p>\n As a project with many stakeholders, it\u2019s also not surprising that strong communication is as important as its strong foundation. Building at this crossroads of Longwood, Mission Hill and the Emerald Necklace for non-profit project owner, Roxbury Tenants of Harvard, Consigli\u2019s on-going coordination with project participants includes the Boston Redevelopment Authority, the Boston Civic Design Commission, The City of Boston\u2019s Department of Neighborhood Development, the Boston Residents Jobs Policy Program, the Massachusetts\u2019s Department of Conservation and Recreation and the Medical Academic and Scientific Community Organization (MASCO), the 24-member non-profit dedicated to enhancing the Longwood Medical Area for all those who live, work, study or receive care here. Project communications vary from weekly community newsletters, prepared by the projects field staff, to monthly coordination meetings held at MASCO\u2019s Longwood Ave property, where all contractors who are working in the neighborhood meet to review logistics and schedule as it relates to community impacts.<\/p>\n To plan the project\u2019s next moves and keep its pace at its most efficient, the team uses Lean project delivery techniques including pull-planning, daily stand-up meetings and road block tracking. During these meetings, Consigli\u2019s team and the project\u2019s sub-contractors review upcoming work in six-week \u201clook-ahead\u201d increments so the team can assure work is ready to be performed on schedule. From fine-tuning upcoming steel deliveries, to managing the City\u2019s approval process of the building\u2019s full-scale exterior mock-up, these look-ahead schedules are micro-management at its best.<\/p>\n Heading toward its summer 2016 opening, each day brings the team and the project\u2019s future residents closer to \u201ccheckmate.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" BOSTON, MA – Lovejoy Wharf. Chinatown. The South End. Longwood\/Mission Hill. Waterfront wharves, where the ocean is just a few feet beneath; dense urban neighborhoods built on tidal marshes; urban districts packed with mixed uses and mixed needs\u2014building on and in these distinctive Boston environments, takes some doing. This summer<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nLovejoy Wharf\u2019s Sea Change: Ocean Floor Becomes Strong Foundation<\/h3>\n
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\n<\/strong><\/h3>\nStrategies for a Postage Stamp Site, Building Chinatown\u2019s Oxford Ping On Housing<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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\n<\/strong><\/h3>\n600 Harrison Avenue: Hip New Housing\u2019s Firm Foundation; Hybrid Structural System<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Mastering 3D Chess on the Riverway:\u00a0<\/strong>a New Residential High-Rise Takes Shape<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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