Spring 2005 Newsletter

“It was Daunting to keep our existing facilities fully functional on a 24/7 basis while a $176 million project was happen-ing all around them, but McCarthy made it happen.”

— Rick Nothnagel, vice president &mdash facilities management, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center

New construction is complete and renovations are nearing completion on the comprehensive $176 million Project for Progress construction program, which consists of 460,000 square feet of new construction and 350,000 square feet of renovated spaces that required over 124 phases. Included in the project were a 126,000-square-foot horizontal expansion of the emergency department and surgery services; a 132,000-square-foot, 4-story vertical addition over the existing cancer center; a 7-story, 183,000-square-foot primary care services facility; a 450-foot long, 4-level atrium tying all the facilities together; and two parking structures. “Challenges abounded, including severe weather and labor shortages, but what's so remarkable is how McCarthy contributed to the community by assisting in blood banks, and supporting Habitat for Humanity and the Children's Hospital at Dartmouth,” commented DHMC's Rick Nothnagel. ARCHITECT: Shepley Bulfinch Richardson & Abbott, Boston.

“The project team has done an exceptional job stepping in when we needed a ‘CAN DO’ answer to meet budget and scheduling requirements.”

— Michael Peterson, sole owner, Diversified Real Estate Concepts, Inc.

The first of two luxury high-rise projects planned for developer Michael Peterson, The Platinum is a 16-story, condo/hotel featuring 255 units with a mix of one-bedroom and two-bedroom suites. Scheduled for a May 2006 completion, the $68 million luxury tower is just off the famed Las Vegas Strip and only steps away from the Bellagio and Caesars Palace. The Platinum will feature many amenities including a state-of-the-art fitness center, a luxurious spa/treatment center, an indoor/outdoor pool with whirlpool, poolside bar & café and lush, tropical landscaping. The Platinum is being built by McCarthy's Residential Constructors LLC subsidiary, which will also completely build out each of the units and public areas. ARCHITECT: Morris & Brown Architects LTD, Solana Beach, Calif.

“The McCarthy team proved to be VERY CAPABLE, always focused on the quality of the work and meeting the needs of the client.”

— John Mickow, principal, Flad & Associates

The recently completed $43.2 million Parnassus Services Seismic Replacement Building for the University of California, San Francisco, is a six-story, 86,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art laboratory facility built to support cancer, immunology, infectious disease, diabetes, hormone, reproductive biology and cardiovascular research. A robotic cage wash and prep system is the third such prototype to be installed in the world. Constructing such a complex facility wedged tightly among an existing hospital, research building, central plant and central receiving facilities, presented some tricky site logistics for the building team. By implementing long lead scheduling, careful scripting of large equipment and crane movements, off-hour work and close coordination with campus traffic control personnel, McCarthy was able to minimize the potential impact on surrounding campus operations. “This was a complex project on a very challenging site,” noted John Mickow, principal, Flad & Associates. “McCarthy's team spirit and participation helped to make this project a success.” ARCHITECT: Flad & Associates, San Francisco.

“Safety is of supreme importance on this job. We're CONFIDENT that McCarthy's plan will create an environment that keeps the site and our students, faculty and staff safe.”

— Adele Vanarsdale, senior project manager, Cal Poly Pomona

Mobilizing on site in February, McCarthy soon begins construction on a $30.9 million, six-level, 735,000-square-foot parking structure at Cal Poly Pomona. The long span, post-tensioned, cast-in-place 2,378-car parking facility will require a precast concrete driven pile foundation system. “McCarthy clearly has their finger on the pulse of the Southern California parking structure market, and then backed it up by being very well prepared at the precon meetings,” said Cal Poly's Adele Vanarsdale. When complete in the summer of 2006, the structure will feature wire mesh infill screens, aluminum/glass windows at the elevator towers, plus a separate 15,000-square-foot, two-story, steel-framed public safety building for the University Police and Parking/Transportation Services. ARCHITECT: Field Devereaux Architects & Engineers, Los Angeles.

“This project could not have been accomplished without McCarthy. Their team has been EXTRAORDINARY to work with.”

— Debbie Reaves, nurse manager, Scottsdale Healthcare

The completion of Scottsdale Healthcare Osborn's Emergency Trauma Center and ICU/SCU Expansion provides patients, staff and visitors with 75,000 square feet of new and 10,000 square feet of renovated hospital space. The new Level I trauma center is more than four times larger than the existing center and is able to treat as many as 100,000 patients each year. In addition, a new rooftop helipad is now capable of handling three helicopters simultaneously or one military-type helicopter in the event of a large scale disaster. The construction area covered the entire east side of the hospital including the existing helipad and employee, ambulance and patient entrances. “McCarthy had to complete this project without disrupting hospital operations,” said Scottsdale Healthcare's Debbie Reaves. “By working seamlessly with our staff, they were able to successfully achieve this.” This included developing and sequencing more than 12 individual detours to provide continuous access at all four hospital entrances. ARCHITECT: NTD-Stichler, Phoenix.

“McCarthy's project team was on top of everything from day one and their WILLINGNESS to be a part of the team resulted in our mutual success.”

— Don Mills, senior vice president, Koll Development Company

Built in less than a year, Sally Beauty Company's new Corporate Support Center stands testament to what can happen when the design, construction and client teams are all on the same page. The $14.9 million, 197,794-square-foot shell office building's concrete frame was cast-in-place in three months (with the work being self-performed by McCarthy), and the building's exterior façade (consisting of 65,000 square feet of a two-tone architectural pre-cast panel finish, along with 388 punch windows and a complex curtainwall system) were also completed in an accelerated timeframe. “We were going fast, but everyone was impressed with McCarthy's commitment to safety. More than 175,000 manhours were worked without a single lost-time accident,” said Koll Development's Don Mills. A unique challenge on the project was the facility's entry canopy, which appears to float over the main entrance doors. The self-supporting, cantilevered concrete canopy required McCarthy to design innovative ways to form and place the unique “baseball cap” element. ARCHITECT: Page Southerland Page, Dallas.

“The on-site staff is EXTREMELY KNOWLEDGEABLE. Each staff member was hand selected for their area of expertise.”

— Waldo Romero, service area director, Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center

The finishing touches are being applied to Providence Saint Joseph's new seven-story medical tower, a phased project that included demolishing an existing structure, renovating an adjacent building and constructing a tunnel below existing facilities for utilities. The $77.2 million, 204,000-square-foot facility will house a new surgery wing, an obstetrics unit, neonatal and regular ICUs, imaging and laboratory areas, and 128 private patient rooms. Much of the new tower's concrete work was self-performed by McCarthy, with a structural steel moment building frame being used. The most challenging aspect of the job was the utility tunnel. “Expectations were established early on; therefore, there were no surprises,” commented the hospital's Waldo Romero. The building will allow the medical center to meet new state-mandated structural seismic codes that become effective in 2008. ARCHITECT: SmithGroup, Los Angeles.

“McCarthy is very knowledgeable about the UNIQUE requirements of building on a university campus.”

— Ron Richardson, associate vice president for facilities management, California State University, Sacramento

McCarthy is putting the finishing touches on its fourth project for California State University, Sacramento. The $17.3 million Academic Information Resource Center will serve as the university's technology hub, providing student service facilities including: interactive learning labs, 24-hour student computer labs, video studios and classrooms, study areas and facilities for a growing number of distance education offerings. The 100,000-square-foot, four-story facility will also serve as the main data center and telecom switch and contain departmental offices. Featuring raised access floors throughout usually only found in commercial data centers, the building provides flexibility for future space modifications. The access floor also doubles as a fresh air supply plenum. “We have become very familiar with McCarthy's responsive, customer-service approach from work on prior projects,” explained Ron Richardson, associate vice president for facilities management with the University. “We faced a unique challenge on this project following record rainfall in Sacramento. McCarthy did a fantastic job in minimizing potential water damage and keeping the project moving.” ARCHITECT: Dreyfus + Blackford Architects, Sacramento.