Special Olympics of Massachusetts
April 6th, 2010 | Project Showcase | Award Winning ICF, CMU construction, cold weather, ICFA, MA, Special Olympics
It’s a great time to highlight a beautiful project that is also a winner of a 2009 ICFA Excellence Award. This is the year the Special Olympics games are being hosted in Nebraska as well. (We are out of Omaha)
Yawkey Sports Training Facility
Columbia Construction Company served as Construction Manager for a new state-of-the-art headquarters, the Yawkey Sports Training Center, for the Special Olympics of Massachusetts (SOMA). Centrally located in Marlborough, MA, the new 20,000 s.f. training facility and athletic fields is located on a five-acre site. This new building houses their executive offices, along with all of their support facilities. In addition, there is 4,000 s.f. of flexible classroom space that will provide a suitable venue for fundraising and banquet functions. The new SOMA headquarters facility will enable the organization to better serve the more than 10,000 athletes, in more than 118 athletic competitions in 26 sports. It will also enable SOMA to consolidate disparate and expensive field operations, and provide top-notch and more frequent training for its growing base of volunteers, coaches and athletes.
ICF design
The design includes a processional walkway leading to a plaza containing a “Hall of Fame”, which will introduce visitors to the unique nature of this facility. As they enter the lobby, further images and interactive displays will reinforce the educational aspects of the organization. ICFs were utilized for the training facility and gymnasium to allow the construction to continue during the harsh winter months of New England. Utilizing ICF allowed Columbia to place concrete all winter and also provide the exterior insulation to install EIFS in the spring.
The Gymnasium is located on the North side of the building and was originally designed with CMU. The Reward ICF system offered a structural wall system with high energy efficiency and low heat loss. In fact the ICF was added to the design plans after CMU was already spec’d. It was apparent as soon as the benefits were understood, this was the way to build. Adjustments were made in the plans and by using the expertise of an experienced installer, a successful project was built.
ICFs Save Time and Reduce Labor Costs
The ICF system offered a structural system that allowed Columbia to remove the columns and perimeter beams. By utilizing ICFs they were able to simplify the construction to one trade, reducing materials and scaling back on extra labor to get the building in use faster. The insulating properties of ICFs also help to keep construction schedules on time, as they were able to continue to work and pour concrete when the weather was not ideal – temperatures typically average under 35 degrees in December and January.
More on the Special Olympics Yawkey Sports Training Facility next post.
