Project Management, Construction Management, & Project Controls Archives - Page 8 of 11

Otak Completes ODOT Project to Repair and Upgrade Bad Banks Culvert

Lying beneath fifty-feet of fill and one of Oregon’s major recreational highways, was an ailing 75-year old concrete culvert with a history of operation and maintenance problems. The culvert in question funnels the Bad Banks Creek underneath Oregon State Route 22 about four miles east of Gates, Oregon. Working with the Oregon Department of Transportation, Otak’s hydraulics engineering team led a design and construction project to repair damage to the 300 foot-long culvert, improve stream flow and provide safer access for ODOT inspection and maintenance crews and equipment.

The Bad Banks Creek culvert at HWY 22 was subject to abrasion from sediment flowing in the stream channel, which over time, had worn down the concrete culvert and exposed the rebar reinforcement. The culvert also presented various safety issues for ODOT inspection and maintenance crews as it was difficult to access either end of the culvert due to steep slopes and lack of space to operate. While extending the life of the culvert was a priority, the other significant part of the project was to improve access for long-term maintenance.

Otak was hired by ODOT in May of 2019 to provide design services for repairs to the culvert to extend its service life and to modify the culvert entrance to improve access for long-term operation and maintenance of the culvert. Otak was then hired to provide construction administration, engineering, and inspection services during construction, which began in June 2020.

Extending the life of the culvert made sense—the typical life-span of concrete reinforced culverts is 75-100 years and it would have been very expensive to replace. As Otak Project Manager and Principal Kevin Timmins, states, “if the culvert ever does get replaced it will likely be with a bridge.” Rather than a costly bridge project with major disruptions to traffic along HWY 22, ODOT was able to get money and permits to make repairs and modifications and chose to work with Otak on a design to prolong the life of the culvert while also addressing the safety and access issues.

To mitigate the effects of streamflow and sediment abrasion, the culvert was lined with six inches of new concrete. The upstream end of the culvert was also extended, a more gradual transition into the culvert was added for better streamflow, and debris fins were installed at the upstream end to catch large debris so it doesn’t enter the culvert. The modifications had the added benefit of allowing the maintenance access road to come further down. As Kevin explains, “previously the access road just stopped at a steep vertical drop off into the culvert. By extending the culvert we were able to bring the road down and across the top of the culvert to the other side where we were able to create a level area where ODOT will be able to park an excavator and reach upstream of the debris fins in the event they need to be able to clear debris in front of the culvert.”

Ten days before substantial completion in September of 2020, the Beechie Creek fire burned through the construction site, scorching the forest vegetation, melting the stream bypass system, and causing damage to a portion of the freshly poured concrete. Otak has been working with the ODOT to manage the response at this site, including project closeout and plans for additional site stabilization and concrete repairs to be constructed in 2021.

“One of the reasons we were excited to work on this project was the fact that we were already familiar with the site,” Kevin stated, “and that our water resource team has a lot of experience in working in streams. They understand the hydraulic conditions, how to manage streamflow during construction, how to accommodate construction access.” This project was an opportunity for Otak’s hydraulics team, who possess deep knowledge and capacity for hydraulic engineering, to work in tandem with Otak’s structural team. Additionally, Otak has experience working on projects in environmentally sensitive areas, and mitigating the environmental impact during construction was a priority and requirement of the state.

In the end, the culvert repairs have staved off a costly bridge replacement by extending the life of the culvert and ODOT inspection and maintenance staff now have better and safer access to the culvert.

Shawn Klinkner Fosters Trust and Transparency in Teams

Over the past several years, DAY CPM has been working as the owner’s representative overseeing three expansion projects for the Vancouver Clinic in Washington. Leading the charge has been Shawn Klinkner, market sector leader for health care. Shawn’s guidance and care with both his clients and teams have helped to bring the first two of the projects to ribbon-cutting well before the anticipated deadline and under budget.

While Shawn acknowledges that the success of these two projects is a result of the team’s efforts, he is quick to point out that the role of the owner’s representative sets an important tone for the project. Shawn and the DAY CPM team set a precedent for upholding the values of trust, collaboration, and transparency and exercised that amongst team members and the client to achieve these outcomes.

Shawn’s leadership skills were built from his prior experience with non-profit management and healthcare administration. He credits that work with providing him a sense of mission and an understanding of the operations and dynamics that impact healthcare facilities—an understanding that is unique among owners’ representatives who usually come from backgrounds in engineering, design, or construction. Shawn understands the relationship of how the expansion of an organization’s mission in the built environment can create positive change for medical staff, providers, and the patients they serve.

The Vancouver Clinic expansions were a perfect platform for Shawn’s skills. Under his supportive leadership, DAY CPM staff, with the project team, opened the Ridgefield clinic three weeks early and $3M under total project budget. The Camas clinic, the latest expansion of Vancouver Clinic in the Columbia Palisades development, opened in mid-October, five weeks early, and is anticipated to come in $2.3M under total project budget. The Camas expansion was completed under COVID restrictions yet there were no delays, which Shawn credits to the high functioning dynamic of the project team that included DAY CPM, Andersen Construction, ZGF Architects, and Andersen Construction trade partners. Shawn’s role has predominantly been program oversight for the Vancouver Clinic projects and serving in an advisory capacity to the Vancouver Clinic executive team for the delivery of their new expansion sites.

Shawn works intentionally to ensure he builds a positive team culture so that opportunities to bring value to clients are actualized, risks are identified and managed, and project scope is delivered on time and under budget. Achieving these goals requires thoughtful leadership and close coordination with clients to ensure that decision-making is timely, problem-solving is proactive, and barriers to progress are removed so the project team can do its best work.

“A client receives the best engagement from a project team that is collaborating and innovating in service to them. This drives how the day-to-day work happens and I find that project teams operating at that caliber do more and save more, handle risks better, and innovate around challenges more nimbly,” Shawn said.

Shawn’s leadership philosophy has resonated strongly with the values and vision within DAY CPM/Otak, which is utilizing its market sector leaders to launch mentoring, coaching, and development initiatives and programs for role-based competency assessment and training of staff. Shawn has been a key voice in these initiatives as well as leading efforts to improve the recruitment and onboarding process for the division. “Shawn embodies servant leadership: he is respectful, very intentional, present, and is always seeking to support/serve. These qualities inspire stronger relationships and higher levels of service to our clients and within our projects and project teams,” Cathy Kraus, project manager said.

Shawn has also been spearheading the integration of Gallup’s CliftonStrengths program into the DAY CPM culture. The program helps identify a person’s strengths and establishes a medium through which companies can engage their staff around what they do best. Through strengths-based coaching, Shawn provides vision for how staff’s strengths relate to their roles and scope of work and he facilitates an understanding of how their core strengths influence their personal communication and engagement styles. This lays the groundwork for successful team dynamics, and in turn, successful projects.

The healthcare industry is built around the idea of patient care and a positive bedside manner. With Shawn at the helm of construction projects within this sector, that people-first goal starts from the ground up.

DAY CPM Tackles Once in 100-Year School Addition and Renovation

Schools are the center of communities for the students who attend, the parents who rely on a safe place for education, and for others who simply want to see their tax dollars put to good use. With such high visibility and expectation of excellence, any project involving a school brings a special set of challenges.

DAY CPM has developed a recipe for success in working with school districts throughout Oregon to complete projects for K-12 schools. Reflective of this is its current role as Bond Program Manager for the Nestucca Valley School District’s 2018 Bond Program.

DAY CPM had a previous working relationship with the school district. The manager of the District’s last bond project, more than 10 years ago, is now a DAY CPM employee. The company also has a strong connection with the DLR Group which was chosen as the architect and design firm for the Nestucca project. To cement the award of the contract, Brian Hardebeck, senior project manager, shared during the Board interview, how his rural, farm background could bring a keener understanding of the needs of a rural community. “You don’t get opportunities if you don’t ask. We made our points, showing we had the right team, the level of services, and the personnel to kick us over the top, and asked them for the job” he said. The board agreed and appreciated that DAY CPM was the only company to ask directly to do the work.

The scope of the job is wide from design through construction, budget, and procurement, to quality control, and has included numerous obstacles that come from working in a normal rural location. Before considering the 1953 era school building itself, the team first had to address the need to improve utilities on the site. The only public utilities serving the school are electricity and broadband cable internet. There is no natural gas service leaving propane tanks as the fuel of choice, and with no public sewer, on-site septic and leach fields had to be expanded significantly to handle wastewater.

The potable water system is from on-site wells with high mineral content. Water coming from the old pipes met EPA drinkable water standards but was orange and was distasteful to drink—facts that proved to be the deciding factor for public approval of the bond. A new well was added along with new piping. Advanced filtration and treatment were necessitated requiring extensive work with the DEQ and the OHA to gain approvals.

In addition, a 60,000 gallon underground firewater storage facility had to be incorporated to cover the fire-fighting needs for the expanded facility. This system is also available for the Fire Department to draft from to fill tanker trucks with water to fight local community fires. Stormwater management will be controlled through the installation of management ponds covering nearly one acre.

The last infrastructure hurdle is to provide stable, affordable, internet service to residents for distance learning. Nearly 40% of students in the district did not have broadband connectivity. DAY CPM assisted the District in integrating its grassroots, non-bond funded, Tillamook County network of towers, repeaters, and in-home hot spots into the new systems at the K-8 school. The new infrastructure will deliver expanded internet service at a significantly lower cost to rural homesites. The end result is that 99.8% of students will have access when completed.

“This was a once in a 100-year new build project for the district. They have been through so much this year that we are happy our services could relieve them from having to do the heavy lifting of construction management too. We allowed them to concentrate on what they do best— educate—while we managed the improvements with our CM/GC Contractor, O’Brien Construction,” Brian said.

The new facility will add 38,000 gsf to the existing 33,000 gsf allowing the school to expand from K-5 to K-8 and serve 380 students. Filling that space will be a double gymnasium, library and media center, music space, administration areas, and a redesign and expansion of both the commons/cafeteria and classroom areas. The plans are for an open flexible design to foster community use and accessibility. The building is above the tsunami impact zone and meets seismic code so it will also serve as an emergency center for the community.

The project includes planned phased occupancies which started in June 2019. The project team has been able to take advantage of the forced closing of the school, due to COVID-19 protocols, to accelerate the start of the building renovations. The Certificate of Occupancy has been issued and administrators are expected to move back into the school in mid-December. The new addition is tracking for an April 2021 completion.

Overall, the project is four and a half months ahead of the original schedule. The re-sequenced schedule has saved the District money enabling it to expand the scope of the bond projects to replace an aging Career Technical Education (CTE) center at the high school campus among other options. The new CTE center will be housed in a pre-engineered metal building that meets code and will allow for expanded offerings for the community.

“This project will create a facility that is the heart of the Nestucca Valley community. As the largest and safest structure in south Tillamook Couty our community will use this facility not only as an educational building but a community event resource. I am very proud of how this project is turning out and confident that it will serve the community well for the next 70 years,” said Misty Wharton, Nestucca Valley School District Superintendent.

DJC Names Sarah Oaks 2020 Phenom

DAY CPM and Otak are thrilled to share that the Daily Journal of Commerce (DJC) has named Sarah Oaks, Operations Manager for DAY CPM, as a 2020 Phenom under their Phenoms & Icons Award. The award honors long-time leaders and up-and-coming professionals in the building industry who are expected to share the future of architecture, engineering, construction, development, transportation, energy, and sustainability in the region.

Sarah was nominated by her peers for not only her significant contributions in her day-to-day work, where she is responsible for overseeing the entire construction and project management division with its 60 employees, but for her efforts that go beyond.

Of significance is her creation of the mentorship program for DAY CPM. Henry Alaman, Senior Vice President notes,

“Through this mentorship program, she has come to understand each employee’s responsibilities within the division, their strengths and weaknesses, where the employee can execute their strengths to their advantage, and how all employees can simultaneously work together. Her knowledge has been invaluable for our implementation of better practices as a division.”

Sarah recognizes and empowers all staff to share their expertise with others through training and peer development. In particular, she is a leader for her female colleagues championing practices of equity and inclusion by working to bring visibility to the contributions of others, and advance promotion opportunities and pay equity within the division.

Combining her skills at identifying and pushing forward best management practices to lead the work of her division, with her unfailing support of her colleagues made Sarah an obvious choice to her nominators who included Henry Alaman, Shawn Klinker, Healthcare Market Sector Leader, and Jon Nyone, International Market Sector Leader for DAY CPM.

Sarah will be honored at the virtual Phenoms & Icons Award Event to be held on Thursday, December 17 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Cathy Kraus Leads Teams To Deliver Award-Winning Projects

Every construction project starts with a concept, moves into a plan, and eventually comes to life. To best orchestrate the shifts from idea to construction to operable building requires a highly collaborative team that truly wants to serve the project, each other, and the client. Successful teams rely on leaders who create a safe environment where members can safely share their ideas, questions, and challenges and work together to deliver award-winning projects.

For the past four years, Otak and DAY CPM have relied on Cathy Kraus, project manager and owner’s representative, to build and lead projects and teams that ensure client wishes are met, or often exceeded, and projects come together flawlessly. “Cathy is one of the most remarkable listeners I know. She takes in everything said and unsaid with a sincere interest and intentionality that leaves others feeling truly heard, which is invaluable in building client and team relationships,” said Sarah Oaks, operations manager at DAY CPM.

While she is a licensed architect and started her career in that realm, Cathy later turned to project management and found her niche. “I love architecture because it allows for the creation of spaces and utilizes an intriguing mixture of art and science. And I found I have a greater opportunity to positively impact projects when I work closely with the owner. I love supporting the design team’s vision and being an advocate for both the project and for the owner,” Cathy explained.

Her skills have been utilized over the past few years on a series of expansion projects for the Vancouver Clinic, completing Ridgefield and Camas, and beginning work on Salmon Creek. Cathy and her project team brought in the Camas clinic, under budget, and more than five weeks ahead of schedule.

A highlight of her experiences with the clinic projects was witnessing the LEAN Integrated Design Events with Vancouver Clinic, ZGF Architects, and Andersen Construction. A facilitator brought together all the clinical staff and project principals to identify the daily workflows and the means to make movement, and therefore each job, more efficient. Participants were given a ball of yarn to “record” their steps across their routine services for an ambulatory surgical center. The yarn was measured to see how far everyone walked and where workflows could be made more efficient and time and steps could be shaved off. Armed with this information, the design team adjusted department layouts and constructed mockups that everyone could experience and suggest further changes to improve patient care and bring more cost efficiencies to the clinic.

The Vancouver Clinic’s commitment to this early planning process and a talented design-build team has resulted in recognition for both of Vancouver Clinic’s newest Ridgefield and Camas clinics, which have both received Vancouver Business Journal’s “Top Project” awards (2019 and 2020, respectively). Additionally, the Ridgefield clinic is a DJC “Top Project” award finalist for 2019.

Cathy is quick to say that successes are truly team efforts and the real winner is the client and the communities these new clinics will serve. She also believes that by effectively serving the client, the team, and the overall project, she automatically serves Otak, helping the firm to grow and prosper. Otak is fortunate that she relishes her role in each part.

DAY CPM Hired As Owner’s Representative for Multiple School District Projects

DAY CPM, a division of Otak, has established an ongoing working relationship with school districts throughout Oregon and a strong track record of completed projects for K-12 schools. The past two years, in particular, have included a number of schools projects of note including:

The Judson Middle School remodel and expansion for the Salem Keizer School District
Construction of a new Seaside High and Middle School, renovations and seismic upgrades to Seaside Elementary School.
Nestucca Valley School District K-8 conversion
Renovations and safety improvements for the eight schools in the Central Point School District
Technology, seismic, security and safety upgrades, repairs, and expansions throughout the Tigard-Tualatin School District
Conversions, renovations, expansions, and new construction within the North Clackamas School District

These projects are in large part due to the passage of various bond measures within the districts in 2016, 2018, and 2019. DAY CPM, acting as the owner’s representative on behalf of the respective districts is helping to guide these projects through to successful completion. While some projects will be ongoing, others are on track to be completed ahead of schedule this year, or in early 2021. The Nestucca Valley School District project, for example, was started in June of 2019 and, despite COVID challenges, is 4.5 months ahead of the original project schedule, according to senior project manager, Brian Hardebeck.

DAY CPM’s experience with coastal projects has been another key factor in their work with the Seaside School District, which is committed to the safety of school children and moving the schools out of the Tsunami zone. Jim Henry, senior project manager, has been actively involved in various projects for the district, drawing on the DAY CPM team’s experience in wetland mitigation and working with the Army Corp of Engineers and Oregon Division of State Lands Cooperative. “One of the advantages of being a multidisciplinary firm is the breadth of knowledge and expertise we can offer to help guide projects through well-informed decision making,” Jim asserts.

The firm has also provided project management and owner’s representative services on several campus projects for some of Oregon’s colleges and universities including Portland Community College, Oregon Health Sciences University, and Oregon Coast Community College. Henry Alaman, Sr. VP at DAY CPM states, “we are proud to partner with our clients in support of projects that serve our community.”

OAME Honors Otak and DAY CPM With Construction Company Award of the Year

The Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs (OAME) has selected DAY CPM, a division of Otak, as Construction Company of the Year. This award recognizes the commitment and advancement Day CPM and Otak have achieved in providing meaningful opportunities to minority, women, POC, and MWESBSDV, businesses, and employees. DAY CPM’s strong partnership with OAME to achieve its mission to promote and develop entrepreneurship and economic development for ethnic minorities in Oregon and SW Washington is another factor that stood out in an industry of committed peers.

Formed in 1987, OAME is a non-profit, tax-exempt, organization whose 850 members include entrepreneurs, public agencies, large businesses, and partner non-profits. The organization provides free technical assistance and business counseling and has the overarching goal of eliminating discrimination and racism under its motto “Everybody’s In, Nobody’s Out.”

DAY CPM has long recognized that construction is a sector ripe with opportunity for minorities and women to grow into industry leaders. Otak has always been driven to create inclusive communities in the projects it undertakes and is proud to be recognized for creating a business community that is also inclusive. We show the values we hold in our own workplace are the same as those we take to our work.

The award was presented during OAME’s 32nd Annual Conference, entitled “Diversity is Practiced” held virtually on Thursday, October 8.

Creekside Community High School

A school bond program for Tigard-Tualatin School District created the opportunity to make improvement to its facilities, including a new addition to Creekside Community High School. A projected surplus in annual energy savings of $13,000 is anticipated to offset the expanded use of the existing buildings onsite.

Leveraging a School Bond for a Unique, Net Zero K-12 Building

Formerly the Durham Education Center, the updates offer a central commons and cafeteria with a kitchen accessible to instructional programs. A new centralized main office with breakout rooms for collaboration between students and staff, outdoor recreation space, science classroom, and maker space to enhance the STEM program. One of the most unique aspects of the building’s design is that it has been developed to be one of the first fully Net Zero K-12 education buildings in the state. Students will have an opportunity to learn from the building as a teaching tool and participate in maximizing the building’s performance with access to metrics through an “energy dashboard” and weather station in the school’s commons.

Vancouver Clinic

With over 121,000 square-feet added across a three-site expansion, the Vancouver Clinic would grow its ability to provide healthcare services for communities across Southwest Washington. Close coordination with city and agency stakeholders helped navigate complex site challenges and a compressed schedule to completion ahead of schedule and under budget. As owner’s representative, Otak managed project delivery in the development of the new multi-specialty medical facilities.

Managing An Integrated Design Approach to Deliver a Multi-Site Healthcare Facility Expansion

Utilizing a Lean Integrated Design / Design Build approach, the Vancouver Clinic expansion designed all three facilities concurrently. The design processes were augmented by full-scale mock-ups to confirm functionality while leveraging the experiences of clinical staff and medical consultants to prioritize patient care with optimal clinic workflows. An established governance process including the Vancouver Clinic’s executive sponsorship team and two physician board structures led to efficient approvals while maintaining a high degree of integration with Vancouver Clinic operational leadership. In providing a full scope of owner’s representation across each expansion, the Otak team managed planning and design, medical equipment coordination, construction management, as well as move in and close out. For the Salmon Creek expansion, the team guided the project through various jurisdictional approval processes, including a full Certificate of Need application in Washington state. After a change in financing brought on by the pandemic, the team’s role shifted to become a strategic advisor through the completion of construction. This effort helped the client convert the project from an owner financed and constructed project to a turn-key build-to-suit with Pacific Medical Buildings, retaining all original design-build team members.

APWA Names Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex Project of the Year

The Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex (RORC), an ambitious 53-acre outdoor facility for sports, recreation, and education has received the APWA-Washington Chapter Project of the Year Award. Hired as the Construction Manager and Owner’s Rep for the City of Ridgefield and the Ridgefield School District, Otak guided the $22M project to successful completion in the Spring of 2019.

Jointly owned by the City and the School District, the RORC was built in conjunction with a new Intermediate and Middle School campus. The partnership between the city and the school district offered a tremendous opportunity for the community to develop a new recreation complex while also saving millions of dollars on land acquisition, road improvements, and recreational and community space infrastructure.

The RORC features an innovative two-floor Community Building with concessions, kitchen, and meeting facilities; six multipurpose sports fields; a playground and trails; and a large plaza with connections for food and concessions carts and trucks. The RORC project is the first installation of Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) in Clark County. From supporting beams to the roof structure itself, the Community Building is an architect’s and structural engineer’s dream, showcasing the strength, durability, and architectural look and feel of CLT from both inside and outside of the Community Building.

Continuous and comprehensive communication and cooperation were key to completing the project. In addition to the complex design, concurrent construction, utility projects, frontage improvements, site work, and community-building efforts, all required continuous coordination between a multitude of contractors, community schedules, and events—over the past two years the site hosted the annual Ridgefield Oktoberfest and Experience Ridgefield, together, attracting as many as 10,000 visitors! The complex is also home to the Ridgefield Raptors, a West Coast League baseball team. During construction, project partners decided they wanted to add something else to set the RORC apart from others: a rollup door on the second floor overlooking Field 1, so Raptor fans would be able to “hear the crack of the bat” during baseball games.

Consideration was also given to protecting and preserving the surrounding natural wetlands. Measures were taken to protect the environment, as well as private property, property access, and utility service. As the construction manager and owner’s rep, Otak’s team was in continuous contact with utilities, contractors, and property owners when sensitive and potentially disruptive construction phases were underway, including utility cutovers, paving, and restoration.

Under the leadership of Tim Leavitt, PE, CESCL; and Chuck Green, PE, Otak guided the project through to completion on time and on budget providing construction engineering expertise, as well as construction management, inspections, and design review and support. Additional Otak team members included Mike Hale, Nick Redinger, Kyle Farnsworth, and Robert Dethlefs, PE.

Projects like the Ridgefield Complex are not only representative of Otak’s expertise in multi-disciplinary work, but also represent the community and environmental stewardship that have become Otak hallmarks. The RORC is a prime example of a project that promotes outdoor recreation, community cohesion through events, healthier lifestyles, and improved quality of life.

To read more about this project, click here.

Photos Courtesy: Jason Rayne, Rayne Studios