The work being done at Fort Lewis will address the growth it has experienced.

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Fort Lewis in Washington state is a very busy place these days. First, it has about a dozen projects underway to accommodate population growth it has experienced since 2006. Plus, it is preparing for another smaller increase in troops over the next several years due to the Base Closure and Realignment process, soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, and closing overseas bases, says Resident Engineer George Henry, who serves as the lead construction manager for all U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projects in Fort Lewis. In all – for the current fiscal year – Fort Lewis has $300 million worth of construction in progress.    

The three major projects underway in Fort Lewis are a new $23 million barracks being constructed by MW Builders of Texas; and the $86 million Army Growth Complex and the $72 million Support Battalion, both being completed by M.A. Mortenson Construction. All three projects are scheduled to be completed next spring. Fort Lewis had 21,700 active duty personnel on-site in 2006, and that number increased to 28,700 in 2008. There are currently 31,000 soldiers in Fort Lewis, and that number is expected to increase to 31,800 by 2012. The population increase is due to the addition of a new Stryker Brigade, as well as other new brigades, explains Catherine Casuso from the Fort Lewis Public Affairs office. Some of the units on the base also got larger, she adds.   

These projects will replace some of the World War II and post-World War II facilities used today, Henry says. They will also allow the base to train soldiers to use new fighting vehicles, such as the Joint Strike Fighter. “We’ll also be upgrading barracks so troops don’t have to share a room,” Henry adds.   

All projects will meet LEED silver requirements – a Department of Defense (DOD) mandate. “DOD-wide, we’re very pro-energy and energy savings,” he says. “We don’t see that in the private sector. We think long-term.”   

Most importantly, Henry adds, the projects at Fort Lewis will allow the Army and DOD to carry out their mission to defend the American people more efficiently.    

“We’re proud about the work we’re doing here,” Henry says. “It’s a very important mission the Army and DOD [have]. We’ll have a better facility to prepare for war. We are proud of our support.”

Army Growth Complex
The scope of the $86 million Army Growth Complex includes designing and constructing 11 buildings – totaling 253,000 square feet – on six different sites on Fort Lewis, M.A. Mortenson Senior Project Manager Colby Robinson says. The facilities include one brigade headquarters, a two-story administration office, four battalion headquarters, four company operation facilities and one telecommunications remote switching unit building.    

Fort Lewis is split by I-5, and half the project is being completed on each side. The entire project is expected to be completed by April 2010, and the company is currently installing structural steel, working on the enclosure systems, and performing mechanical and electrical rough-ins on all the facilities.    

Because the project is so spread out, the company has a 33-person staff on site, which includes six superintendents and four quality control managers, as well as project engineers and safety personnel. “Because we have multiple sites and teams, the biggest challenges are communication and continuity in all directions,” he says.   

“Our staffing is split to handle all the buildings,” Robinson explains. “We’ve also got two trailer complexes, one on each side [of I-5]. We’ve split into two, so there are roughly 16 [staff members] on one side and 17 on another. From there, we disperse and manage each site. We cover a lot more ground that way vs. one hub. It makes communication and coordination and extra challenges easier to manage.”

Project Challenges
At the beginning of the project, Mortenson encountered some unexploded ordnances (UXOs). “We worked with the Corps of Engineers to get those removed so construction can continue,” Robinson says. “It causes the site to be unproductive because it shuts everything down.”   

The UXOs have to be removed immediately for safety reasons, Robinson explains. “There is a chance [they could go off],” Robinson explains. UXOs were only found a few times on-site, he adds. “Initially, it delayed the project, but through acceleration of certain construction trades, we were able to gain time or make up time.”  

The Army Growth Complex is required to meet LEED silver requirements, he notes. The project will utilize building materials such as Forest Stewardship Council-certified wood, recycled materials and low-voc emitting paints and adhesives, Robinson says. “For every tree we have removed, we must plant six in its place,” he adds, “We will plant about 637 trees total by the time the project is complete [on Fort Lewis].”

Support Battalion Complex
Mortenson is also constructing the Support Battalion Complex, which is six buildings:

• A two-story battalion headquarters facility with three consolidated company operations facilities attached. Each company operations facility contains six isolated team rooms where special forces teams train, prepare and deploy on missions;
• A maritime operations facility where maritime vehicles and scuba gear is repaired and recharged;
• A two-story ground support battalion and group service support company headquarters building with a company operations facility below;
• A dual occupant tactical equipment maintenance facility with 14 repair stations, two administrative sections, and a small engines repair bay; and
• Two warehouses for hazardous material storage and bulk lube oil storage.
  

The project also includes over half-million square feet of six-inch concrete hardstand paving for parking all the military vehicles used by this Special Forces Group, Mortenson Project Manager Steve Knighton says. It is scheduled to be completed by June 2010.   

The $72 million project equals about 228,000 square feet of building space and is built to the DOD Anti-Terrorism and Force Protection requirements. Mortenson is the design/builder of the project, and RSP Architects is the engineer/architect. The project is being built adjacent to the Old Madigan hospital historical site and includes a vegetative barrier to separate the new buildings from the historical area.

Barracks Project
MW Builders of Texas is taking the lead on the $23 million barracks project in Fort Lewis, which includes three barracks buildings for a total of 116,000 square feet. The buildings will encompass 150 units total for 300 men. Each unit will have a full laundry and kitchen area, one bathroom and two bedrooms.   

Each building will also have a visitor’s center, mail room, courtesy phones and work areas, MW Builders Project Manager Aaron Hoelscher says. The project’s scope also includes the sidewalks and landscaping near the buildings, he says.   

The company is currently performing the interior finishes and drywall on one building, completing the roofing on the second building and framing the structure of the third building. Vet Industrial, another general contractor, is constructing the parking lot, horseshoe pit, volleyball court, lawnmower storage and amphitheater. The project is expected to be completed in April 2010.    

MW Builders is the design/builder for the project. In August 2008, the company was awarded a Multiple Award Task Order Contract (MATOC), which encompasses future barracks projects in the northwestern United States, Hoelscher says. MATOC is comprised of three general contractors, and this was the first project MW won under that contract.    

“Our company has built similar [facilities] for the military, but never one built out of wood or a garden-style apartment style,” Hoelscher says. “In the private sector, we have constructed apartments, but not quite to this extreme.   

“The main challenge we faced – being from Texas – is that it rained everyday during the foundation portion,” Hoelscher says. “But we just worked through it. It slowed us down, but we were able to get it done. Everyone worked through the rain.    

“It delayed the initial portion of the project, but we were able to overcome that delay in the framing portion,” he adds. “We worked weekends and longer hours.”

Highly Resistant
Wood was the primary material on the project, Hoelscher says. This project used about 1 million board feet of Douglas Fir. “It’s regionally close,” he explains. “Normally, wood is faster than metal construction and our design [set itself apart] from the other bidders because we went with wood and they went with metal.” However, the project also used a lot of steel because the buildings have to meet a progressive collapse requirement. “If there was an explosion from a missile that hit a part of the building, the rest of the building would have to stand,” he explains. “That’s pretty hard to do with wood.   

“There is a lot of steel strapping,” he adds. “It’s a combination of steel reinforced in the buildings, and there is quite a bit of it (about 48,000 feet). We do use steel frames around the windows for blast resistance.”

LEEDing the Way
To comply with the DOD mandate and meet LEED silver requirements, Hoelscher says the Barracks project has:

• Diverted 96.3 percent of materials to be recycled;
• A roof with a high solar reflectance index of 53, which exceed LEED’s minimum value of 29 and increases the efficiency of the buildings;
• Incorporated recycling rooms in the facility;
• Sourced 50 percent of its materials from within 500 miles of the project site;
• Used low-emitting materials, natural daylighting, water-efficient plumbing materials and energy-efficient windows; and
• Increased air tightness.
  

“We’re also installing a fluid-applied air barrier for a better building efficiency and air tightness,” he continues. “It provides a self-healing seal around any screws or nails that penetrate it and it’s applied quicker than the standard air barrier. We have to meet the requirements of a [stringent] air tightness test.”       

The stairs were also unique, he adds. “They were pre-cast concrete stair trends,” he explains. “They are stronger and can be replaced if one is damaged down the road.   

“Stairs normally have metal that requires the treads to be placed with concrete,” he explains. “By the time the occupants [move in], the concrete tread is damaged and broken. It’s just unpleasing aesthetically after a year. With precast tread, if anything happens to it, it’s easily popped out and replaced. The other can’t be.”

Dedication and Integrity
Along with the federal government, M.A. Mortenson performs work for a variety of industries, including civic, corporate, education, healthcare, historic renovations, hospitality, international, laboratories, manufacturing and industrial, parking structures, data centers, sport and event centers, as well as water and wastewater treatment facilities. It also specializes in renewable energy and green/sustainable projects.   

Its quality projects are not the only way the company sets itself apart, it stresses. “Mortenson is characterized by our people – honest, hardworking, professional and energetic,” the company says. “Working together, Mortenson team members, through their dedication and integrity, have formed a collaborative relationship with owners, architects, engineers and subcontractors, enhancing the company’s reputation for superior workmanship and performance.”   

In fact, the company’s senior leadership along encompasses almost 300 years of construction experience. “Their knowledge is foundational to the operations of every one of our projects,” it says.   

M.A. Mortenson has stayed successful ever since it was founded in 1954 because it strives to continually meet customers’ expectations and fulfill their needs. “We’re always looking to improve our customer’s experience, so we ask them how we’re doing and what we can do better,” the company says. “At the very beginning of the project, we find out what their specific goals are and check in periodically throughout the life of the project to see whether we’re still on target for achieving those goals. Our No. 1 goal is customer satisfaction.”

Stellar Safety Record
MW Builders of Texas has a diverse portfolio with projects in industries such as the military, government, hotel, hospitality, multifamily housing, senior living, healthcare, correctional, educational, public spaces, industrial and water and wastewater treatment facilities. It is an 100 percent employee-owned firm.   

“[The company] is qualified to meet  [customers’] needs before, during and after construction,” it says. “We are dedicated to providing unparalleled service and performance throughout [their]  design and construction experience. We are dedicated employee-owners, creating a quality construction experience for diverse clientele by providing honesty, fairness and integrity everyday.”   

It prides itself for having quality employees. The company looks for individuals who are dedicated to quality and safety; building business relationships; is a team player; and follows a consistent standard of excellence.    

“Great care is taken in selecting experienced personnel that can fulfill this promise in order to maintain an environment that attracts, develops and retains the best construction professionals in the industry,” the company says.   

MW Builders also takes safety very seriously, the company stresses. “Our employees are our greatest asset, and as such, their safety and the safety of our subcontractor’s employees is our top priority,” the company says. “MW Builders of Texas employs a full-time safety manager who conducts regular audits on each of our projects to ensure that the company’s safety practices are strictly adhered. We are proud of our safety record.”