Concrete

An aerial view of the new Cordes Lake Bridge over I-17 showing the recent installation of the precast concrete girders.

Sundt and joint venture partner Vastco, Inc., are reconstructing Arizona’s busy Cordes Junction traffic interchange at Interstate 17 (I-17) and State Route 69 (SR 69), about 65 miles north of downtown Phoenix. The 50-year-old interchange is used by approximately 40,000 vehicles per day, most of which are just passing through on their way to smaller towns in northern Arizona.

In order to alleviate congestion and improve safety, the Heavy Civil project will:

• create two separate interchanges: one that has a high-speed off-ramp from northbound I-17 to northbound SR 69 for through traffic, and a diamond interchange that has a system of on- and off-ramps designed for slower, local traffic;
• realign, widen and pave several local streets associated with the interchange;
• construct seven new bridges, including one of Sundt’s specialties: a post-tensioned, cast-in-place concrete structure that will be the most challenging aspect of the project. In order to avoid road closures, it will be built over live traffic on I-17. Vastco/Sundt’s expertise with this kind of road and bridge construction is a major reason the team was chosen for the job.

The $51 million, Construction Manager at Risk project will be complete in the summer of 2013.

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Sundt’s crews are excavating for the drainage structures that will be incorporated into the new C-130 parking apron. Grading work, also for the apron, is shown on the right.

Sundt’s current work at Cannon Air Force Base near Clovis, N.M., is a great example of why experience matters. The $23 million heavy civil project involves building a new parking apron and taxiway for the C-130 gunship aircraft – plus extensive drainage facilities – in just 365 calendar days. As if that weren’t challenging enough, the site is in close proximity to an active runway and “arm / de-arm pad” where arriving planes are armed and de-armed with live ammunition – operations that necessarily take priority over construction and can bring the team’s activities to a halt. There are also five other contractors on site to work around and coordinate with.

“One of the main reasons Sundt was selected for the job is our experience performing military airfield paving and similar work for the federal government,” explains Project Manager Dominic Mascia. “There are about 55 pages of specifications for the concrete paving alone – covering batching and placing the concrete to the quality checks which include thickness, smoothness, strength, etc. It takes a lot to get a quality end product, which not every contractor understands. Poor quality work can lead to early and unscheduled maintenance and other more serious problems that can be both expensive and dangerous. We also have a lot of experience working in high-security military environments.”

Sundt’s ability to perform more than half of the project with its own crews offers another advantage. “We’re self-performing the earthwork, the installation of the underground utilities (storm drain and water line), the box culverts and other drainage structures, and the concrete paving,” Mascia continued. “Quality is the ultimate goal. Experience, plus self-performing a large part of the work, is a proven way to reach it.”

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A view of the pedestrian bridge at Fountainhead Office Plaza, which spans 12 acres and includes nearly half a million square feet of leasable office space

Fountainhead Office Plaza, recently completed by Sundt in metro Phoenix, is an inspiring success story for these difficult economic times. As commercial building was at a virtual standstill throughout the Phoenix area, the Fountainhead project drew attention for its ambitious scope that included a large amount of premium, leasable office space. The project is 100 percent leased by a single tenant – the University of Phoenix – for 20 years.

Sundt’s contract included demolition of three existing buildings and associated parking areas, reconfiguration of a lake, the construction of one 10-story building and one six-story building totaling 493,661 square feet, and an above-grade parking structure that accommodates 2,084 vehicles. Sundt also performed the project’s tenant improvements.

Our team faced a number of challenges such as asbestos abatement in the existing buildings before they were demolished, an aggressive schedule, and having to reconfigure the existing lake to make room for the building pads. The project included approximately 30,000 cubic yards of concrete work, which was performed by Sundt’s own crews.

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