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University of Pennsylvania - Penn Medicine, Ronald O. Perelman Center, Pennovation, New College House West, Hill College House Projects
Project Information
- Project Location:
- Philadelphia, PA
- Status:
- Completed
- Structure Type:
- School / College / University
References
- Owner:
- University of Pennsylvania
- Architect:
- Ballinger, KPMB, KSS and HWKN, Bahlin Jackson Cywinski, Mills + Schnoering
- General Contractor:
- Hunter Roberts, Intech, L.F. Driscoll Company
- Client:
- University of Pennsylvania
Scope Of Work
Penn has a proud tradition of translating knowledge into social-minded action that dates back to it’s founder, Benjamin Franklin. GeoStructures was hired to provide geotechnical engineering and/or constructions inspection and material testing for numerous projects including Penn Medicine at Washington Square, The Perelman Center, Pennovation, New College House and Hill College House.
Penn Medicine at Washington Square
Penn Medicine at Washington Square is a $70 million, 153,000-SF facility, making it one of the largest capital projects in the history of Pennsylvania Hospital. It is a LEED certified building, twelve stories high on top of an already existing eight-story parking structure.
Client: Liberty Property Trust
Architect: Ballinger Architects
Structural Engineer: O’Donnell & Naccarato, Inc.
Construction Manager: L.F. Driscoll Company
Highlights: High-rise building; micro pile foundation, and full inspection services.
GeoStructures was responsible for construction monitoring of the twelve-story LEED certified building on top of an already existing eight-story parking garage, making the entire building twenty stories high to create an outpatient facility that combines medical practices and hospital departments in one location, for interdisciplinary care.
Our services on the project included load testing and inspection of micro piles for the tower crane as well as testing and inspection of concrete, masonry, structural steel, fireproofing, and floor flatness during construction. Pile load testing of the 200-kip capacity micro piles was especially critical to ensure that the rock bond and design capacity were achieved.
The Perelman Center for Political Science and Economics
The University of Pennsylvania has received a $250 million dollar gift from alumnus Ronald O. Perelman to create the Ronald O. Perelman Center for Political Science and Economics, which will provide a new home for Penn’s Departments of Political Science and Economics in the School of Arts and Sciences. The Center will be located in the “West Philadelphia Trust” building at the intersection of 36th and Walnut Streets in the heart of the University’s campus community in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. A 7-story, 42,400-SF addition is proposed along the north side of the existing 7-story, 53,000-SF concrete framed building which has a basement and partial subbasement. The addition will house auditorium, classroom space, faculty offices and other academic and utility spaces.
Client: PMC Property Group, Philadelphia, PA
Architect: KPMB, Toronto, Canada
GeoStructures was responsible for the geotechnical & geo-environmental services on the project. Our work included:
- Geotechnical investigation for the proposed addition
- Review of background environmental data
- Phase II sampling and chemical testing
- Determination of material to be excavated as Clean Fill per PADEP guidelines.
Geotechnical issues include underpinning of the existing foundations, and the proximity of the 36th Street subway tunnel next to and 5 ft lower than the proposed basement. The maximum column load expected for the 7-story addition is nearly 2,000 kips. Foundation systems under consideration for design include caissons and conventional strip and spread footings, with the feasibility of the latter option being controlled by elastic settlement properties of the underlying dense sand (decomposed mica schist) above the sound Wissahickon Schist bedrock. Test borings and laboratory triaxial shear testing on undisturbed soil samples are part of the detailed geotechnical exploration and site characterization program for this project.
Pennovation
Architect: KSS and HWKN
Construction Manager: Hunter Roberts
Service Highlights: Construction inspection and materials testing.
New College House West
Architect: Bahlin Jackson Cywinski
Pre-Construction Manager: Intech
Service Highlights: Geotechnical Engineering, Environmental Phase 1 assessment, Clean fill characterization.
Hill College House
Architect: Mills + Schnoering
Construction Manager: Intech
Service Highlights: Construction inspection and materials testing.