COVID-19 Design Impact Series |
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Planning, programming, phase 1, or our personal favorite - charrette - no matter how you say it, the process of evaluating and making smart recommendations for building systems and construction can be a critical tool in the design toolbox.
Traditionally, planning and programming have been reserved for large, complex projects – particularly those that might be pending the release of funding. This remains true now, as many government agencies wait to see how the recent changes in Washington impact budget allocations and by extension, their ability to move forward with planned projects.
But lately, we’ve noticed an uptick in Owners implementing the planning stage for any number of additional reasons. The COVID-19 pandemic, for one, has made us cautious about the future. Will the economy get better? Worse? Is the pandemic drawing to a close? How can Owners be certain of the “right time” to move a project forward?
As we all follow the indicators and wait to see how things shake out, some savvy Owners are working through the Planning & Programming of projects now, so they are in the ready position to move forward with design and construction when the opportunity presents itself. This proactive approach also dedicates the time and resources to evaluating design choices that could ultimately save them money in the built environment.
When we talk about our COVID-19 Design Impact Series, naturally what comes to mind are the MEP design changes that came about in the past year. But the way our industry operates has also been greatly impacted, and in this edition, we’ll discuss the use of the Planning & Programming stage as a potential strategy for project execution.
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Upgrading Without Losing the Past |
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SDSU Lincoln Hall Renovations |
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Team
Koch Hazard Architects
Stockwell Engineers
Structural Engineering Associations
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As campuses grow and evolve, so does how their buildings are used. Departments move, new programs are developed, and space needs simply change. But part of the allure of university settings is the history and elegance of its storied halls. While new construction certainly has its benefits, it's not always the right answer, especially when trying to preserve campus identity.
So the question then becomes how to make upgrades and renovations within an existing building that will both retain its character, while making it functional for students and faculty. This was the challenge facing South Dakota State University as it considered what to do with the opulent Lincoln Hall. Built in 1927 as a library and then renovated to house the Music Department in 1979, the space was to become home to the School of American and Global Studies, and the administrative offices of the College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences. This meant outfitting the grand old building with the sleek utility of a modern space.
With no clear vision for how to move forward, the University chose to begin with phase 0, which included planning and programming to make certain spaces into temporary classrooms until phase 1 of the project started. West Plains Engineering worked with the design team on a comprehensive assessment of the building as it was, which ended in some interesting and historically significant surprises. During phase 1, the team found there was much more historic trim and plaster hidden by a drop ceiling, and these features were able to be saved. The historic library stacks also were found to store agricultural and legal books that date back to the 1880s before South Dakota was a state!
Ultimately, this phase not only identified unique and special features that could be incorporated into the renovation, but it also gave recommendations for a Facility Program Plan along with conceptual designs for the upgrade including opinions of probable construction costs to help guide their decision. Armed with this information, SDSU was ready to move forward with additional elements of the project. Phase 2 is currently in design and focuses on the removal and replacement of all mechanical, plumbing, and electrical services in the building.
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Isaac Anderson, P.E. is a Mechanical Engineer and the Lead Mechanical Engineer for all phases of the Lincoln Hall renovation at South Dakota State University.
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Strategic Direction Report |
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Utilizing a Planning & Programming Phase to Set the Right Course |
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A goal without a plan… is just a wish.
It’s an old adage, but one that’s still ingrained in both our personal and professional lives.
The concept is simple. If you want to achieve something, make a specific plan for how you’re going to do it. The details get a bit more complex. What exactly is the goal? How will you know when you’ve achieved it? Is there more than one way to get there? What objectives must you meet? How will you measure success?
Design projects, whether intentionally or not, follow this process as well. Before an RFQ ever hits the streets, an Owner has either identified a problem or a desire – the wish. How it’s solved or achieved – the plan – is then the focus and primary responsibility of the design team. By working together early on, this group will be positioned to successfully reach the goal.
Sometimes, when the goal is clear from the outset, this process is relatively quick and completed during kickoff. Increasingly though, we see Owners invest more time and energy into a planning stage to better understand the various ways they can achieve their goal. This can be particularly true when an Owner knows, in general, there is a problem to solve but is unsure how to approach it. For instance, a university experiencing growth in enrollment may know it needs to accommodate more students and staff, but how it can do that in the built environment is a maze of options. A Planning & Programming project, whether for a complete campus master plan or just for a single building can help them set an effective path toward realizing their goal.
While adding a Planning and Programming phase may increase the front-end cost of the project design, the long-term return on investment from informed decisions, such as reduced energy costs, accurate scope, and corresponding design effort, can balance the scale or even tip it in the Owner’s favor. Additionally, a Planning & Programming effort can give the Owner materials and time to secure funding.
We see this most frequently with government agencies who are awaiting bill appropriation and budget approval. The design team works with the agency during the programming stage to identify several preliminary conceptual design options, along with the opinions of probable construction costs for various systems and infrastructure to support those options. The final recommendation is then used to clearly define the project scope and request the necessary funding.
Interestingly, 2020 encouraged a new wave of private Owners interested in utilizing the Planning & Programming approach on their projects. In a year that brought economic upheaval, social unrest, and political change, this initial phase offered a conservative strategy for moving a project forward with limited financial vulnerability. Owners can continue plotting a path to their goals, as they look for economic and political indicators to give them the confidence to invest in the full project design and construction of their facility.
To keep the adages rolling – there’s more than one way to skin a cat – and Planning & Programming aims to inform the Owner about each approach, along with the associated pros and cons, probable costs, and challenges. As members of the design team, it’s our responsibility to listen to and understand the Owner, make a comprehensive assessment of the building and/or systems, have the pulse of the manufacturing and bidding climates, among other things. Then, through this process, we’re able to develop accurate opinions of probable construction costs and be completely transparent in our recommendations to set the plan in motion.
This process may be the difference between helping our clients reach their goal…or leaving them with a wish.
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SD Mines Devereaux Library |
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West Plains Engineering has been fortunate to be part of the planning process for the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology campus for a number of years. We were involved in the original Mission Forward 2020 master plan in 2011 and helped update it again in 2019.
This process has allowed the University and State of South Dakota to plan and budget in a sequential manner that allows them to proactively meet the anticipated future needs of the campus.
But even with a master plan, many times individual buildings or areas of campus need additional attention to determine how best to proceed. The goal might be to upgrade a building, but exactly how to go about it is sometimes best served by a detailed planning phase.
Recently, we worked with Co-Op Architects to focus on one such building on the campus - Deveraux Library. A critical component of student life, the library needed to be upgraded to meet modern student needs. The question was, how? Not surprisingly, many of our staff members are SD Mines alums and spent countless hours in this building themselves (present company included), so looking at its future became somewhat of a passion project.
Our team participated in charrette meetings with the stakeholders, management, and State staff to determine the future of how the library will function in the digital age. WPE assisted with the selection of mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems to best fit each option and provided an opinion of probable construction costs for those systems for each of the options considered. This has now allowed the Owner to make an informed decision based on the economic impact of each option.
This information also allowed the University to understand the anticipated budget for the design and construction of the actual project and request appropriate funding. Based on the information provided by our team, the Board of Regents has approved the project to move forward. We are currently wrapping up the 35% Construction Drawings phase and headed to the 65% Construction Drawing phase. We are excited to get the design for this project completed and bid so we can start seeing it come to fruition and benefit the students.
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Matt VonHaden, P.E. is an Electrical Engineer in the Rapid City office, and Lead Electrical Engineer for the Devereaux Library project. Matt is also a graduate of the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology.
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Title:
Mechanical Engineer
Years with WPE:
Lucky 13!
Home Team:
Wife Susan, daughter Lilly (10), son Ben (7)
and Laya the cat.
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Isaac Anderson has been a Mechanical Engineer in our Sioux Falls office for 13 years. A proud Jackrabbit alum, Isaac enjoys continuing to work with his alma mater as a professional engineer and prepare the campus for the next generation of PEs.
Check out our Q&A with Isaac below to learn more about his journey into the engineering field (and landing at WPE), how the Planning & Programming phase can impact the success of a project and his "ultimately" cool hobby!
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Tell us about your path from SDSU to WPE. Why did you major in ME and how did you end up with the firm after graduating?
My uncle was a mechanical engineer for Raven and in high school, I had to do an interview with someone that was a professional. I had no idea who to talk to but my father told me to talk to my uncle about his job. After talking to him I realized I wanted to be an engineer!
Like a lot of SDSU undergrads, I worked at Daktronics designing scoreboards. I was in the custom indoor sports products where I designed scoreboards for large universities like Purdue and Gonzaga and even designed scoreboards for the Summer Olympics in Athens. While I enjoyed the manufacturing industry, I was looking to move back to Sioux Falls to be closer to my family. Jon Kennedy was my roommate in college and he knew I was interested in moving back, so he contacted Todd Weider and got a meeting set up between Todd, Marty (Christensen), and Mark (Grebner). The rest is history!
What’s it like doing projects on the same campus where you started your career?
I like doing projects at my alma mater. It's fun to still be on campus and watch as the campus grows and changes, but some things always stay the same. The campus has changed a lot from when I was there, it has gotten a lot bigger and the food is much much better. The most memorable project for me is one that we are working on right now, Lincoln Hall. This building was the original library on campus and I also spent a lot of time in the building in college as it was the music building. It has been really interesting seeing all the history we have found as we open walls and seeing all the beautiful details being restored as we finish each phase.
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What’s your perspective on doing a Planning & Programming phase for a project before moving into design?
While it isn’t always the most glamorous part of a project, I think it is probably the most critical phase. It's really important that the Engineers are included in that phase of the project too as this is the best time to hear from the Owner what they are looking for from their building and for us to explain systems. That way, before you have a building floor plan, you can decide what systems the Owner would like to have and plan the required back of house space in advance.
How have you noticed the A/E/C industry change since last Spring?
I have noticed that, while it can be a stereotype that Engineers don’t always deal with change well, all of us have accepted and in many cases embraced using new ideas for things like virtual meetings and electronic plan sharing. I think it has been one of the bright spots throughout this difficult year due to the pandemic.
Tell us about your family!
My wife’s name is Susan and she's a junior high teacher at my old high school campus. My daughter Lilly is 10, and my son Ben is 7. They are both very energetic kids that keep my wife and me on our toes! We like to do things outdoors in our free time. In the summer we like to fish and in the Fall we like to go hunting.
In my free time, I play ultimate Frisbee. It's something I've done since college, and usually play in our local summer league here in Sioux Falls. My team won the championship in 2019 before we had to call off the 2020 season due to the pandemic. So, as far as our team is concerned, we are still the reigning champions!
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West Plains Engineering News |
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Ascent Innovation Moves Into the Final Phase of Construction |
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Work is moving along nicely at the new Ascent Innovation Center in Rapid City, a project WPE is teaming up on with the Rapid City Economic Development Corporation and Strang, Inc. Architects. The facility is an incubator for small and start-up businesses, primarily focused on technology, to develop and thrive in the region.
Check out the cool video above showcasing progress as the building enters the final phase of construction, with the MEP systems being installed over the next 8 weeks.
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Join us in welcoming Mechanical Designer Zane Perez to the WPE team!
Zane joined our Casper office in January, and is a 2015 graduate of the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, where he played football for the Orediggers.
Welcome to West Plains Zane!
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Electrical Engineer Todd Weidner and Mechanical Designer Nick Carr were recently in the great state of Wisconsin for a project site visit - and decided to take in some other sites along the way.
If trips to Green Bay in January don't show our commitment to our clients, nothing will!
If going
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Rapid City, SD | Sioux Falls, SD | Casper, WY | Cedar Rapids, IA |
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