SPECIAL APPLICATIONS -- TECHNICAL

Three entries were assigned to this new category by the judges. Included were: Sea-Tac Airport paving job, One Pacific Tower and a project for Fred Meyer.

In a nearly unanimous vote, the Sea-Tac project took first place. Runner-up was One Pacific Tower, followed by the Fred Meyer project.

The Sea-Tac project actually involved three different jobs -- terminal apron pavement replacements at concourses B and C, and slab replacements on an interconnecting taxiway.

Due to airport operations, concrete had to be poured at night, with airplanes using the new surfaces at 6 a.m. the next morning. To comply with this schedule, rapid set concrete was used.

Over 18,000 square yards of 18-inch pavement were replaced in the three projects at the airport. Existing concrete panels were removed by lifting them out using large forklifts. While the new concrete was curing, extreme heat was generated, requiring the need to sprinkle water on the panels for a two-hour period.

Crews working on One Pacific Tower used a new process to form the basement walls of the building. The recently patented process used a simple board form and several hoisting pulleys. Low-slump concrete was placed behind a 14-inch-high form, which was moved incrementally up the wall. After each 14-inch pour, the form was hoisted with top-mounted pulleys.

The use of low-slump concrete assured previously placed material did not bulge out from the bottom of the form. The form was restrained by temporary vertical tracks, which can be constructed of steel, aluminum or wood. After the wall was topped out, the components were quickly and easily removed, leaving the finished wall in place.

Project teams

Sea-Tac terminal apron replacement and runway:

• Port of Seattle, owner and engineer;
  
• Gary Merlino Construction Co. Inc., contractor; and
  
• Stoneway Concrete, concrete supplier.

One Pacific Tower:

• Vyzis Development Company, owner; Cary Kopczynski & Company Inc., engineer;
  
• PCL Construction Services Inc., contractor;
  
• Jim Grantham and Leroy Gray, inventors of the hoist-cast wall process;
  
• Curtis Beattie & Assoc., architect; and
  
• Lone Star Northwest, concrete supplier.

Fred Meyer Lake City store:

• Fred Meyer Inc., owner;
  
• Reid Middleton Inc., engineer;
  
• Absher Construction Company, contractor;
  
• Sienna Architecture Company, architect; and
  
• Air Placed Concrete Specialists, concrete supplier.

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