Cabela's (Lacey)
Architect: Crabtree Rohrbaugh & Associates
Engineers: Greenman-Pedersen (mechanical and electrical), CenterPoint Engineering (structural), Hatton Godat & Painter (civil)
Owner: Cabela's
ABC members: Bray Bros. USA, Lakeridge Plumbing
Instead of getting eight months to build the $35 million Cabela's store in Lacey, Bird Construction USA was faced with doing it in 180 days because of behind-schedule off-site civil work, delayed permits, incomplete design drawings and a late delivery of utility services.
Bird partnered with the city, the owner, the design consultants and the subcontractors to meet and facilitate the expedited schedule and solve structural challenges that arose with seismic upgrades and revised beam penetrations. Construction continued 24 hours a day, seven days a week to meet the tight deadline.
Bird had as many as 350 workers on the site at one time, which necessitated strict safety practices by all parties. The result was a flawless OHSA safety record.
More personnel also meant more administration. The project used more than 91 subcontracts, including 11 sub-tier contracts, and produced 148 total change orders. The project also generated 381 requests for information, but the average return rate of five days helped keep things moving, even with 80 change in construction directives.
Construction personnel had to work alongside retail staff for the final 30 days of the project so that the store could be stocked.
In addition to traditional retail space, the 192,000-square-foot store houses many attractions including a conservation mountain with running waterfalls and streams, a 16,700-gallon walk-through aquarium, an African habitat scene with a life-sized elephant, a gun library and restaurant.
The store uses energy-efficient and environmentally responsible practices to achieve LEED certification.
Bird had no injuries while working 78,947 hours on the project.