Rochester Institute of Technology – Performing Arts Center
Rochester, N.Y.
Award of Merit
Submitted by: LeChase Construction Services
Owner: Rochester Institute of Technology
Lead Design Firm: Michael Maltzan Architecture Inc.
Construction Manager: LeChase Construction Services
Architect, Structural Engineer and Landscape Architect: SWBR
Mechanical and Electrical Engineer: M/E Engineering
Subcontractors: Ramar Steel; Tambe Electric; Monroe Piping & Sheetmetal; Accurate Acoustical Inc.; Thompson Builds; Manning Squires Hennig; A.R. Pierrepont; Ajay Glass; Apple Roofing; One Diversified
The 50,000-sq-ft, four-story facility includes an advanced 750-seat theater with front- and back-of-house areas, full costume and scene shops and other amenities.
Flexible lighting systems can black out balconies when not in use, and sound and video resources enhance the experience for audience and crew members with hearing loss. Outside, the custom white aluminum facade stands out on a campus of largely brick and concrete structures.
An elaborate structure of scaffolding was built within the three-story theater to do interior finishes on the ceiling and walls and install the many catwalks, fireproofing, speakers and other audio/rigging/lighting elements needed. With limited workspace on the scaffolds, the scheduling and sequencing of trades was perhaps the most difficult aspect for the team. Crews worked top-down, fully completing one level before moving scaffolding to focus on the next lower level.
Excavating 30 ft for the sub-basement and orchestra pit required extensive shoring in order to avoid disturbing nearby soil containing underground utilities and to support adjacent buildings. Once the foundation and sublevel walls were in place, crews brought in 30,000 tons of structural fill to backfill spaces under and around the new building. A centerpiece of the facility is a restored 1920s organ, originally used in a Detroit theater. The organ required a variety of infrastructure, including two second-floor pipe lofts precisely built to match its original layout.
Source: www.enr.com
