Notable: Collaboration Streamlines Construction of Michel Family Aquatic Center

When Saint Thomas Academy (STA) and Visitation School (Vis) acquired funding to build a new shared aquatic center on STA’s campus, they hired Montclair, New Jersey-based Fabiano Designs as their architect of record. Fabiano has extensive experience designing state-of-the-art and highly aesthetic athletic facilities, which was exactly what the schools sought.

With 13 years of experience partnering with STA and Vis on more than a dozen design and construction projects, we had a valuable understanding of STA’s site and its unique complexities. This history and knowledge led the schools to engage us to collaborate with Fabiano on the design’s constructability while delivering the facility’s required functionality and desired aesthetic within budget.

This arrangement gave us an opportunity to leverage our integrated design services model, in which we partner with outside architects and designers who bring a distinct aptitude to a project.

Here’s what that looked like on the Michel Family Aquatic Center project:

• Because we were brought into the project early, we were able to review early-stage designs with our field, project management and subcontractor partners during pre-construction. This allowed us to develop attractive value-engineering and cost-saving options for the schools and the design team to review prior to groundbreaking. In this way, funding could be focused on features that were most important to the schools and donors.

• We leaned into our subcontractor relationships to assist the design team in evaluating different structural options for the building. For example, the project donor and design team envisioned a cross laminated timber roof deck above the pool to provide a warm and eye-catching aesthetic. Our subcontractors helped us identify wood materials that would achieve the desired look at a significantly reduced cost. The team also recommended a thin brick-clad precast wall as a cost-effective solution for the exterior structural wall system with a shorter installation duration.

• The foundation of the new aquatic facility tied into the foundations of the existing school building. Working with the design team early in the planning process, we determined the need to relocate the surge tank for the new pool to avoid undermining existing building footings. We highlighted the importance of installing the surge tank before some of the new building footings due to the required depth for the tank.

• We anticipated that the new facility’s perimeter walls would need to be built before digging the pool pit. This was due in great part to a lack of navigable space for the crane needed to erect the precast walls as well as to the need to enclose the building before winter. We worked with the design team to identify the depth needed for the perimeter building footings so as not to undermine those footings when constructing the pool pit.

• During early evaluation of the existing structure, we discovered a mechanical room and utility tunnel located partially within the demolition footprint, both of which held equipment that served the old pool and the existing school building. Early collaboration with STA and our mechanical, electrical and plumbing subcontractors allowed for efficient sequencing of the work, which eliminated unscheduled disruptions for the school.

• More about STA/Vis Michel Family Aquatic Center