| |
| Teaming Up for Increased Value |
 |
|
Tensar Corporation is a premier “one-stop provider” of technology-driven site solutions. We believe that the synergies inherent in combining two or more of our Company's products, services, applications and systems will create "faster, better, cheaper" value: solutions that save time and money when compared to conventional alternatives. There is no better evidence of this than our participation in the new John Paul Jones Arena at the University of Virginia.
The John Paul Jones Arena will include 15,000 seats, student and premium seating, lounge, practice courts, basketball coaches office and weight training room. It will look “UVA” with strong echoes of the architecture of the stadium. It will also include parking for 1,500 vehicles and a connector to the Route 250 Bypass. It will replace University Hall, which is now the smallest basketball arena in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The opportunities for cost-effective site solutions for this 350,000 square foot multi sports arena were many. In particular, two subsidiaries of Tensar Corporation, namely Tensar International Corporation and Geopier Foundation Company, teamed up to provide significant cost and scheduling advantages to the university and its general contractor.
Geopier Foundation Company was called upon to provide its Rammed Aggregate Piers™ to support approximately half of all the arena footings. Geopier soil reinforcement was selected by the project team to avoid potential cost over-runs often associated with the other alternative considered – drilled shaft foundations. The project was designed and installed by the Geopier licensee in that territory – GeoConstructors. Almost 1,000 piers were installed on the site, resulting in considerable savings in cost and construction time.
At about the same time that Geopier Foundation Company became involved in this project, Tensar International Corporation was called in
to provide another cost-effective solution to a situation that could have resulted in considerable additional expense to the owner. Grading requirements at the site would have resulted in the entire western portion of the arena having to retain almost 40 ft. of soil. To do so, the arena would have had to include a massive structural concrete wall as part of the building, which would have significantly driven up the project costs.
In response to a request by the project's design consultant, Tensar designed and supplied a “pressure relief” wall – a 40 ft. Tensar reinforced retaining wall using an inexpensive wire mesh facing. To ensure that no earth pressure will be applied to the arena's western building wall, the face of the “pressure relief” wall is located 12 in. from the arena's 528-ft. long and 43-ft. high building wall. To install the wall, Tensar International Corporation teamed up with the GeoConstructors, the Geopier Foundation System licensee. GeoConstructors packaged and installed the wall after it had completed the installation of the Rammed Aggregate Pier foundation system. |
|
|
|
