Close collaboration ensures student-ready facility by semester start.
This 170,000 square foot project for Southeastern Louisiana University consisted of two buildings containing a total of 283 units (558 beds). The buildings were on a pile-supported foundation and were clad with Hardie siding and curtainwall glazing. This facility featured many high-end qualities such as LVT flooring and study halls as well as communal gathering areas. The building also uses a geothermal system for the heating and cooling of the building. A network of 222 wells were drilled and connected together to provide the necessary thermal properties to make the system as energy efficient as possible.
The project faced a total of 136 days of rain, two rare snow events, and multiple days that the campus lost power. While digging pile caps, we encountered concrete foundations from a previous building, necessitating the need to relocate the pile caps. These and several other unforeseen challenges would put our team behind schedule by three months. We developed a fast-tracked schedule working with key subcontractors to ensure on-time delivery of the buildings for the start of the upcoming semester. Our motto became “Heads on Pillows.” Our team met the move-in and occupancy deadline plus delivered additional parking to the University ahead of schedule.
Square Footage
170,000 SF
Completion
14 months (2019)
Owner
University Facilities, Inc.
Architect
Project Location
Hammond, LA
Challenges bring unique opportunities.
The campus already faced a shortage of parking before construction started. All work in existing and new parking lots had to be phased and completed as
quickly as possible and had to accommodate midterm and final exam dates, homecoming events, and commencement activities.
The project faced a total of 136 days of rain, two rare snow events, and faced multiple days that the campus lost power, the majority coming during the most critical phase of the project: building foundations and drilling of 102 geothermal wells. Each building was pile-supported. As we formed pile caps and foundations, the rain continued including six inches from Hurricane Harvey, which also held up materials being shipped from Houston.
"Heads on Pillows"
Project delays, including adverse weather, concrete foundations from a previous building that necessitated the need to relocate pile caps, and the relocation of the northern main fiber line, put our team three months behind schedule.
Our team worked to develop a fast-tracked schedule working with key subcontractors to ensure on time delivery of the dorm rooms for the semester regardless of these delays. Our team motto became “Heads On Pillows.”
As we worked tirelessly to get the job completed, the owner was installing all furniture in the building starting from the top of the building working down following our punch list. Our team met the move-in and occupancy deadline plus delivered additional parking to the University ahead of schedule.
The new Student Housing Project at SELU was complex and had an aggressive schedule. From day one, the team DFC assembled worked to meet and exceed our expectations. The project itself had many hurdles we had to overcome to get these buildings completed. DFC worked beyond our expectations to make sure we were able to get the project completed and get the students into the building for the fall semester.
Byron Patterson, Director of Physical Plant Services
Southeastern Louisiana University
