Feature

September/October 2009

Marine-Tough Housing

Parris Island barracks and Marine training facility is being built using design-build, with a goal of LEED Silver

By Tom Nicholson

(Photo Courtesy of Walton Construction Inc.)

Despite high water tables and record rainfalls, the design-build team constructing an 80,000-sq-ft U.S. Marine training facility at Parris Island, S.C., is well under way on the $80-million project.

The project to build four three-story Marine barracks, a battalion headquarters and a mechanical building is being led by the design-build team of Walton Construction Co., Harahan, La., a member of multiple AGC chapters, and Washington, D.C.-based architect VOA Associates. Darren Williams, Walton project manager, says crews are busy on earth and foundation work, and, “we are nearing the end of the design on the project.”

Awarded by Naval Facilities Engineering Command-Southeast in Jacksonville, Fla., the facility will house operations of the 3rd Recruit Battalion when it’s completed in 2011. 3rd Recruit Battalion is currently housed in barracks built more than 50 years ago, according to U.S. Marine public affairs.

When they began work on the project in the spring, team members couldn’t have predicted the overabundance of rain that drenched the seaside area throughout the summer. “The water level is high there,” Williams says. “With the heavy rains, we’ve been intensely dewatering, digging deep trenches and incorporating a French drain system that wasn’t in the original drawings.”

Guido de Simon, Walton project executive, agrees that the rain has “made life difficult.” Still, he says, “We’ve been aggressive and are still on track.”

An ongoing partnership between the two firms has succeeded on numerous government sector integrated-delivery projects, with 70% of Walton’s portfolio in military work. “The dynamics between Walton and VOA is that they are an extension of us,” Williams says. Adds Tom Matzke, VOA program manager, “We are an extremely close and established team.”

Temporary Housing

To temporarily house new recruits, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers authorized $13 million to build 16 temporary barracks with 88 recruits each. The temporary barracks are built for seven-year life spans while the design-build team completes the new facility. That project is led by Charleston, S.C.-based Hightower Construction, a Carolinas AGC member, according to the Army Corps of Engineers.

The barracks buildings at Parris Island are envisioned to house the Marines’ 3rd Recruit Battalion for the next 50 years. (Photo Courtesy of Walton Construction Inc.)

The precast concrete buildings on the permanent facility are built on more than 100 concrete piles and feature brick exteriors and metal roofs.

The owner is looking for durable buildings that function well to move recruits in and out and blend in with the historical structures of the campus, Matzke says. “These needed to be long and open buildings,” he adds. “And they are built for fit people to use, so there are no elevators.”

Antiterrorism, hurricane and seismic standards also had to be met, Matzke says.

“It must be a progressive-collapse design in this part of the country,” where seismic codes are the norm, Williams says. “They want a 50-year life span on these structures,” he adds. “There is little drywall being used. It’s all hard materials and no interior partitions. It’s an austere and utilitarian design.”

Sustainability Factors

LEED certification is also a must on the project. “LEED Silver is the requirement on the project, but we’re shooting for gold,” says Lisa Holman, Walton business development manager. “What used to be just suggested on military projects is now a requirement.” High-efficiency mechanical systems, health-safe paints and finishes, and recycled materials and construction waste are among the green efforts.

The shift to mandatory LEED certifications on projects “has required us to evolve,” de Simon says. “We went from having two or three LEED-certified people to over 25. You must build for LEED to do military work.”

Security also is important. “Getting subs through security at military facilities is a challenge,” Williams says. “Workers have to be documented. Safety is a chief concern.”

Williams says his firm has completed more than $600 million in contracts for the Navy in the past three years. “The military pays well, and they know what they want,” he says.

But he points out that military work has remained strong during the recession, and competition for projects is at an all-time high. “We used to have two or three competitors on bids,” Williams says. “Now there are 30 or 40.”