Best Terra Cotta Project
Local 1 New York
City College of New York
New York, NY

Signatory Contractor:
Ahern Contractors Corp.
Architect/Designer:
Stein White Nelligan Architects LLC

The exquisite craftsmanship of Local 1 New York members is the most notable feature of this elaborate $44 million project, which added several stunning residence halls to the 36-acre campus of the City College of New York in upper Manhattan.

The 180,000-square foot facility is divided into three sections, rising to heights of five, eight, and 11 stories, and provides accommodations for 600 students and visiting faculty.

Local 1 members installed approximately 3,700 pieces of terra cotta on the façade, establishing the buildings’ ornate, gothic architectural style reminiscent of European cathedrals. An equally ornate arch spans the sidewalk outside of the facility, and serves a dual purpose of welcoming visitors and continuing the elaborate architectural style into the surrounding neighborhood.

Best Tile Project
Local 67 Illinois
8th District Police Station
Chicago, IL

Signatory Contractor:
Bourbon Tile & Marble, Inc.
Artist:
Mike Mandel

Residents and visitors to Chicago’s “Little Village” neighborhood are fascinated by the new tile mural on the walls of the 8th District Police Station, thanks in part to the vision of artist Mike Mandel and the skill of Local 67 Illinois members, especially James Whiting and David Lamacki.

Photos of neighborhood youngsters served as the inspiration and starting point for the expansive 850-square foot mural. Over 100 different colors of tile and 28 colors of grout were used. The mosaics were fabricated in 1x1-foot and 1x2-foot paper-faced sections, and all were one-inch unglazed porcelain or glass.

Local 67 members, working for Bourbon Tile & Marble, skimmed the brick walls to achieve a smooth surface and ensure a proper bonding to the substrate. A thin set mortar with a latex additive was installed over the brick backer using a ¼x¼ square notched trowel. Each sheet was beaten in with a block to achieve a completely flat installation and 100 percent coverage on the back of each tile. To ensure adequate time for the curing process, the paper was removed following a 24-hour waiting period. Two coats of sealer were applied prior to grouting to prevent the grout from “burning in.” After grouting, the walls were again sealed two more times to avoid efflorescence.

Although it took them only two short weeks to complete this amazing project, the craftsmanship of Local 67 members will be admired by the residents of the “Little Village” for many years to come.

Ed Asmus

Best Marble Project
Local 3 California
Sacramento City Hall
Sacramento, CA

Signatory Contractor:
Italian Marble and Tile
Architect/Designer:
Fentress Bradburn Architects

Sacramento City Hall – envisioned by the late Mayor Joseph Serna as a blending of the strength of Sacramento’s cultural past and the needs of today’s community – is a testament to the unsurpassed craftsmanship of Local 3 California members. The project involved both the restoration of the historic building and the construction of a new administrative building.

Members began by removing, cataloging, and storing roughly 3,000 square feet of white Danby marble quarried over a century ago. In order to match and blend new materials with the old, members had to follow the tilt of the building and maintain the true level and plumb of the installation, which was no easy task since the building had sunk by eight inches east-west and three inches north-south over time.

Roughly 2,000 additional square feet of white Danby marble from Vermont quarries was used for new and replacement wall wainscots, bases and floor paving borders. In addition, 1,000 square feet of Italian Serizzo granite was used for the plaza level entry, and 1,000 square feet of Italian Grigio Carnico marble was used for bathroom partitions and countertops.

The administrative building’s main lobby features a basket weave pattern consisting of five separate colors of stone with each stone containing a curved edge. The stones were water jet cut in Italy using CNC machines in the metric system, but installed using the standard system.

To achieve the desired results, craftworkers could deviate no more than one-tenth of a millimeter from the theoretic axis, an astonishing feat by Local 3 members.

Best Mosaic Project
Local 13 Nevada
Lobby at Caesar’s Palace
Las Vegas, NV

Signatory Contractor:
T.Nickolas Co.
Architect/Designer:
Bergman, Walls & Associates

One needs to spend only a moment inside the Caesar’s Palace newly expanded casino and hotel lobby before being captivated by the Romanesque mosaics, statues, and imagery that have been brought to life by the members of Local 13 Nevada.

Intricate mosaics adorn the lobby from floor to ceiling, depicting various deities, warriors and other Roman characters, while Greek key patterns echo throughout the structure’s corridors. Mounted just behind the registration desk is the project’s crowning glory – an enormous mosaic that depicts a warrior on his horse-drawn chariot.

Over a seven-month period, Local 13 members installed water jet cut marble and granite slab flooring with marble mosaic medallion inlays. The interior flooring of the lobby’s center fountain also contains an intricate Greek key pattern that seems to ripple along with the flowing water.

Photography by: Helen Sinelnikoff-Nowak

Best Terrazzo Project
Local 3 California
School of Business and Management
University of San Francisco
San Francisco, CA

Signatory Contractor:
Associated Terrazzo Company, Inc.
Architect/Designer:
T. Delaney/Seam Studio

The San Francisco Bay area has played an increasingly important role in domestic and international business in recent decades, and nothing showcases the city’s prominence better than the University of San Francisco’s Tarantino Plaza with its impressive terrazzo world map that spills from the lobby and lounge area.

Installed by Local 3 California members, the map visually bridges the work of the School of Business Management with the global community. Ocean trade routes linking the Bay area to the world populate the map, while the eight-segment globe sits atop a barcode design that spells the word “EXCHANGE.”

Built as an outdoor plaza where students can socialize and study, the project’s exterior measures 5,700 square feet and consists of a 3-inch sand-cushion terrazzo system. The interior, measuring an additional 1,500 square feet, required a 3/8-inch epoxy terrazzo system. The world map design consists of five colors and zinc divider strips ranging in size from 1/16- to 1/2-inch in width.

The project was completed in just three months by ten Local 3 members.

Best Cement Masonry Project
Local 1 Michigan
Hometown Infrastructure Replacement Program
Dearborn, MI

Signatory Contractor:
Simone Contracting Corporation
Architect/Designer:
ARCADIS

Twenty-three members of Local 1 Michigan worked for nine months, through one of the coldest winters in the state’s history, to restore and revamp the infrastructure of Michigan’s most renowned outside museum, Greenfield Village.

The first of four crews to work on this project used 100-foot temporary structures to thaw and prep the ground. The second crew formed the pours, and the final two crews placed and finished approximately 250,000 square feet of Sombrero Buff colored concrete and 20,000 square feet of unstained concrete using an air entrained 6 ¼ sack mix.

In keeping with the historic appeal of the village, and mindful of founder Henry Ford, a special section of road was finished to simulate a historic corduroy road – a place where passengers can recreate the experience of driving a Model T.

As a result of the high level of craftsmanship and the variety of materials used, the architectural value and historic significance of Greenfield Village has not only been rebuilt and restored, it has been reborn.

Best CMU Project
Local 13 Nevada
Arbor View High School
Las Vegas, NV

Signatory Contractor:
Marnell Masonry
Architect/Designer:
Tate Synder Kimsey Architects

In 1991, to accommodate a surging population, Clark County School District adopted a new two-story prototype “mall” design for the construction of the many new schools that would be needed. The design evolved to adapt to new energy efficiency standards and is superbly illustrated in Arbor View High School.

The school houses 2,700 students and is organized around an interior entry plaza with access to classrooms, laboratories, athletic facilities, a cafeteria, and performing arts center. Arbor View, the District’s largest and most efficient school to date, covers 40 acres, including four buildings totaling 330,000 square feet.

Seven Local 13 Nevada members worked on the project using Astro Glaze block in a variety of colors throughout the mall area, and glass block within the athletic facility, which allows generous amounts of natural light to flood the gym. Many CMU columns in various heights and colors were installed throughout the school.

Through the extensive use of color and the texture of various CMU and glass block, Local 13 members demonstrated yet again the unique technical and artistic skills of the BAC craftworker.

Best Precast Project
Local 21 Illinois
Midway E.P.S.
Chicago, IL

Signatory Contractor:
Rochelle Erectors, Inc.
Architect/Designer:
HNTB Corporation

Thanks to the efforts and skill of the members of Locals 21 and 56 Illinois, Midway International Airport is now home to the third largest elevated parking structure in the United States. The seven-story structure encompasses an impressive three million square feet and holds 6,200 cars at capacity.

The project began with 18 members erecting 5,000 pieces of precast columns, spandrels, and double tees. More members were added to detail, level, weld, and provide safety cables and wood barricades. Two Manitowoc 2250 300-ton cranes were needed to build the structure, and very quickly the crew was setting 30 pieces of precast each day.

When a night shift began, members worked round the clock to erect two massive 100-foot tall, 450 piece, four car elevator and stair towers. A total of 38 members participated in the project, proving their worksite professionalism and productivity.

©www.brucetmartin.com

Best Restoration/Rehabilitation/ Maintenance Project
Local 3 Massachusetts/Maine/New Hampshire
Bowdoin College Chapel Towers
Brunswick, ME

Signatory Contractor:
Consigli Construction Co., Inc.
Architect/Designer:
Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc.

The soaring 120-foot granite towers of Bowdoin College Chapel are once again the shining star of this picturesque Maine town, thanks to the efforts and skilled craftsmanship of six Local 3 members.

In order to replicate the random ashlar pattern of the towers’ façade that was built more than 150 years ago, members used many of the original stones, while fabricating exact replicas of the unusable stones due to cracking or deterioration. The exterior wythe was reset stone by stone from grade to the spire with over 4,500 granite stones set to their original locations.

Members numbered and catalogued the reused stones and created smaller replacement pieces from discarded stones. Additional stones were extracted and fabricated to precisely match the original dimensions using the long abandoned quarry that had supplied the material for the original towers. The existing rubble backup walls were reused while a precast concrete wall was set at the spire. Stainless steel anchors were set in the backup wall and epoxied into the new precast concrete belfry backup walls.

Although the reconstruction and restoration took a year and a half, members finished ahead of schedule and under budget. In addition to this Craft Award, members also received a 2005 Statewide Historic Preservation Honor Award from Maine Preservation.

W.K. Taylor, SaskFerco Products, Inc.

Best Refractory Project
Local 1 Saskatchewan
Secondary Reformer Dome
Belle Plaine, SK

Signatory Contractor:
RHI Canada Inc.
Architect/Designer:
Karrena GmbH

After 12 years of service, the catalyst support dome for the secondary reformer reactor in the Saskferco ammonia plant was in serious need of replacement. It was a job for the members of Local 1 Saskatchewan. Designed on the Roman arch principle, the dome replacement required approximately twenty tons of alumina bricks specially shaped by Karrena GmbH in Germany.

Supporting the catalyst bed where the chemical reactions occur, the reactor operates at 1000 ºC (1832 ºF) and 4.15 MPa (600 psi) to produce the hydrogen used in the production of ammonia fertilizer. The refractory linings for this vessel are subject to extreme process conditions and must perform flawlessly in order to protect the steel pressure vessel from these extreme temperatures. Through meticulous measurement and preparation, members overcame various challenges. In order to ensure the project’s integrity, they hand-shaped the bricks lining the outlet nozzle opening, which had warped over time, to create a perfect fit.

Working against serious time constraints, Local 1 members proved their merit in handling any obstacle that got in their way.

Courtesy of The Photo Pro

Best Use of Masonry Materials Project
Local 1 Washington
Local 1 Washington Union Hall
Tukwila, WA

Architect/Designer:
Newton Associate Architects

When Local 1 members opened the doors of the new 12,000-square foot masonry building, which houses the Local’s offices and Union Hall, and leased commercial space, they knew it had been built by the best. The $3.2 million structure, overseen by member Bill Pistelli, incorporated all of the BAC trades in its construction, and benefited from the volunteer skills of journey-level members and apprentices in installing CMU, modular brick, rough dimensional stone, AAC block, ceramic tile, mud floated walls, fabricated slab granite, plaster, and Terratop™ terrazzo.

The building’s handsome exterior veneer was constructed from 24,000 chestnut blend modular brick laid in a running bond pattern. Structural load bearing walls consisted of CMU, while the non-load bearing interior partition walls were formed from 14,000 pieces of AAC block. Inside the building, members installed 35 slabs of Kashmir white granite, three slabs of seafoam green granite, and more than 6,000 square feet of porcelain tile.

Additional highlights include the Union Hall’s 2,400-square foot Mapei Terratop™ floor, which incorporated five colors of marble and mother of pearl chips, and an outdoor courtyard area constructed from 28 tons of squared and rectangular cascade granite.

Using a blend of modern and historic materials, Local 1 members have created a home that represents the excellent craftsmanship of all its members while paying homage to the Union’s past and promising future.