Loven Contracting acted as the general trades subcontractor for major renovations and capacity upgrades to the existing North Boiler Plant on the active Northern Arizona University campus in Flagstaff, Arizona. Scope of construction services included selective demolition to portions of the existing building while all critical utilities maintained continuous, uninterrupted operation.

Major structural upgrades included constructing underground concrete vaults and drilled-shaft caissons while protecting the existing structures, utilities, and steam tunnels in the plant and seismic and snow load upgrades to the existing building’s structure. Loven Contracting also provided architectural façade upgrades to the facility consisting of new curtain walls, brick veneer, and architectural panels. Interior upgrades to the North Boiler Plant included a new boiler plant control room, storage mezzanines, plant operator restroom, and shower and locker facilities.

To ensure public and student safety on the NAU campus during the project, Loven Contracting took additional safety precautions by increasing site signage visibility and focusing on public announcements to communicate project-related information.

The Flagstaff Core Services Public Works Yard hosts the City’s new vehicle maintenance building, streets building, parks building, vehicle fueling facility, cold weather vehicle wash building, and administration building. The administration building is designed to LEED Silver Certification, while the remaining buildings feature an economical and utilitarian design to fulfill their projected use and heavy vehicle traffic.

Multiple issues and departmental needs required close collaboration and unique team solutions with numerous stakeholders to program and plan each aspect of the project. This ensured that key design elements implemented in the final project would work harmoniously with other departments.

Funding was very limited, requiring extensive and detailed value engineering and cost estimating of the building systems during preconstruction. Special considerations were incorporated into the site and building design to ensure that Flagstaff’s winter road maintenance fleet can react promptly when storm conditions are present.

Photos: Nick Laessig