Sarcee Operations Workplace Centre Administration Building

Calgary, Canada

Located on an existing gravel quarry, the Sarcee Operational Workplace Centre Administration Building is a three-storey, 40,000 ft² facility featuring exposed structural steel framing.

Sarcee Operations Workplace Centre Administration Building

Calgary, Canada

Located on an existing gravel quarry, the Sarcee Operational Workplace Centre Administration Building is a three-storey, 40,000 ft² facility featuring exposed structural steel framing.

Designed to accommodate both current and future tenant requirements, commercial space is programmed on the second and third floors, with space for the Development and Building Approvals (DBA) Business Unit and a future office for the City of Calgary. Amenity spaces are located on the ground floor, with a lunch room, exercise room, and large men’s and women’s locker rooms with showers.

The City of Calgary identified the Sarcee building as a pilot project for integrated project delivery (IPD) design, procurement, and construction. Working collaboratively with the geotechnical consultant, Entuitive developed an economical foundation of driven steel H-piles, fill material, and a structured ground floor slab, and designed strategies that create efficiencies in construction sequencing.

location

Calgary, Canada

Budget

$18 M

LEED Certification

Aiming for LEED® Gold

Size

3,700 m² (40,000 ft²)

Architect

The Mark Boutin Architectural Collaborative; Perkins + Will

Client

The City of Calgary

Role

Structural Engineering and Building Envelope Consultant

Challenge

Human-induced floor vibrations were a consideration given that the floor system consists of long-span cantilevers and no orthogonal secondary steel beams. An open concept floor system with very limited floor-to-ceiling partition walls minimizes damping effects.

Solution

To increase the mass of an effective floor area susceptible to floor vibrations, hangers were detailed to interconnect the second and third floors with the roof framing. These hangers also serve to provide support for the ribbon curtain wall system and are concealed within the aluminum curtain wall vertical mullion system.

Challenge

The Sarcee Operations Workplace Centre is located on a former gravel quarry. Unconsolidated, non-native, and variable fill material was used to bring it up to its current elevation. The fill thickness underneath the building footprint is up to 10 metres deep.

Solution

Structural steel driven H-piles were used as the foundation system. The H-piles were advanced through a thin layer of leftover bedrock lens to ensure consistent soil resistance properties. The ground floor slab is a structured slab at grade to eliminate the risk of excessive settlement.

Learn more about how Entuitive approaches engineering challenges, and discover why Engineering Performance matters for your project.

Sarcee Operations Workplace Centre Administration Building