A state-of-the-art television studio, a memorial to civil rights, and a museum for a national landmark are among the winning projects in the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute’s 2020 PCI Design Awards program. Judges awarded 25 projects and five honorable mentions for design excellence in building and transportation categories.
The PCI Design Awards, now in its 57th year, showcase the creative and innovative use of precast and prestressed concrete in a variety of applications. “Once again, the precast, prestressed concrete industry has put its best foot forward and has delivered many inspiring and impressive projects,” said PCI President and CEO Bob Risser, P.E. “Each year, the PCI Design Awards program demonstrates that precast, prestressed concrete is not only a practical solution to many construction challenges, but also a head-turning aesthetic solution.”
A panel of industry experts that includes precast concrete producers, engineers, and architects judges all nominees. The buildings and transportation categories are judged on aesthetic, structural, and use versatility; site, energy and operational efficiency, and risk reduction; and resiliency, such as structure durability, multi-hazard protection, and life safety and health.
PCI also selects several projects for special awards that are judged on similar criteria to the building and transportation projects, as well as additional requirements, including industry advancement, sustainable design, technology, and designs using all-precast concrete solutions. These awards include the Harry H. Edwards Industry Advancement Award, The All-Precast Concrete Solution Award, Building Information Modeling (BIM), and the Sustainable Design Award.
All winning projects will be showcased and honored at the 2020 PCI Convention in Fort Worth, Texas, with an event on March 6, and will be published in PCI publications, including PCI Journal, Ascent, and ASPIRE magazines. Visit pci.org for details and photos of all winning and honorable mention projects.
2020 PCI Design Awards Winning Projects – Special Awards
Sustainable Design Award (co-winners)
Statue of Liberty Museum and Statue of Liberty Secondary Screening Facility; New York City, New York; High Concrete Group
Photo courtesy of High Concrete Group
The new 50,000 ft² museum and screening facility on Liberty Island used precast concrete for everything but the foundation, and this approach delivered multiple benefits. “Going with a prefabricated solution meant less time on site, and it accelerated installation,” said Bob Pabst, vice president of sales for High Concrete Group. “Assembling a building enclosure from multiple materials on site would have taken a lot longer, with more field labor and more waste generated.”
The precast concrete materials also brought significant sustainable benefits. The high thermal mass of the concrete panels helps maintain interior temperatures and minimizes the effects of outdoor temperature swings; additionally, special connection details minimize thermal bridging between interior and exterior building components. “Sustainability was key to this design, and precast concrete was there to meet that need,” said Dan Piselli, director of sustainability and senior associate at FXCollaborative Architects.
The museum also features a sustainable “green” roof, adding to both the earthy design aesthetic and the project’s sustainability goals. “The solid walls are allegorical to the exposed rock dragged up from the earth,” Piselli says. “It also reflects the fact that this structure was built to stand the test of time.”
Photo courtesy of High Concrete Group
Read the entire case study “Statue of Liberty Museum and Statue of Liberty Secondary Screening Facility” on the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI)’s website.
Marc Basnight Bridge/Replacement of Herbert C. Bonner Bridge; Dare County, North Carolina; Coastal Precast Systems
Photo courtesy of HDR, Inc.
The new $252 million, 2.8-mile-long Marc Basnight Bridge spans Oregon Inlet, one of the most dangerous channels on the Atlantic Coast due to its treacherous currents, constantly shifting depths, and high winds.
“Providing the required 100-year service life for a bridge subject to that extremely harsh saltwater environment was a major challenge,” says Domenic Coletti, principal bridge engineer for HDR, the lead design firm for the project. His team tackled this requirement through the extensive use of precast concrete, providing a high quality, economical, resilient and low-maintenance structure that can resist 84 ft of erosion, hurricane-level winds, and impacts by the occasional passing ship.
Using precast concrete improved quality and durability while reducing costs and shortening project timelines, Coletti says. It also minimized disruption to the environmentally vulnerable barrier islands, and it lessened the risk of impact of construction on the area’s 20 legally protected species, which include manatees, bald eagles, Peregrine falcons, and five species of turtles.
Photo courtesy of HDR, Inc.
Adding further environment benefit, the original mostly precast concrete bridge was broken down and deposited at several offshore artificial reef sites to provide new habitats for fish.
Read the entire case study “Marc Basnight Bridge/Replacement of the Herbert C. Bonner Bridge” on the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI)’s website.
Harry H. Edwards Industry Advancement Award (co-winners)
Performing Arts Center at Murphysboro High School; Murphysboro, Illinois; Enterprise Precast Concrete
Mount Sinai Medical Center Skolnick Surgical Tower; Miami Beach, Florida;Gate Precast Company
All-Precast Concrete Solution Award
St. Armands Parking Garage Sarasota, Florida; Coreslab Structures (TAMPA)
Building Information Modeling (BIM) Award
Tower of Voices – Flight 93 National Memorial; Stoystown, Pennsylvania; PennStress, a division of MacInnis Group
Special Awards Jury: Kyle Knop, HGA Architecture; Cheryl Rishcoff, TRC Worldwide Engineering Inc.; and Roksana Taghizadeh, EnCon Design LLC
2020 PCI Design Awards Winning Projects – Buildings
Government and Public
Advanced Learning Library – Wichita Public Library; Wichita, Kansas; Enterprise Precast Concrete
Healthcare/Medical (co-winners)
Marshfield Clinic Health System Hospital and Cancer Center; Eau Claire, Wisconsin; Gage Brothers
Mount Sinai Medical Center Skolnick Surgical Tower; Miami Beach, Florida; Gate Precast Company
Higher Education/University
University of Minnesota Pioneer Hall; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Wells Concrete
High Tech and Laboratory
KFOR News Studio; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Coreslab Structures (OKLA)
Hotels and Motels
Hotel Indigo; Madison, Wisconsin; Spancrete
Multi-Family
1323 Morse Avenue; Chicago, Illinois; Spancrete
Office Building
Millwright Building; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Gage Brothers
All-Precast Parking Structure
St. Armands Parking Garage Sarasota, Florida; Coreslab Structures (TAMPA)
Façade Only Parking Structure
Dickies Arena Parking Garage; Fort Worth, Texas; Gate Precast Company
Religious
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Temple; Tucson, Arizona; Gate Precast Company
Retail
Whole Foods Market; Lexington, Kentucky; Gate Precast Company
Stadiums and Arenas
SunTrust Park; Atlanta, Georgia; Gate Precast Company; Metromont (structural components producer)
Custom Solutions
Witness Walls; Nashville, Tennessee; Gate Precast Company
Buildings Jury:Jason Krohn, S.K. Ghosh Associates LLC; Lesley Sneed, Missouri University of Science and Technology; and Timothy Taylor, Gensler.
2020 PCI Design Awards Winning Projects – Transportation
Main Span from 76-149 feet
Wekiva Parkway #204 Systems Interchange Orange County, Florida Dura-Stress Inc.
Main Span more than 150 feet
Marc Basnight Bridge/Replacement of Herbert C. Bonner Bridge; Dare County, North Carolina; Coastal Precast Systems
Non-Highway Bridge
Villanova University Pedestrian Bridge; Villanova, Pennsylvania; High Concrete Group, LLC; Northeast Prestressed Products, LLC
International Transportation Structure
Samuel De Champlain Bridge; Quebec, Canada; BPDL/SSLC
Special Solution
Interstate 78 Bridge Underclearance Project; Berks County, Pennsylvania; PennStress, a division of MacInnis Group
Transportation Jury: Reggie Holt, Federal Highway Administration; Michael LaViolette, HDR; and James Nelson, Iowa DOT
About PCI
Founded in 1954, The Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI) is a technical institute for the precast concrete structures industry. PCI develops, maintains, and disseminates the information for designing, fabricating, and constructing precast structures. PCI provides technical resources, certification for companies and individuals, continuing education, as well as conducts research and development projects, conventions, conferences, awards programs, and much more. PCI members include precast concrete manufacturers, companies that provide products and services to the industry, precast concrete erectors, and individual members such as architects, consultants, contractors, developers, educators, engineers, materials suppliers, service providers, and students.
