The VCU Allied Health Professional Building Place Office Tower is a new eight story $87 million academic facility. Construction of the project began with the demolition of the existing structures and site improvements that occupied the site of the proposed structure. During the design phase of the project F&R provided a subsurface exploration and geotechnical engineering services in support of the project. The field technicians performed a subsurface exploration that consisted of six Standard Penetration Test (SPT) borings located within the proposed building footprint. The borings were drilled to depths of 50 to 100 feet below the existing site grades.
Once the field services were concluded, a laboratory testing program was performed on the samples of soil that were collected. These samples went through classification testing which included: natural moisture content, sieve analysis, and Atterberg limits. Subsequently, a geotechnical engineering evaluation of the subsurface conditions with regard to their suitability for the proposed construction was provided along with typed boring logs. The report contained evaluations of the laboratory data, observations on site, interpretation of the field data obtained during the exploration and experience with similar subsurface conditions. These recommendations included foundation, alternate deep foundation design, floor slab construction, lateral earth pressure, and site and construction preparation.
During construction phases of the project, F&R returned to the site to provide construction materials testing and special inspection services. The new building was supported on shallow reinforced concrete footings that bear on the natural soils or structural fill. The above grade construction of the building consisted of a structural steel frame, with cast-in-place concrete slabs on deck. F&R provided the following services related to the project: Soils / Controlled Fill, Footing Subgrade, Concrete / Reinforcing Steel, Masonry, Structural Steel and SFRM
