Manhattan Construction Group

DALLAS – Manhattan Construction Co. begins construction this week on the George W. Bush Presidential Center project located on the SMU campus in Dallas.  President George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura W. Bush broke ground on the project Tuesday. The George W. Bush Presidential Center is America’s 13th presidential library complex.

“Manhattan has a unique expertise in working on high-profile, signature projects like this one,” said Bob Bowen, Executive Vice President of Manhattan Construction.  “At the conclusion of construction, Manhattan will be the only firm to have built two presidential libraries.  We are proud to be involved and look forward to celebrating history when the doors open in 2013.”

The Bush Center includes the George W. Bush Presidential Library and the George W. Bush Institute, which launched programming in early 2010 and is focused on unleashing human potential around the world through its focus on human freedom, education reform, global health and economic growth.
 
Facts about the George W. Bush Presidential Center:

• The Bush Center will sit on a 23-acre lot on the campus of SMU in Dallas, Texas, and includes the George W. Bush Library, which includes the archives and museum, and the George W. Bush Institute. 
• The 226,565 square foot building is designed to achieve LEED platinum certification, the first Presidential Library to do so. 
• A number of sustainable design elements have been incorporated into the design, including regionally-sourced materials such as Texas limestone and stained pecan interior paneling. 
• The design includes a 15-acre urban park featuring native landscaping and includes a rainwater collection system that will provide 50 percent of the irrigation needed. 
• The site will feature a Texas Rose Garden, possessing the same proportions, solar orientation, and formal organization as the White House Rose Garden. 
• The Archives for President Bush, the first President of the 21st Century, contain 80 terabytes of digital information, including 200 million e-mails. 
• There are more than 43,000 artifacts from the Bush Administration on file with the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). 
• The Bush Institute already has active fellows working in the areas of human freedom, education reform, global health, and economic growth. 
• The Bush Center was designed by architect Robert A.M. Stern and landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh. 
• The construction manager/general contractor is Manhattan Construction Co., which also built the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum in College Station, Texas.

Those interested in watching the building progress can see live webcam images of the construction site on Manhattan’s website at: www.manhattanconstruction.com. 

About the George W. Bush Presidential Center:
The George W. Bush Presidential Center invites visitors to reflect on the lessons of the past, focuses attention on the problems of the present and inspires solutions for a better future. Located in Dallas on the campus of SMU, the Bush Center includes the George W. Bush Presidential Library and the action-oriented George W. Bush Institute. To view a virtual tour of the exhibit, visit www.georgewbushcenter.com.

About Manhattan Construction Company:
Manhattan operates from offices in Dallas and Houston, Texas; Tulsa and Oklahoma City, Okla.; Washington, D.C.; Atlanta, Georgia; and Mexico City. The company builds throughout the Southwest and East regions of the United States, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. The firm’s services include Manhattan’s trademarked Builder-Driven Pre-Construction®, construction management, general building, and design/build. Visit the Manhattan website: www.manhattanconstruction.com

TULSA – Manhattan Construction Co. has been honored with the 2010 Excellence in Construction award in the Institutional/Sports Arena Over $25 million category by the Associated Builders and Contractors of Oklahoma for the ONEOK Field Ballpark project in downtown Tulsa. The company was also presented with the Safety Training and Evaluation Process (STEP) Platinum Award, in recognition of exceptional safety training, active employee involvement, innovation and management commitment.

Manhattan oversaw design and construction of the 6,500-seat ONEOK Field project, completing the design-build service in only 14 months. During construction the team stayed on schedule through unusually wicked weather, including blizzard conditions, ice, rain and a bitterly cold winter. Manhattan handed the keys over to the Tulsa Drillers minor league baseball team to their new home six weeks before opening day.

“We enjoyed a sincere spirit of collaboration on this project,” said Bob Jack, Manhattan Construction’s Tulsa area manager. “The entire team deserves credit for its success – the Tulsa community, the Drillers organization, designers, subcontractors and vendors.”

“The Tulsa Drillers would like to congratulate Manhattan Construction on the Excellence In Construction Award,” said Chuck Lamson, Tulsa Drillers president. “Bob Jack and his entire team did a tremendous job building ONEOK Field.”

“The end result speaks for itself as ONEOK Field is a new jewel in downtown Tulsa and allowed the Tulsa Drillers to set a Tulsa professional baseball record attendance of over 408,000 fans,” said Lamson. “In addition with our many hospitality areas, we have been able to host over 100 additional non-Drillers events. Once again thank you and congratulations to Manhattan for a well deserved honor!”

Manhattan’s design-build team included Populous, an architecture firm specializing in sports design. The ONEOK Field design includes fixed seating for 6,500 fans, 23 luxury suites, large party decks and terrace seating for 3,000 people.

ABC’s Excellence in Construction program recognizes innovation, quality and vision by a building team. Projects are judged on a safety, personnel management, quality control, scheduling and degree of difficulty in completing a project. The awards were presented at the organization’s Excellence in Construction Awards Banquet on October 14th at the Greenwood Cultural Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Denton, Texas – Manhattan Construction Co. has “topped out” the construction of the new University of North Texas (UNT) football stadium in Denton, Texas. A “topping out” is celebrated when the highest point of the construction project is reached and the final, upper most piece of steel is put in place. The construction crew at UNT’s new football stadium hoisted up the last steel beam to the roof of the structure’s press box. The event celebration took place on October 15th.

The new stadium will host UNT events and serve as a venue for community events, outdoor concerts, high school games and band competitions for the entire North Texas Region.  The project is targeting U.S. Green Building Council LEED® Gold Certification for this project. 

The project is scheduled to complete in time for the 2011 football season.  UNT’s Mean Green Football Stadium will be constructed with the capability to expand the stadium seating from 30,000 to 50,000 seats.

The stadium design includes:

• 760-seat club level
• Touchdown Terrace and increased tailgating space
• Bowl seating close to the field
• First-class concession areas
• State-of-the-art video and sound systems throughout the concourse
• Dramatic player pavilion at the south end zone where players will run onto the field
• A full-service club level with comfortable indoor and outdoor seating 
• Luxurious private suites
• North grand stand will resemble the tail features of an eagle

Origin of the name, “Mean Green”
The name “Mean Green,” still in use after 43 years, was adopted by fans and media in 1966 for a North Texas football defensive squad, Joe Greene who finished the season second in the nation against the rush.  That school year, “Mean Joe Greene” was a sophomore at North Texas and played left tackle on the football team.  As of 2010, Greene is the only football player from UNT to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

The Houston Dynamo organization has selected Manhattan Construction Co. to build Houston’s new 22,000-seat, Major League Soccer (MLS) stadium.  The construction cost is estimated at approximately $60 million and preliminary site work is scheduled to begin in January, 2011. It is anticipated to open for the 2012 MLS season.

“We’re very happy to have selected Manhattan Construction Co. as the builder of our stadium”, Dynamo Chief Operating Officer Chris Canetti said.  “Manhattan has an excellent track record, not only in our community, but also in the country as one of the premier stadium-developing organizations.  We look forward to getting the construction process started quickly so our team can begin playing in their new home by the first half of 2012.”

The new stadium will be located in downtown Houston and will include 34 luxury suites, 1,000 club seats, and a stadium club. The stadium design includes both an upper and a lower bowl with roof canopy structures on both sidelines and a stage canopy at the south end.  The facility will provide an opportunity to host other events including but not limited to international soccer matches, U.S. national team matches, the NCAA College Cup, high school soccer matches, and high school football playoff games in addition to concerts, other championship sporting events, and special events. 

“As a fan-minded builder we share the excitement of what the facility will mean to the Houston community, Major League Soccer and the Houston Dynamo organization,” said Duane Duffy, Manhattan Construction Co. executive vice president. “This is a distinctively bold stadium design that will become an iconic Houston landmark and we are honored to have been selected to build it.”

This will be the fourth professional team sports facility to be constructed by Manhattan in Texas. Manhattan is known for building high-profile, technically difficult mega projects like Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas, with the first retractable roof stadium in the NFL and the Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, which is recognized as one of the world’s most important sports venues. The firm also constructed Texas Rangers Ballpark in Arlington and is currently building the University of North Texas Football Stadium in Denton.

ICON Venue Group, Inc. is serving as owner’s representative for the Houston Dynamo Stadium project. The architect is Populous and the structural engineer is Walter P Moore.

About Manhattan Construction Company
Founded in 1896, Manhattan Construction Company is ranked as the number one sports complex builder in Texas by McGraw-Hill’s Texas Construction Magazine. The company’s $15+ billion project portfolio includes sports stadium, office, healthcare, government, higher education, K-12 school, laboratory, aviation, religious, museum, library, transportation, condominium, convention, casino, entertainment, and hospitality facilities. Manhattan builds projects throughout the Southwest and East regions of the United States, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. The firm’s services include Manhattan’s trademarked Builder-Driven Pre-Construction®, construction management, general building, and design/build. Manhattan operates from offices in Dallas and Houston, Texas; Tulsa and Oklahoma City, Okla.; Washington, D.C.; Atlanta, Georgia; and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.manhattanconstruction.com.

About the Houston Dynamo
The Houston Dynamo is a Major League Soccer club that has won two MLS Cup championships in its first four seasons and represented the United States in four consecutive regional championships. For more information, visit www.HoustonDynamo.com.

About ICON Venue Group
ICON Venue Group is the leading Owner’s Representative firm in the sports and entertainment industry providing the full spectrum of venue development services including project feasibility, financing, site selection and acquisition, facility programming, design development, construction phase management, venue commissioning, sponsorship sales and servicing, and start up operations. ICON has worked with both public sector and private sector clients and has managed several of the most successful arena and stadium projects in the world. ICON Venue Group has demonstrated expertise in designing, constructing, commissioning, and operating projects for NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and MLS franchises totaling over $3 billion. For more information, visit www.iconvenue.com.

About Populous
Since inception in 1983, Populous has grown into the world’s leading design firm dedicated exclusively to creating environments that draw people and communities together for unforgettable experiences. The firm has completed more than 1,000 projects around the globe with construction value exceeding $20 billion. Populous has worked with 24 Major League Baseball franchises, 30 NFL franchises, 80 professional and civic arena clients, 40 global soccer and rugby teams, 120 universities, 40 convention center clients, 29 equestrian clients and has planned more than 30 major worldwide events.  For more information, visit www.populous.com.

About Walter P Moore
An international engineering and consulting firm, WALTER P MOORE has been recognized throughout its long history for superb client service, engineering excellence and innovation. For more information, visit www.walterpmoore.com.

Manhattan Construction Co. has been awarded the 2010 National Safety Training and Evaluation Process (STEP) Platinum Award by the Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc. (ABC). The Platinum level award recognizes excellence in safety performance. This is Manhattan’s ninth time to be honored with the STEP Platinum Award. 

Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) is a national association with 77 chapters representing 25,000 firms. Membership represents all specialties within the U.S. construction industry and is comprised primarily of firms that perform work in the industrial and commercial sectors of the industry.

Manhattan Construction Co. has been awarded the 2010 Excellence in Construction Award in the $15- $25 million commercial project category by the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) of Georgia for construction of the Gwinnett County Police Headquarters Annex & 911 Communications Center in Lawrenceville.

The Gwinnett County Police Headquarters project is a one-story, 45,000-square-foot steel structure. The new facility provides the County with a state-of-the-art 911 Communication Center, Emergency Operations Center, Data Back-up Center and 13,500 square feet of office space. The building’s skin includes architectural precast panels, architectural metal panels and aluminum windows with impact resistant glass designed to withstand the effects of tornado type winds. The project was designed by HOK, Inc. and constructed by Manhattan Construction Co.

ABC’s Excellence in Construction program recognizes innovation, quality and vision by a building team. Projects are judged on a safety, personnel management, quality control, scheduling and degree of difficulty in completing a project.

In 2009, the team was also recognized with an Award of Excellence for work on this project in the mid-rise building category by the American Concrete Institute (ACI) of Georgia for its thermal efficient exterior wall panels installed by Manhattan subcontractor Metromont Precast. The panels are comprised of carbon fiber that ties the inside and outside of concrete together so that there is no heat transfer through the building.

Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) is a national association with 77 chapters representing 25,000 merit shop construction and construction-related firms with two million employees. ABC’s membership represents all specialties within the U.S. construction industry and is comprised primarily of firms that perform work in the industrial and commercial sectors of the industry.

The American Concrete Institute (ACI) is a nonprofit technical and educational society organized in 1904 and is one of the world’s leading authorities on concrete technology.

Dublin, Ireland –Stadium Business Awards in association with Guinness has named Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas the award winner for “Creativity” for the facility’s HD Video Board. The international awards ceremony took place during the Stadium Business Summit at the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin, in front of an audience of over 150 stadium industry professionals from around the globe on June 18th.

“Jerry Jones was driven to create the ultimate game-day experience for fans at Cowboys Stadium,” said Jack Hill, Cowboys Stadium General Manager.  “With his vision, he challenged everyone – architects, engineers, builders and Mitsubishi Electronics – to create something revolutionary in stadium design. We are extremely proud of this global recognition.”

“This exceptional scoreboard is an example of the Dallas Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones’ revolutionary approach to the stadium business and it is an honor to accept this award on behalf of him, his family and the Dallas Cowboys organization,” said Bill Bury, director of sports venues at Manhattan Construction Co.

Manhattan Construction Co. built the $1.2 billion, 80-seat Cowboys Stadium which is home to the National Football League’s Dallas Cowboys and the NCAA’s AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic. The stadium has also been selected to host Super Bowl XLV in 2011.

Bury, who was directly involved with the right-sizing, manufacturer selection and installation of the scoreboard, said the Cowboys Stadium video boards have revolutionized the game day experience. With two of the world’s largest native HD boards hung above the field, every fan enjoys the combination of the luxury one would get at home with the larger-than-life action and the excitement of the live game day experience, he said.

At 70’ tall and 160’ wide, the board hangs in the center of the stadium and has over 25 million LEDs and the capability to show HD quality and 3D images, he said. The entire structure can be lowered to 25 feet above the field, or raised to the NFL required height of 90 feet above the field.

“Created this year to recognize the leading venues and the people behind them, the awards received a remarkable 1,000 nominations so winners should be very proud of their achievements”, commented Ian Nuttall, co-founder of TheStadiumBusiness.com. “An impressive calibre of entries testified to the incredibly high standards being attained right across the industry.”

Nominations from around the world were whittled down to a shortlist judged by an independent panel of industry figures, including:

• Michael Bolingbroke, COO, Manchester United Football Club
• Paul Fletcher, Chief Executive, Burnley FC
• Paul Latham, COO International Music, Live Nation Entertainment
• Rory Sheridan, Head of Sponsorship, Guinness
• Erik Stover, General Manager, Red Bull New York soccer team

Finalists for the “Creativity” award were:

• Museo River at River Plate FC, Argentina
• Cowboys Stadium HD Video Board, Texas, USA
• Emirates Stadium banner-wrapping, London
• Sunderland’s Stadium of Light 2009 events calendar, UK
• Ricoh Arena’s ticket marketing offers, UK

“Guinness is delighted to support the Stadium Business Awards 2010 and to play our part in recognising the outstanding achievements of sports venues around the world,” commented Rory Sheridan, Sponsorship Manager of Guinness at Diageo Ireland. “As a major sports sponsor globally, Guinness recognises that the quality, safety and entertainment value of the venues in which our sponsorships are hosted form a vital ingredient to the overall success of the sponsorship experience for all involved.”

About Cowboys Stadium
Cowboys Stadium is the largest, most technologically advanced entertainment venue in the world.  Designed by HKS and built by Manhattan Construction, the $1.2 billion stadium features two monumental arches, the world’s largest HDTV video board, an expansive retractable roof and the largest retractable end zone doors in the world.  Features of the stadium include seating for 80,000 and expandable to 100,000, over 300 luxury suites, club seating on multiple levels and the Dallas Cowboys Pro Shop, open to the public year round.  In addition to being the new home of the Dallas Cowboys and the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic, the stadium will host Super Bowl XLV in 2011 and the 2014 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four as well as high school and college football, concerts and special events.  In February of 2011, the stadium hosted the NBA All Star game in front of a world record 108,000 fans. For more information, go to http://stadium.dallascowboys.com.

About Manhattan Construction Company
Founded in 1896, Manhattan Construction Co. is ranked among the top five sports facility builders in the nation by Engineering News-Record. Manhattan builds projects throughout the Southwest and East regions of the United States, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, and provides pre-construction, construction management, general building, and design/build services. http://www.manhattanconstructiongroup.com/manhattan-construction

About the Stadium Business Awards 2010 in association with Guinness
Held for the first time this year, the Stadium Business Awards in association with Guinness, were created as a platform to showcase innovation, professionalism and best practice within the stadium industry. All aspects of the international stadium and sports venue sector were covered. The awards are organised by Xperiology, creators of the Stadium Business Summit conference and suppliers of stadium management training, consultancy and advisory services to the sports and entertainment sector.

For more information, please visit: www.stadiumbusinessawards.com
or www.stadiumbusinesssummit.com

TULSA, Okla. – The Oklahoma Department of Labor has selected Manhattan Construction Co. as the winner of the 2010 Award of Excellence in the Large Employer category in recognition of the company’s safety program success. The award was presented to Manhattan by Labor Commissioner Lloyd Fields and Lieutenant Governor Jari Askins at the Oklahoma Safety Council’s (OSC), 2010 Safety and Health Conference held in Tulsa, Okla. Friday, June 11th at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.

“With over two and a half million work hours without a single lost work day incident Manhattan’s program serves as an excellent example of why safety pays,” said Fields. “It is my personal pleasure to be able to share Manhattan’s safety success with other business industries in Oklahoma.”

Oklahoma companies from all industries, not just construction, are eligible to participate in the awards program. This is the second time Manhattan has been honored by the Oklahoma Department of Labor. In 2007, Manhattan received the organization’s Award of Excellence and became the first General Contractor in the history of the program to be presented the honor.

“What makes Manhattan’s safety program successful is that we don’t allow ourselves to relax because of yesterday’s safety success,” said Scott Marsh, safety manager at Manhattan Construction Co. “Safety is a constant alertness and no excuses thing for us. We stress its importance every day and we don’t let up.”

HOUSTON, Texas – The Houston Airport System (HAS) recently presented Manhattan Construction Co. with the HAS 2010 S/MDBE Advocate Prime Contractor Award.  This award recognizes Manhattan for its commitment to Small, Minority, and Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (S/MDBE) participation on its Houston Airport System Projects. 

Manhattan is working on three major projects at George Bush Intercontinental Airport. Two projects under construction are the Phase 3 Automated People Mover and the Terminal C Garage Renovation projects, both of which have exceeded S/MDBE participation goals.  The Phase 3 Automated People Mover Project has achieved 26% participation versus an original goal of 25%, while the Terminal C Garage Renovation Project has achieved 42% participation versus an original goal of 23% participation. The Terminal D Renovation project is in the pre-construction phase.

The award was presented to Manhattan during the Houston Airport System’s annual “Runway To Business Opportunities” Networking Fair, which was held May 13th, 2010.

On May 19, Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital hosted a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate its East Tower Expansion. Memorial Hermann has selected Manhattan Construction Co. to build the project.  Phase one of the new 240,000-square-foot tower will add eight state-of-the-art surgical suites and surgical support services, including pre-operation and recovery rooms, waiting areas and sterile processing. Additionally, a patient care unit with 36 beds and a parking garage will be added. This will bring the hospital’s total bed count to 288. Three shelled floors will accommodate future growth and could include additional patient beds, an expanded Emergency Center, and clinical support services. The cost of the project is roughly $104 million.