Work Begins on Amazon’s New Data Center in Dublin, Ohio

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Work Begins on Amazon’s New Data Center in Dublin, OhioThanks to an $81 million dollar tax incentive from the Ohio Tax Credit Authority, central Ohio is well on its way to becoming a burgeoning new hub of innovation for big tech companies. Back in September of last year, city officials in Dublin, Ohio offered Amazon 68 acres of land on which to build a new data center valued at $1.1 billion. By February of 2015, Amazon had accepted the offer and state officials had approved development plans for the massive new complex.

In addition to the data center in Dublin, Amazon also plans to build two more data centers in the nearby cities of Hilliard and New Albany. Now, according to a recent article in the Columbus Dispatch, Amazon has even more ambitious plans for central Ohio. Within the next few years the company hopes to employ a total of 1,000 employees statewide. Since the three data centers currently in development will be staffed by just 120 employees, this announcement would seem to suggest that Amazon has plans for far more widespread construction in the Buckeye State.

In spite of the local hype surrounding the three data centers, we have few concrete details about their progress. Amazon, in an effort to protect the data of their customers, has been characteristically quiet about the data centers’ development. Cybersecurity is a chief concern of the tech giant, so it’s not surprising that they should want to keep details about the project to themselves for now. What we do know is that these three data centers will nearly double the total number of data centers Amazon has in the United States at the moment. It’s suspected that the new data centers will facilitate Amazon’s continued endeavors in the extremely lucrative field of cloud computing.

Here at Construction Protection Systems, we’re proud to have played a part, however small, in this exciting new phase of growth and development in Central Ohio. Stay tuned for more updates from the makers of 1-2-3 Door Shield – the original, reusable door protection system.

San Francisco MOMA Expansion to Be Complete in October 2015

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San Francisco MOMA Expansion to Be Complete in October 2015In May of 2013, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art closed its doors and broke ground on an ambitious expansion that would more than double its exhibition space. Now, more than two years later, the museum is nearly ready to welcome visitors once again.

 

 

This project has been unique in a number of respects. When museums expand, they typically remain open or move their exhibition space to a temporary satellite location in order to maintain their flow of revenue from membership and admission fees. Because of the extent of the renovation and the high cost of real estate in the city, the San Francisco MOMA didn’t have this luxury. The building’s construction has also been challenging for the developers due to space restrictions that have made it difficult to stabilize cranes and move materials.

Once completed, the ten-story addition will house much of the museum’s permanent collection which has grown exponentially in recent years thanks to generous private donations. In addition to exhibition space, the expansion will also include roughly 15,000 square feet of free-access public spaces for patrons to enjoy. In total, the cost of the project is estimated at $610 million.

The structure, which incorporates innovative eco-friendly features such as gray water recycling and a vertical garden, was designed with LEED Gold certification in mind. Designers also made sure to include plenty of opportunities for visitors to take in the scenery of the surrounding city. A terrace on the seventh floor will offer patrons panoramic views of the city skyline and the San Francisco Bay.

The construction is slated for completion in late October, 2015, and the museum will officially reopen in early 2016. Here at Construction Protection Systems, we’re proud to have played a part, however small, in the completion of this monumental undertaking. Stay tuned for more updates from the makers of 1-2-3 Door Shield – the original, reusable door protection system.

Medford Leas: Retirement Community and Nature Preserve

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Medford Leas: Retirement Community and Nature PreserveWhat do you envision when you hear the words “retirement community?”

For many of us, nondescript condominiums and roads built for golf carts are likely the first things to come to mind. Aside from the occasional plastic philodendron tucked away in a corner, we can reasonably expect these places to be more or less devoid of plant life.

At Medford Leas in New Jersey, however, residents are treated to a wholly different experience. Nestled in the heart of the Medford Leas Nature Preserve and Barton Arboretum, this retirement community is home to 600 retirees and over 200 acres of public garden space.

According to online publication My Central Jersey, “The mission of the arboretum is to promote the appreciation and knowledge of horticulture and to emphasize the importance of integrating nature into people’s living, working and recreational environments.” Medford Leas also aims to uphold principles of environmental sustainability in order to ensure that the comfort of its residents doesn’t come at the expense of the local ecosystem.

The community was founded in 1971 by The Estaugh, a non-profit organization affiliated with the Quaker Church. Over the course of its 40 year history, Medford Leas has established nearly 100 committees, many of which focus on environmental education and stewardship. These include 20 horticulture committees, a bird watching committee and an apiary committee.

In an interview with My Central Jersey, Jack Carman, designer of the Back Porch Garden at Medford Leas, explains that, “Nature-based research is growing and continues to show that exposure to nature lowers blood pressure, reduces stress, increases attention, creates a reduction in pain and decreases agitation.”

Here at Construction Protection Systems, we’re proud to have had the opportunity to make a contribution, however small, to the tranquil community of Medford Leas.

Stay tuned for more updates from the makers of 1-2-3 Door Shield – the original, reusable door protection system.

Houston’s Baylor Medical Center Gains New Designation

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Houston’s Baylor Medical Center Gains New DesignationSince it opened in 2006, the doctors and researchers at the Baylor College of Medicine have been providing cancer patients in the Houston, Texas region the care and attention they need to combat their conditions. Now, thanks to a prestigious new distinction from the National Cancer Institute, the Baylor Cancer Center will have access to even more of the resources and equipment they need to tend to their patients.

On July 30, the Baylor College of Medicine was officially designated as a Comprehensive Cancer Center by the NCI. Since this designation was first conceived in 1971, only 43 institutions in the country have attained the coveted title of Comprehensive Cancer Center. In Texas, the second most populous state in the Union, there are only two other such centers available to cancer patients. By contrast, California has seven NCI designated comprehensive cancer centers.

Dr. Kent Osborne, director of the Baylor Cancer Center, weighed in on the impact of the hospital’s new designation in a recent interview with the Houston Chronicle. “Baylor’s new designation will expand opportunities for research and patient access to state-of-the-art clinical care,” said Osborne.

With this designation, Baylor will join the MD Anderson Cancer Center to provide industry-leading care for patients in Houston. Along with its new title, the Baylor Cancer Center will also receive a 5 year grant worth $14.5 million dollars to devote to new equipment and care services.

Here at Construction Protection Systems, we’re proud to have had the opportunity to make a contribution, however small, to the growth and development of this essential resource for cancer treatment and research in Texas.

Stay tuned for more updates from the makers of 1-2-3 Door Shield – the original, reusable door protection system.      

Historic Miami Hotel Receives a 21st Century Renovation

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Historic Miami Hotel Receives a 21st Century RenovationThe Faena District is an ambitious $1 billion luxury residential and retail project that spans a full six city blocks in Miami Beach. Once it’s complete, the massive complex will be home to a shopping mall, 169-room hotel, and multi-million dollar condos. At the heart of the Faena District lies a symbol of an earlier period of wealth and prosperity in Miami Beach: the Saxony Hotel.

When it was built in 1948, the Saxony was one of the first luxury resort hotels in Miami Beach. The Saxony was a vision of opulence, and an inspiration for many of the other luxury hotels that would later come to occupy the sandy shores of Miami. In its heyday, the Saxony boasted the finest amenities of the era including an Olympic-sized swimming pool, private beach, tennis courts and air conditioning. In fact, it was the first air-conditioned hotel in Miami Beach!

When the hotel originally opened, real estate analysts estimated that each room cost roughly $21,000 to build. In today’s dollars, that equates to a cost of nearly $200,000 per room. The Saxony was nicknamed the “Ivory Tower” by locals for the hotel’s high-end rooftop nightclub

Today, thanks to the joint efforts of Argentine real-estate developer Alan Faena and Ukrainian-born businessman Len Blatavatnik, this Miami Beach landmark is getting a new lease on life. Here at Construction Protection Systems we’re proud to have had a part, however small, in the restoration of this iconic Miami Beach hotel.

Stay tuned for more updates from the makers of 1-2-3 Door Shield – the original, reusable door protection system.

American Airlines Operation Center Nears Completion

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American Airlines Operation Center Nears CompletionIn 2013, American Airlines emerged from bankruptcy and became the largest airline in the world through a $14 billion merger with US Airways. Since then, the 80-year- old airline has been working to consolidate its operations with those of US Airways in a series of restructuring initiatives.

The latest of these initiatives calls for the relocation of the US Airways flight operations center to American Airlines’ headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas. In order to accommodate this huge influx of personnel, American Airlines is constructing a new 149,000 square foot joint operations center for an estimated $88 million. Once completed, the operations center will house over 1,400 employees who oversee everything from flight logistics to customer relations. Roughly 600 of these employees will come from the current US Airways operations facility located outside of Pittsburgh.

The building is being named after Robert Baker, a former American Airlines executive who managed the airline’s operations for over 35 years until his retirement in 2002. In an interview with local Fort Worth publication the Star-Telegram, American Airlines Chief Executive Doug Parker cited Baker’s “love of aviation and commitment to safety” as determining factors in the naming of the facility.

American Airlines broke ground on the facility last July, and expects it to be complete by the third quarter of this year.

At Construction Protection Systems, we’re proud to have had the opportunity to make a contribution, however small, to this massive undertaking. Stay tuned for more updates from the makers of 1-2-3 Door Shield – the original, reusable door protection system.

Texas A&M – San Antonio Completes Central Academic Building

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Texas A&M – San Antonio Completes Central Academic BuildingThe largest university in Texas just got bigger. Texas A&M – San Antonio, a campus whose student body has grown by over 200 percent in the last five years, opened the doors of its new central academic building in the South Side of the city late last year. The 170,750 square-foot building is home to a new auditorium, as well as four floors of classrooms, science labs, and lecture halls.

Just three years ago, the San Antonio campus consisted of a single multi-purpose building. Today, that number has quadrupled. The campus was founded in part to support the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s initiative to enroll 630,000 students in college by 2015. Currently, Texas A&M – San Antonio’s enrollment stands at roughly 4,500 students. By 2025, the campus hopes to have 25,000 students enrolled.

School officials are optimistic about the school’s expected growth, both for the benefit of the student body and the city in which the campus resides. According to an article published by My San Antonio, “Most of [Texas A&M – San Antonio’s] students are from the city’s South and West sides – areas that officials believe will grow by hundreds of thousands of residents by 2030. Many are the first in their families to go to college.” In total, nearly 75 percent of the student body is composed of first-generation college students.

At Construction Protection Systems, we’re proud to have had the opportunity to make a contribution, however small, to the growth and development of this up-and-coming campus. Stay tuned for more updates from the makers of 1-2-3 Door Shield – the original, reusable door protection system.

FBI Completes New Regional Headquarters in Miramar, Florida

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FBI Completes New Regional Headquarters in Miramar, FloridaThe Federal Bureau of Investigations has maintained a significant presence in South Florida from their central field office in Miami Beach since 1985. Agents have spent the last thirty years investigating cases concerning everything from counterfeiting schemes to insurance fraud and child pornography in the Sunshine state. After three decades, the bureau had outgrown its regional offices and has since consolidated their operations to a new 475,000 square foot facility in nearby Miramar.

The new headquarters is comprised of a series of buildings constructed on a sprawling twenty acre plot of land. The complex’s design is not only visually striking, but also environmentally sound. It was constructed in accordance with LEED certification standards, and is oriented in an east-west direction in order to minimize solar heat gain from the harsh Floridian daytime sun exposure. Rainwater capture structures, in addition to a water reclamation system, are expected to cut water consumption in the mammoth structure by as much as 95%. Wetlands in the vicinity of the facility were also restored during the construction process.

All told, the project cost $156 million, nearly $40 million less than the original projected cost of construction. It was designed by the Chicago-based architecture firm Krueck and Sexton, and built by Hensel Phelps Construction of Colorado. At Construction Protection Systems, we’re proud to have had the opportunity to make a contribution, however small, to the completion of this enormous undertaking. Stay tuned for more updates from the makers of 1-2-3 Door Shield – the original, reusable door protection system.

In Seattle, Mixed-Use Project Revitalizes Neighborhood

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post3Constructed on the site of the former Ballard Library, the Ballard West Mixed-Use Building constitutes the latest initiative in Seattle’s ongoing effort to provide its citizens with affordable, environmentally friendly housing options.

The six-story building, in addition to housing over a hundred workforce and affordable housing units, will also be the new home to nearly ten thousand square feet of commercial space. City officials are hopeful that the building will be a boon to the economy of Ballard – a neighborhood which has struggled to combat homelessness for years.

The building was designed with LEED Certification in mind. Likewise, it features a number of innovative features that promote efficient energy use and environmental sustainability. The innovative heat recovery system uses warm air drawn from an underground parking garage to supplement the building’s water heaters. A green roof provides insulation from solar gain and further reduces the energy load required to maintain its internal temperature.

The 200-foot long structure was constructed in three distinct sections in an effort to make it blend seamlessly with the existing architecture in the neighborhood. The project, which began in 2011, was finally completed at the end of 2014.

The Ballard West Mixed-Use building represents a paradigm shift in modern American civic planning. This holistic approach to urban design aims to provide residents of the neighborhood with cost effective spaces in which to work and live without sacrificing construction quality. By housing commercial and residential space within the same four walls, the mixed use ethos also has the potential to dramatically reduce fuel consumption among the building’s residents.

It’s been exciting to follow this project from conception, and play a small part in its completion. We hope that in the future more cities will emulate Seattle’s efforts to provide its citizens with forward-thinking housing options such as the Ballard West Project. Stay tuned for more updates from the makers of 123 Door Shield – the original, reusable door protection system.

Facebook Completes Second Phase of Altoona Data Center

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post2Mark Zuckerberg’s social networking behemoth has recently completed the second phase of its data center facility outside of Des Moines, Iowa. The 476,000 square foot building is the new home of countless photos, status updates, and pieces of personal information submitted by Facebook’s 1.3 billion users. Brice Towns, manager of the new data center, aptly described the enormous facility as the place where “your ‘likes’ are living,” in a recent interview with the Des Moines Register.

Facebook isn’t the first tech giant to set up shop in the plains of Central Iowa. In 2007, Google completed work on a similarly huge data center in nearby Council Bluffs. Microsoft is also currently in the process of building a $1.1 billion data center in West Des Moines. When the four stage project is complete, Microsoft’s data center will house a staggering 1.16 million square feet of server space.

And now, onto the question that’s likely on everyone’s mind. Why Iowa? Are they running out of room in Silicon Valley? Are these servers corn fed? Not exactly.

But they are wind fed, and Iowa has plenty of wind. In fact, Iowa leads the country in wind power production. In 2013, 27% of Iowa’s electricity was generated by wind turbines.

You see, servers get hot – particularly when you put a few thousand of them in a room together. In many data centers, server temperatures are regulated with costly, inefficient water cooling systems. In Iowa, however, the wind alone is sufficient to keep the servers cool. The air cooling facilitated by the Iowan plains is so efficient, that on some days the data center staff has to turn on the heat to keep the servers humming along in their optimal thermal butter zone.

But Iowa’s ample wind supply isn’t the only thing drawing big tech companies to The Hawkeye State. Iowa also has a great deal of undeveloped land, and a relatively low risk of natural disasters. In addition, a 2007 piece of state legislation grants tax breaks on the sale and use of the computer equipment needed to keep data centers such as these running. Clearly, Iowa’s transformation into a Midwestern tech hub is no accident.

At Construction Protection Systems, we’re proud to have done our part, however small, to help facilitate the completion of this massive undertaking. Stay tuned for more!