Good Team Work at NTW

The team from New Tech West has been extremely dedicated in their ACE mentoring sessions.

Earlier in March they learned about Estimating.  Groups of students were given a floor plan of lab casework and 4 bids from sub-contractors.  They needed to select the bid that they would use on the project. Students needed to measure all of the equipment and review the bids for accuracy and completeness.

Another session in March stressed the importance of Scheduling. An overview of construction management services was presented by mentor Kyle Jones.  The year's lessons have been providing the students with knowledge to help them work towards their final project.

Half Way Point at NTW

Our ACE Mentoring sessions are over half way through for this current year.  Earlier in February we hosted guest speaker Dr. Donald Visco, Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies and Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, from The University of Akron.  He gave great advice on how NOT to pick a college major.  The easy to understand presentation explained the many different types of engineering and their related careers.  Dr. Visco gave several highlights of the fun projects and opportunities the students would have as engineering majors at the University of Akron.  Though most of our students are not Seniors, it never is too early to start thinking about their future.

Dr. Visco on "How Not to Choose a Major"

Our second meeting in February focused on Google Sketch-Up.  Students were shown several designs of bus shelters, ranging from the traditional to artsy.  Students were given one hour to sketch a design of their choice.  They were able to apply finishes to the designs and also made several views and which they were able to animate.  At the end of class, each student explained key features of their bus shelter and why they designed it like they did.

Michael and Yuuki work on their bus shelter designs.

Mentor Katie Land from Stantec showed advanced sketch up
projects that she completed.

The students had a lot of fun with this.  One design looked like a boom box, one looked like a fire place (all red brick), one had numerous sky lights and plug in stations for cell phones, one had a love seat and individual chairs instead of benches.  The designs were as unique as the students.

Transportation Guest Speakers at NTW

New Tech West was pleased to host two special guest speakers on January 17^th: Joe Shaffer, Director of Engineering and Project Development at RTA and Myron Pakush, ODOT Deputy Director for District 12.

Mr. Joe Shaffer of RTA

Mr. Myron Pakush of ODOT

Mr.  Shaffer and Mr. Pakush spoke to the students about the variety of engineering needs at their respective employers as well as some of their recently completed projects.  A few of the more interesting projects discussed included the current construction of the inter-belt bridge, the Euclid Corridor project (Health Line) and the Airport Tunnel project.

SLOW UP          HANG UP          LOOK UP

Mr. Pakush handed out orange thumb rings to the students and mentors as an important reminder to not text and drive. 

The Project Managers (near) and the Engineers (far)

Team Architect

Students divided into teams (Contractor/Project Manager, Architect and Site Engineer) for the final RFP project.  Another committee was also formed, a sustainable design committee.  All of these groups will work together in subsequent meetings to produce the required deliverables as per the RFP. 

NTW Students Learn About M/E/P

By Student Blogger: Trenton Garrison

Bob Sotock from TES Engineering
presents on M/E/P Engineering

Today in ACE we started the meeting with a review of what we learned on last week's field trip to the Metro Health Middleburg Heights Health Center Construction stie.  Then we began to learn about Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing systems and the many safety codes.

For our activity, we were given a budget of $12,000,000 and a requirement of achieving at least 5 LEED points and needed to select building material for a school building.  For example, for the exterior wall system, the three options were painted block, split faced block or brick and metal panels.  The budget for those went from $500,000 to $4,000,000; so it was important to develop priorities and stick to the budget.

Crunching numbers on the budget sheet.

In the end, all of the teams were able to come in under budget in their selections and meet the minimum of 5 LEED points.  It was interesting to see some teams even meet LEED Gold and come in just under $12,000,000 and others came in slightly under $8,000,000 but still were LEED certified.



The students made a story board of their selections and explained
the rationale behind their choices.



John Hay Juniors Tour the Flats East Development Project

On Wednesday, December 19 the John Hay juniors toured the Flats East Development project led by Gilbane Building Company project personnel. Students put on their waterproof boots and braved the muddy terrain for a VIP tour of the new office tower and hotel which are currently under construction.

Students began their field trip in the Gilbane trailer for a quick overview on the project and safety briefing given by District Operations Manager, Scott Orr. Scott told the students about the importance of the project, interesting aspects, and the future vision of the Flats East Development plan.

Senior Project Engineer, Bill Helmet led the students on the tour of the construction site. The group ventured to the 14th floor to view the suite where Ernst & Young offices will be located. Students admired the view over the Browns Stadium and Lake Erie as project personnel discussed with students the current phase of construction and what steps will be taken to complete the project on schedule.

After the office tower tour, Bill led the students through the hotel; stopping in to a check out two mock-up rooms so the students could get an idea of what the hotel rooms will look like once they are completed.

The tour ended back in the jobsite trailer with pizza and a Q&A session. Thank you to Flat East team for welcoming our ACE students. Special thank you to Linda Hein, Bill Helmet, and Scott Orr.

NTW Tours Metro Health Jobsite

It was a clear crisp day when the students of New Tech West toured the New Metro Health November Family Health Center construction site.  The students began in the job trailer and learned the job responsiblities of the Project Manager, Project Superintendent, Project Engineer and Project Clerk from Construction Manager Regency Construction Services, Inc.  The students got to see the complete set of drawings for this 57,000 SF builiding - and the 300 drawing sheets and several volumes of specifications left an impression on some of the students.

The students learned the importance of building a mock-up and why the coordination of trades is very important.  Many of the students liked seeing the tar equipment for the roof; though they didn't like the smell.  

Who would like to review these specifications and flip
through the 300 drawing sheets? Anyone??




Check out the steel column that goes from the floor to the roof.



Used for the tar roof.



Project Superintendent Terry Tesmer (far left) and Project Manager Luke Dautovic (far right) with ACE students, Mr. Leutenegger and Mentor Monica Bruaw.





Mock - Up Wall.  The grout did not dry to the color desired so
a new color was selected.



NTW Students Learn to Survey

Student Blog Summary by Brandon: in progress

Nandi enters a sewer code that Andrew found on the list. Matt
from CT Consultants looks on.

One group is getting a data point of a sewer grate.

It takes a team to find the proper code for a guard rail.



Everyone gets in close to look at the GPS screen.



Mike from CT Consultants enters the proper code.

Collecting a data point for a guard rail.