Proj Overview

Project Overview

Vertiport Chicago, located in the Illinois Medical District eight minutes from downtown, provides a full-range of helicopter services. The buildings consist of a 30,000 square foot hangar that accommodates space rental, fueling stations and maintenance facilities, and an 11,700 square foot, one-story office for private companies to use as a business platform.

The terminal is available 24/7 for the emergency needs of the surrounding medical buildings in the nation’s largest urban medical district.

Precast Solution

The owners selected a load bearing, insulated precast sandwich panel system as an integral part of the building’s design, to take advantage of the rapid construction, high durability and over-all cost effectiveness inherent with precast concrete systems. A total of 35,000 square feet of precast wall and hollowcore floor panels were utilized for the two structures.

The precast panels took less than 2 weeks to erect, even with the challenges of erecting adjacent to elevated train tracks.

 

Awards_
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Project Team

Architect

Ware Malcomb 

Engineer

Alta Engineering, Ltd 

Contractor

The George Sollitt Construction Company 

Owner

Vertiport Chicago 

Precaster

Dukane Precast

Key Project Attributes

  • Vertiport Chicago offers Emergency Medical Service, as well as corporate and tourist helicopter charters    
  • 12-foot wide, 33- to 35-foot tall precast sandwich panels quickly enclose hanger structure
  • Insulated panels cut energy use    
  • Steel form smooth panel texture provides aesthetic appeal    
  • Fluted areas, reveal strips, and white, black, light and dark grey panel colors adds flair   
  • Michael Conklin, President of Vertiport Chicago, chose precast because it “fit the [surrounding] area and for its speed of construction and durability.”    
  • “We should have little or no maintenance requirements,” says Conklin   
  • Conklin is a retired Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel and former Executive Officer of Marine Helicopter Squadron One for President Bill Clinton.   

Project/Precast Scope

  • 29,000 square feet (140 pieces) of precast insulate wall panels   
  • 3,500 square feet (55 pieces) of 8-inch precast hollowcore    
  • Precast interior wall panels and hollowcore plank form a mezzanine in the hanger   
  • Hanger wall panels range from 33- to 35-feet tall   
  • Office wall panels range from 12- to 17-feet tall   
  • 12-foot-wide sandwich panels are 10 inches thick with an R-14 rating