EllisDon

Pinnacle of success┬áEllisDon Corporation is midway through the construction of a prestigious new addition to the Toronto skyline. Senior project manager Jon Thompson talks to Gay Sutton about the challenges of building on a small footprint of land and how great relationships have kept the schedule on track. TorontoÔÇÖs skyline is evolving fast, and one of the newest additions to its cosmopolitan outline is a slim inspirational shaft of glass, rising 53 stories into the sky. Designed by New York architects Kohn Pederson Fox in conjunction with TorontoÔÇÖs Page and Steele, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel and The Residences at the Ritz-Carlton will be a beacon of luxury as well as a vision of sheer elegance.  The 267-room five-star hotel that will occupy the lower floors is due to open in spring next year, and the 159 luxury condominium residences on the upper floors will start to be fitted out in 2009. Meanwhile, shared between these two rather different sets of residents will be a range of business and leisure facilities including a grand ballroom, restaurants, conference facilities and a luxury spa.This luxury landmark hotel and condominium building is being developed through a partnership involving Graywood Developments Ltd., Cadillac Fairview Corp., and The Ritz Carlton Hotel Co. LLC. The site is located on a parcel of previously undeveloped land in the heart of downtown Toronto, which has a tiny footprint in comparison with the vast 990,000 square feet of floor space that it will be providing. And this space constraint has presented construction company EllisDon Corporation with one of its most complex challenges. ÔÇ£Essentially, weÔÇÖre constructing almost a million square feet of floor space on a postage stamp,ÔÇØ explains senior project manager Jon Thompson. ÔÇ£But weÔÇÖre a very competitive company, and we like projects that have unique challenges.ÔÇØThe challenge has been multifaceted, and it has been one that the company has relished. The site lies is in the heart of the entertainment district of Toronto and is very busy, so getting materials into the area, onto the site and stored ready for use has required long and careful planning and proper execution. And to do this, the company was able to draw on its resources and knowledge. EllisDon is one of the few construction companies with an active research and development department. This means its people are continuously identifying issues, providing solutions and delivering specialized knowledge. ÔÇ£The fact is, our engineering, R&D and quality assurance teams have solved many of the trickiest building challenges across the country,ÔÇØ Thompson says. ÔÇ£Paying attention to the details ensures that a better quality building actually gets built. It ensures a building will last and function as it is supposed to. It also ensures a smoother, faster transition from the conceptual design to the final execution. ItÔÇÖs the way we think about the details that sets our team apart. ItÔÇÖs what drives our efforts to find innovative ways to do things better and solve problems more efficiently.ÔÇØ EllisDonÔÇÖs engineering, R&D and QA teams get actively involved, from the beginning of a project to completion, to optimize the execution plan for each project in a number of areas. ÔÇ£We were brought in at an early stage by the client, and this was of utmost importance,ÔÇØ Thompson continues. ÔÇ£It meant we were able to plan the entire operation before we even put up the first piece of hoarding.ÔÇØ The planning stage covered every aspect and detail of the build project. Working closely with suppliers and subcontractors, the severe lack of storage space was overcome by scheduling materials to arrive on a just-in-time basis, meaning they were delivered to the site on the day they were required. Meanwhile, the company has also liaised closely with city authorities and with local corporations regarding possible traffic disruptions and the use of the surrounding streets.┬áEllisDon broke ground on the project in early 2007, and construction work has advanced quickly, in spite of the fact that the weather during the last two winters has not been kind. This winter alone has seen the highest precipitation (snow and rain) on record, and this has slowed and halted progress at times.┬á ÔÇ£The last couple of winters we also lost a number of working days to the weather,ÔÇØ Thompson says. ÔÇ£However, in spite of all that, weÔÇÖve been able to hold our dates, plus or minus a few weeks, and weÔÇÖre very proud of that. I believe itÔÇÖs a testament to our pre-planning and to the excellent relationships weÔÇÖve built with our clients and the key trades with whom we partner.ÔÇØ┬á The build itself is a feat of engineering and design. Tall and slender, the structure will be subject to some extremely strong winds coming off nearby Lake Ontario, and these will be fiercest near the top of the building. ÔÇ£One of the best structural designers in North America, Halcrow Yolles, was brought in to work on the design.ÔÇØ A complex set of calculations were based on a whole range of data from geotechnical information to wind studies. The resulting design has been something of a challenge for the contractors tasked with delivering the end product. ÔÇ£The design incorporates a significant amount of post tensioning,ÔÇØ Thompson continues. ÔÇ£And the comments we got back from our rebar and post tensioning contractors said that it was one of the toughest post tensioning rebar projects that theyÔÇÖve ever encountered. But it has gone pretty smoothly, and the trades have done a fantastic job.ÔÇØA considerable amount of structural steel has also been used in the construction of the building. ÔÇ£The neat thing about that is that itÔÇÖs at the bottom of the building, counteracting the forces being created by the wind load at the top.ÔÇØ And this structural steel work has enabled the architects to achieve some remarkable things. For example, there is a grand ballroom on the second floor that has a single clear span from end to end and is two stories in height. There are no columns or pillars disrupting its elegance. ÔÇ£This has required some significant structural steel to be incorporated into the concrete and steel post tensioning components. In the end the forces are all channeled back into the ground, and we have an immensely strong and sturdy building.ÔÇØLooking beyond the structural elements of the building, the energy provision has been tackled in an innovative way. Heating and cooling are provided, but without the use of either chillers or boilers. Does that sound impossible? ItÔÇÖs not. Local energy company Enwave Energy Corporation has developed a revolutionary distribution network that supplies steam and chilled water to customers in the Toronto area via underground pipes. The chilled water comes directly from Lake Ontario. ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs an innovative deep-lake water system that provides us with renewable energy,ÔÇØ Thompson says. ÔÇ£Not only is it cost-effective, but itÔÇÖs very eco-friendly.ÔÇØPerhaps the crowning glory of the buildingÔÇöand the one by which it will ultimately be knownÔÇöis its pointed glass roof. ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs a glass pinnacle that acts as the roof and functions as what we call a light box. It takes light from inside the building and radiates it out through the roof like a beacon, illuminating the top of the building.ÔÇØ And once the hotel opens next spring, its full glory will be there to shine out over the waterfront.┬á ┬á