Engineering Inc. - November/December 2008 - (Page 25)

mULtI-PRojECt FEAtURE Birmingham-based LBYD Civil and Structural Engineers was selected to design the state-of-the-art educational facility, intended for 1,600 students with an expansion capability of 2,400 students and featuring an outdoor art patio, practice and playing fields for football and soccer and parking lots across its 65 acres. “The school district wanted a new facility that would not negatively impact the Cahaba River and that would be environmentally integrated within the watershed and easily adapted for future student population growth,” says LBYD Principal Rick Nail. “Building placement and parking lot layouts were restricted by the site’s proximity to the protected Cahaba River, the existing tree canopy and the ruggedness of the existing topography.” To minimize the building’s environmental impact, LBYD matched the existing grading as closely as possible. Engineers studied the natural topography and modeled the impact on tree preservation of various grading options, ultimately choosing the one with the least impact. To meet the school district’s goal of environmental responsibility, LBYD designed an aboveground storm-water detention/retention pond to supply irrigation water for campus landscaping. “Bioswales were used in the denser parking lot to enable pretreatment of storm water and an opportunity for groundwater recharge,” Nail says. LBYD’s civil engineering division was responsible for mass grading the site, as well as for detailed grading for the building and parking lots. The firm also designed all stormwater drainage and collection, erosion control and the site’s utility infrastructure. “We worked closely with the architect, landscape architect and the Cahaba River Society on orienting the building to avoid any negative impact on the river’s flow and water quality,” says Nail. The company’s structural engineering division developed designs for the floors, columns, ceilings and roof systems to ensure the new building’s structural integrity. LBYD also designed a pedestrian bridge across the river to connect the main building to the athletic fields. Rick Nail Close collaboration among LBYD, Trussville City Schools, local officials, Davis Architects, Inc., Robert Marvin/ Howell Beach & Associates, and the Cahaba River Society (CRA) paid off when the project received CRA’s 2008 Blue-Green Design Innovation Award. ENGINEERING INC. NovEmbER / dECEmbER 2008 25

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Engineering Inc. - September/October 2008 Contents From ACEC to You News & Notes Market Watch Legislative Action Engineering Goes Back to School Winning the Talent War Mastering A Hard-Luck Economy Education Makes the Grade in Green Construction 2008 Young Professionals of the Year 2008 Fall Conference Highlights Technology Members in the News One On One

Engineering Inc. - November/December 2008

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