The RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg Expansion has won the 2017 Canadian Institute of Steel Construction (CISC) Manitoba/Northwestern Ontario Steel Design Award in the Engineering category.
Joint winners of the award are RBC Convention Centre (Owner); Supreme Steel LP (Fabricator/Detailer Member); LM Architectural Group & Number TEN Architectural Group (Architect); Crosier Kilgour & Partners Ltd.(Structural Engineer); Stuart Olson Construction, Ltd. (General Contractor); Supreme Steel LP / TDS Industrial Services (Steel Detailer); and Supreme Steel LP (Steel Erector).
The $180-million expansion project nearly doubles the area of the original convention centre in downtown Winnipeg, which was completed in 1975, from 492,000 square feet to 832,000 square feet.
The expansion provides an additional 131,000 square feet of exhibition space on the third floor, which can now accommodate more than 680 exhibit booths.
The expansion was built on a parking lot across York Avenue from the older building and is joined to it by a link above the street.
Ken Warkentin, a spokesman for Supreme Steel LP in Winnipeg, says his company fabricated and erected 2,500 tonnes of structural steel.
"The project began in June 2013 and was completed at the end of 2015 with occupancy in November 2015 — four months ahead of schedule," Warkentin said. "Winnipeg had been awarded the 2015 Grey Cup and the owners wanted the expansion available to host a Grey Cup event."
Meeting the accelerated construction schedule and coordinating everything with its partners, presented Supreme Steel with some challenges, Warkentin says.
"Other challenges we had to deal with were building the expansion while the original convention centre was in full operation, and having to work around the city’s schedule while we installed the walkway above York Avenue," he said.
Susan Grieef, principal with structural engineers Crosier Kilgour & Partners Ltd., says the project came with some unusual engineering complexities not typically found in standard building renovations.
"The project had its challenges," said Grieef. "One of the engineering intricacies was creating a large, open exhibition hall over York Avenue that was capable of supporting semi-trailer trucks."
The City of Winnipeg, the owner of the convention centre, wanted the expansion to create a single, continuous exhibition hall that could be divided up into multiple spaces.
"Exhibitions and conferences are getting larger, and the owner wanted the expanded convention centre to be able to accommodate them," said Grieef.
In order to create a large exhibition space that spanned a busy street, long-span steel girders needed to be fabricated and installed.
The project also needed to create acoustic separation between the exhibition hall and ballroom beneath. It did so by means of a split-floor system that combined a special acoustic membrane made of recycled rubber and polyurethane with a concrete slab on top of the membrane.
"The result of the expansion is not only a flexible, functional space for the convention centre, but also a showcase space that has become a new Winnipeg landmark," said Grieef. "And it’s expected to receive official LEED Silver certification very soon."
The RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg Expansion project team received its award in a spring 2017 gala ceremony in the York Ballroom of the RBC Convention Centre in downtown Winnipeg.
There were award submissions in 11 categories, with 54 winning companies.
The winning projects are the University of Manitoba Active Living Centre in Winnipeg (Recreational Award of Merit); Rail loadout tower in Yorkton, SK (Outside of Region Award of Merit); Glass House Skylofts in Winnipeg (Residential Award of Merit); East St. Paul Operations Building in
East St. Paul, MB (Public Award of Merit); St. Gianna Church in Winnipeg (Commercial Award of Merit); Manitoba Hydro Bipole III Converter Building — Riel Station in Winnipeg (Industrial Award of Merit); Canadian Mennonite University Marpeck Commons and Bridge in Winnipeg (Bridges Award of Merit); Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries Heritage Wall in Winnipeg (Architecture Award); Solar Tracker in Sperling, MB; RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg Expansion (Engineering Award).
The awards ceremony was the first for the Manitoba and northwestern Ontario region of the CISC, with the next one planned for April, 2019.
1/2
Here are the massive steel beams and trusses which were erected to give the City Room its roof and shape. Over 2,500 tonnes of structural steel was used on the project.
Photo: Crosier Kilgour & Partners Ltd.
2/2
The new City Room at the RBC Convention Centre in Winnipeg was designed for exhibition space. The room spans York Boulevard and was built during the recent award-winning $180-million expansion of the centre.
Photo: Gerry Kopelow"
Recent Comments
comments for this post are closed