Architectural Concrete Wins Top Prize
Baker Concrete Construction, of Ft. Lauderdale, FL, wowed the judges of the Decorative Concrete Council's Decorative Concrete Awards competition with a striking architectural concrete installation at a Santiago Calatrava-designed project in Florida.
The company received the WOW! Award as best overall project for its work at the University of South Florida Polytechnic 555 Building.
The design included an elliptical-shaped structure highlighted with exposed concrete raker portals as well as concrete polished floors, according to the award announcement.
The award competition is in its eighth year and is organized by the Decorative Concrete Council, a specialty council of the American Society of Concrete Contractors. Baker Concrete along with nearly 30 other winning companies were recognized during a ceremony at the World of Concrete, Feb. 2 in Las Vegas.
Wow Award Honor
The Decorative Concrete Council further described the USF Polytechnic project as follows.
The first architectural concrete constructed were retaining walls with integral concrete seating caps, the announcement explained. These walls defined the building’s perimeter from the reflection ponds and total one mile in length.
The main building’s architectural concrete began with 142 column portals spaced at 8 feet on center in a curving layout, framing the endless hallway and supporting the second story of the building’s perimeter. The shape of these portals required triangular bracing between two columns, using self-consolidating concrete to monolithically pour. After column construction, the second-level elevated beams and slabs were completed and followed by polished concrete ground floor slabs.
Additional Winners
Other winners in the competition were:
Cast-In-Place Stamped, Over 5,000 square feet
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Main Street Temecula Bridge |
Cast-In-Place Stamped, Under 5,000 square feet
Polished, Over 5,000 square feet
Polished, Under 5,000 square feet
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Legacy Learning Studios |
Overlays Under ¼ inch, Over 5,000 square feet
Overlays Under ¼ inch, Under 5,000 square feet
Overlays ¼ inch - 2 inches, Under 5,000 square feet
Cast-in-Place Special Finishes, Over 5,000 square feet
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Aruba Residence |
Cast-in-Place Special Finishes, Under 5,000 square feet
Vertical Application, Under 5,000 square feet
Concrete Artistry, Under 5,000 square feet
Multiple Applications, Over 5,000 square feet
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Tarbut V’Torah Community Day School |
Multiple Applications, Under 5,000 square feet
Stained, Under 5,000 square feet
Architectural Concrete, Over 5,000 square feet
Architectural Concrete, Under 5,000 square feet,
In a new category, Project Video, Tom Ralston Concrete won 1st place for a video of the Santa Cruz Roundabout project.
The Decorative Concrete Council is composed of contractors, manufacturers and suppliers of decorative concrete products. The Council is dedicated to improving the technical and business expertise of the contractors that pursue this specialty market.
For information about the 2017 awards program visit http://www.ascconline.org.