Dimeo Construction receives 2020 Build CT Award for Yale Science Building

Each year the Associated General Contractors of Connecticut (AGC) honors excellence in construction management and trades through their Build CT Awards Program. This past spring, Dimeo Construction received AGC’s first place in the “New Large Construction” category for the Yale Science Building (YSB).

The seven-floor, 280,000 square feet building is low-energy efficient, accommodates specialized research labs, and houses a complex courtyard beautifully landscaped. The contractor relied on multiple planning activities to launch and complete the project.

Each of the buildings specialized research areas have their own complex mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems, and structural requirements. Prefabrication enabled a safer, more efficient installation of these systems’ components. Chilled beams for heating and cooling lab spaces helped minimize energy consumption.

The project incorporated over 50 trade contractors, with a daily labor force that peaked at over 400 workers. During the build, the project team engaged in multiple community programs to help promote safety, education, and development. This involved engaging with community programs,  including the Building Pathways of CT and Construction Workforce Initiative.

As part of the partnership with Yale and the design team, Dimeo also participated in several lectures to students at the Yale School of Architecture. These lectures focused on the relationship and cooperation between the owner, architect, and contractor on a major construction project by using real-life examples of challenges that arose during the project, and how the issues were dealt with as a team to achieve the best possible outcome for all parties involved.
 
Overall, the success of the project ultimately relied upon the commitment of the entire team to truly understand and place the interests of Yale University first, while helping facilitate the success of each subcontractor, trade, and craftsman partner.

The Build Connecticut Award celebrates not only the work, creativity, and ingenuity of the construction firm, but honors the entire team that built the structure, from the owner to the architect to the consultants to the subcontractors, and to the skilled trade workers who laid the foundation, erected the steel, framed the walls, installed the electrical, mechanical, and plumbing systems, and performed every other function.

The stakeholders in the project were:

• Construction Manager: Dimeo Construction Company
• Owner: Yale University
• Architect/Engineer: Stantec
• Design Architect: Pelli Clarke Pelli
• Major Subcontractors: Giordano Construction Co., Harry Grodsky & Co., Inc., New England   Laboratory Casework Co., Paul Dinto Electrical Contractors, Siemens Industry, Inc.