Denver Public Schools’ Whiteman Elementary, built-in 1955, is located in Denver’s Mayfair Park neighborhood. One of the District’s 2018 school improvement projects, 360 Engineering led the design team as the prime consultant in replacing all existing classroom unit ventilators, in addition to replacing pneumatic controls throughout the building, and several existing roof-mounted exhaust fans. The new digital controls were connected to the recently installed building automation system. The new unit ventilators included both a steam coil and a chilled water coil for future cooling capacity.
During the initial fieldwork at Whiteman, the engineers discovered that replacing the unit ventilators in two classrooms would cause a conflict with an existing chalkboard. The design team architect, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer met on-site and discussed the options with relocating the unit ventilator versus modifying the chalkboard and electrical surface wiremold. In the end, it was determined to be more cost-effective to modify the chalkboard and reroute the electrical wiremold than to rework the steam lines in the crawl space to move the unit ventilator. This conclusion could not have been reached by one team member alone and needed input from all design team members to arrive at the best solution.
Located in Denver’s Platt Park neighborhood, Grant Beacon Middle School defines their cornerstones of student achievement as blended learning, extended learning opportunities, character development, and critical thinking. Part of Denver Public Schools’ 2018 improvement goals, 360 Engineering was selected to lead upgrade projects at the school. These upgrades included a replacement of all existing classroom unit ventilators with new unit ventilators, in addition to the replacement of all pneumatic controls throughout the building—including pneumatic steam valves, sensors, and actuators—with a new building automation system. The new unit ventilators include both a steam coil and a chilled water coil for future cooling capacity.
During design, the size of the new unit ventilators presented a challenge; they were larger than the existing units. Additionally, during initial field observations, 360 Engineering determined the existing unit ventilators were installed in front of a full-size cavity in the exterior wall, rather than ducted directly to the outdoor air intake louvers. Our team worked with Anderson Hallas Architects and directly with the unit ventilator manufacturer to find a solution for installing the new unit ventilators with minimal impact to the surrounding casework, as well as sealing the exterior wall cavity while still providing outdoor air to the new unit ventilator.
Consolidating two elementary schools and a middle school into one campus, Denver Public Schools’ Trevista at Horace Mann opened in 2008. In 2018, 360 Engineering was hired as the prime consultant by the District to lead an upgrade project as part of their Architect/Engineer Design package. The project’s primary goal was to replace existing steam and condensate piping throughout the entire building. The scope of work also included the replacement of the kitchen grease waste line, floor drains, floor sinks, and grease interceptor. This required the removal of existing floor tile and finding new tile to match.
During initial site investigations, 360 Engineering worked with DPS to redefine the proposed construction budget to ensure all costs were covered for the piping replacement. To achieve as much as possible within the budget and the summer construction schedule, the project was split into three phases. 360 Engineering documented the areas where the piping was in most-need of replacement, which was in the tunnels beneath the cafeteria/kitchen as well as beneath the art/computer classroom wing.
Complete record drawings were not available for more than half the building. Using what plans were available, 360 Engineering spent significant in-field time documenting existing steam and condensate piping and associated equipment throughout the building. This included tracing lines from the boiler room into the crawlspaces and tunnels, above ceilings, and inferring locations of piping in the walls. Another challenge was the incorporation of new access hatches for each of the lower level tunnels. To detail the requirements for the hatch installation, 360 Engineering and Martin/Martin spent time sifting through the DPS archives to find the original structural drawings for the building to better understand the slab and tunnel construction. With these drawings, the team put together complete details for installation of the new floor access hatches.
Denver Public Schools’ Inspire Elementary School is a new 90,000 square-foot facility in the growing Northfield neighborhood.
This new school features three (3) early education classrooms, (30) K-5 classrooms, special education classrooms, administration space, common areas, a gymnasium, a cafetorium, and a library and media center. 360 Engineering designed the mechanical system consisting of (7) roof-mounted Variable Air Volume (VAV) Air Handling Units and the plumbing system, including a commercial kitchen.
The fast project timeline posed a significant challenge for the design team, with construction requiring completion before the Fall 2018 semester. This project had one of the most rapid new-building schedules for Denver Public Schools. The school building’s size and complexity, which required intense design elements, made the timeline especially challenging. 360 Engineering worked closely with Denver Public Schools and Humphries Poli Architects (now RATIO) to stay on schedule, meeting all design deadlines for this project.
The design for the middle school addition involved a new 13,000 square-foot two-story wing, a 1,200 square-foot cafetorium, and 1,600-square-feet of locker rooms. Construction for this portion of the campus finished before the Fall 2020 school year.
Denver Public School’s McAuliffe Middle School will share a campus with Manual High School using the existing 260,000-square-foot building in Denver, Colorado. To support the shared campus, 360 Engineering provided mechanical and plumbing design modifications as part of the RTA Architects design team. The three-story building with additional basement area consists of classrooms, gymnasium, swimming pool, kitchen, dining area, a stage and music area, administrative offices, storage rooms, and restrooms.
The existing mechanical systems consisted of vertical, under-window unit ventilators and convective heating units with steam heating coils, steam radiators, and horizontal, ducted fan-coil units. To utilize these existing systems, 360 Engineering made required adjustments to meet heating, ventilation, and exhaust loads in the renovated spaces. These areas included the administrative offices and science classrooms on the third floor, and library and art classrooms with kiln room on the second floor.
Plumbing system modifications included the administrative area restrooms, classroom sink updates, and a complete overhaul of existing science classrooms to provide multiple student and teacher work stations with laboratory gases and acid waste and ventilation systems.
The Kepner Campus houses four Denver Public Schools (DPS) in one facility: Kepner Legacy Middle School, Kepner Beacon Middle School, STRIVE Prep Kepner, and Rocky Mountain Prep Southwest Elementary Charter School. This project involved designing the replacement of all existing galvanized piping with copper piping to improve the water quality and system longevity.
The design and construction timeline for this project was very tight as construction needed to occur during the narrow window when all four schools were out of session. Working closely with DPS and Anderson Hallas Architects, we spent the time to accelerate the plumbing design schedule ahead of the mechanical design. This strategy allowed DPS to maintain the original construction schedule while giving the District time to make critical decisions on the mechanical systems. In the end, our team was able to deliver a successful project.
The Samsonite Campus houses the Denver Public Schools Northeast Early College, preparing students grades 9 through 12 to be, “collaborative and competitive in a four-year college and in a 21st Century Global Economy.” This project involved the replacement of ten fans throughout the campus, including general exhaust, electrical room cooling, and air handler return fans. 360 Engineering observed and documented existing mechanical systems associated with the fans, then sized and selected new fans to meet code requirements and to match existing controls. Also, 360 Engineering provided Denver Public Schools with design airflow volumes to rebalance existing Variable Air Volume (VAV) boxes serving student and administration areas.
One of the project challenges was that not all existing fans were present in the base building drawings. 360 Engineering performed a field investigation to locate and accurately document the fans missing from existing drawings. Then the engineers provided details of make, model, fan capacity, and electrical characteristics to GH Phipps. This due diligence fieldwork avoided an equipment delivery delay and allowed GH Phipps to deliver the project on time to DPS.
For this public-school district serving the cities of Broomfield, Federal Heights, Northglenn, Thornton, and Westminster, Colorado, 360 Engineering conducted a forensic analysis of the crawl spaces for 32 schools, totaling approximately 1,094,000 square feet. Each analysis included observations and documentation of the condition of storm water, domestic water, and hydronic piping, as well as crawlspace ventilation status and code compliance, and mechanical equipment and ductwork conditions. In addition, the individual school reports documented the locations of mechanical and plumbing systems in need of repair, maintenance, or replacement. Any potential mechanical or plumbing code violations were also brought to the attention of the school district.
Chauvenet Hall, on the Colorado School of Mines campus, comprises two turn-of-the-century buildings that were combined into a single facility in 1955. 360 Engineering provided mechanical and plumbing system design for a remodel that upgraded an existing first-floor laboratory including the creation of office space for graduate students. Lab renovations included adding a new fume hood; eye wash station, deionized (DI) water, vacuum, compressed air systems; and an additional sink. The new mechanical and plumbing systems bring the laboratory up to code and accommodate the reuse of space.
The International School of Denver is a private pre-K – 8th grade multicultural school located in the Lowry neighborhood. As part of a campus remodel, 360 Engineering designed mechanical and plumbing systems for select areas within three buildings. In the Peacekeeper Building, the second floor was remodeled to accommodate the school’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) program, the first floor dedicated to the visual arts, and the lower level for music studies. The existing basement level gymnasium was converted into the music space, and the art room was moved to the former administrative space. Administration offices were moved to the school’s new welcome center, which was formerly an adjacent doctor’s office.
