ACEC New York Presents 99 Engineering Excellence Awards; 15 Firms Capture 17 Diamond Awards; Weidlinger Associates Wins Grand Conceptor

Business Wire,  April 3, 2004  

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Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 3, 2004

The American Council of Engineering Companies of New York (ACEC New York) this evening presented 99 engineering excellence awards to member firms for the design of outstanding projects in the United States, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Pakistan. The state honors were given at the Council's annual gala dinner dance in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

Fifteen firms won ACEC New York's Diamond Award, the highest award for excellence at the state level, for 17 projects in nine categories. Two firms, Daniel Frankfurt, P.C. and Han-Padron Associates, LLP, each won Diamond Awards in two categories.

Among the state honorees was Weidlinger Associates Inc., which also won the Grand Conceptor Award, the highest award given by the national ACEC organization, for its forensic study of the World Trade Center collapses following the September 11 attack. In addition, four other national awards were won by ACEC New York member firms.

The Diamond Award winners by category are:

-- Building/technology systems

-- Environmental engineering

-- Special projects

-- Structural systems

-- Studies, research, consulting engineering

-- Surveying, mapping technology

-- Transportation

-- Water resources

-- Water and wastewater

Gary Loesch, president of ACEC New York, in addressing the celebrants said, "Engineers are natural born problem solvers. It's what we like, and it's what we do. And the results, as witnessed by the complexity and variety of the projects we honor here this evening, translate into a safer, healthier, and more visually pleasing environment in which to live, work and play. Each year, the projects keep raising the bar for excellence, and each year our members reach or exceed the goal."

The Diamond Award winners, by category, are:

Building/Technology Systems

-- Arup, New York, N.Y., Simmons Hall, MIT, Cambridge, Mass.

Chuck Vest, president of Massachusetts Institute of

Technology, describes the building program on his campus as "a

mega-scale interdisciplinary research project." The program's

first completed project is Simmons Hall, a 350-bed student

residence with a full range of amenities. To realize architect

Steven Holl's vision of an integrated sponge-like building,

Arup proposed a Mixed Mode System that combines mechanical

cooling effects of a low volume ducted air-conditioning system

with the natural ventilation effects of opening windows. When

MIT accepted Arup's idea, the Institute paved the way for one

of the first major buildings in the U.S. to use such a Mixed

Mode System. The project also received an Honor Award from the

national ACEC.

Environmental

-- Lawler, Matusky & Skelly Engineers LLP, Pearl River, N.Y.,

Fulton Fish Market Brownsfield Redevelopment, Bronx, N.Y. The

former site of a large coal gasification plant on Hunts Point

offered the ideal size and location for the new Fulton Fish

Market. Tasked with the environmental cleanup of the site,

Lawler, Matusky & Skelly conducted a site investigation that

showed significant soil and groundwater contamination from

coal tar that had to be excavated before construction of the

market could begin. By locating the remediation system under

the new building's footprint, construction could go forth

during remediation, thereby accelerating the construction

schedule by 2 1/2 years. As an added benefit, the coal tar

excavated from the site was taken off site and used for energy

production that generated enough electricity to power more

than 10,000 homes for over three months.

Special Projects

-- Cameron Engineering & Associates, LLP, Syosset, N.Y., Glen

Oaks Campus, Queens, N.Y. To alleviate school overcrowding,

the New York City Board of Education authorized the creation

of "Education Park," a 33-acre site in Queens that contains a

new elementary, intermediate and high school, infrastructure

systems, internal road network, parking areas, playgrounds,

and off-road and traffic infrastructure improvements. Cameron

Engineering's design services included civil/site, traffic

engineering and landscape architectural services for

permitting,preparation of construction documents and

construction support. Securing multiple layers of regulatory

approvals and permits associated with the project was one of

the major challenges. It is the single largest project ever

undertaken by the New York City School Construction Authority.

-- Han-Padron Associates, LLP, New York, N.Y., Hudson River Park,

Segment 4, New York, N.Y. As the waterfront engineer

subconsultant on the project, Han-Padron Associates prepared

the detailed design for the first phase of the Hudson River

Park that ultimately will provide 550 acres of open

recreational space along almost five miles of the Hudson River

on Manhattan's West Side. It is the largest open-space

development in the city since the completion of Central Park.