THE PURPOSE OF THIS BLOG IS FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND USERS TO KEEP ABREAST OF THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS OF THE STATE LIBRARY ARCHIVES MUSEUM (SLAM) PROJECT IN JUNEAU, ALASKA. PLEASE VISIT THE BLOG OFTEN TO SEE THE LATEST POSTS.

Thursday, January 31, 2013

EED News Release :: January 24, 2013

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 24, 2013

State Construction Project in Juneau Sparks Manufacturing Facility in Fairbanks

JUNEAU – A contract to provide exterior walls and windows for a new state building in Juneau has sparked a new manufacturing facility in Fairbanks.

Bucher Glass of Fairbanks has been awarded an $7.6 million contract to provide all exterior walls and windows for the State Libraries, Archives & Museum (SLAM) building project in Juneau.

The wall panels, measuring approximately 5-feet 6-inches by 24 feet, will be fabricated in a newly leased 32,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Fairbanks, starting immediately. The panels are scheduled to be sent to Juneau for installation late this year. Bucher’s new manufacturing facility will employ 16 to 20 Alaskans.

“Bucher Glass has always been a family business with my mom and dad starting the company back in 1966,” said Scott Bucher, owner of Bucher Glass. “As the company has grown, we have been able to complete projects in new territories such as Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, and even as far as Midway Island. In order to do so and to remain competitive, we’ve had to look at new vendors and suppliers as well as faster methods of enclosing a building envelope, especially when dealing with accelerated building schedules that we deal with constantly in Alaska.

“Over the past few years we have imported unitized curtain wall from China with great success. Projects were done in record time. But now the opportunity has come for us to go back to our roots, so to speak, as a family business and bring a product to Alaska and other parts of the country that is manufactured and assembled right here in Alaska. We are excited to do our part in helping to grow our economy and our state.”

In previous years, the wall panels almost certainly would have been manufactured overseas, said project architect Brian Meissner of ECI/Hyer, an Anchorage firm. For several years overseas panels have had a cost advantage over domestic panels. Working with Overgaard, an internationally recognized custom façade design company, Bucher has been able to bring this technology to Alaska and make it cost effective. The panels for SLAM were procured through an open competition.

“We were pleased to see Bucher come out ahead in that competition. We were even more pleased to learn that Bucher would be establishing a panel manufacturing plant in Fairbanks,” Meissner said.

The SLAM project will place the Alaska State Museums, the Alaska State Archives, and the Alaska State Libraries in one new building at the site of the current Alaska State Museum on Whittier Street. The Alaska Division of Libraries, Archives & Museums is part of the Alaska Department of Education & Early Development.

The project is being phased because of incremental funding and to protect museum objects from damage during construction. Phase 1, awarded in 2011 to PCL Construction Services, Inc., is complete and included some site work. Phase 2, also awarded to PCL Construction Services, Inc., is the construction of the building, including a vault for object storage and the exterior building envelope. Bucher is a subcontractor to PCL Construction Services, Inc. Phase 3, awaiting funding, will be the interior build-out for a turnkey facility with a planned grand opening in April 2016.

For more about the SLAM project, see: http://museums.alaska.gov/lam/slam.html.

For more information about the Bucher Glass contract, contact Scott Bucher at 907-452-2394 or Brian Meissner at 907-561-5543.

###

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Monday, November 5, 2012

EED News Release :: November 5, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nov. 5, 2012

State Awards Construction Contract for Libraries, Archives & Museums Building

JUNEAU -- The State of Alaska is pleased to announce the award of Phase 2 of the State Libraries, Archives & Museums (SLAM) building project, located in Juneau, to PCL Construction Services, Inc. for $59.86 million.

The project will place the Alaska State Museums, the Alaska State Archives, and the Alaska State Libraries in one facility at the site of the current State Museum on Whittier Street. The buildings that house the State Libraries, State Archives and State Museum in Juneau are failing, too small, and technologically insufficient. The facilities are not integrated for efficient research and operations. The collections are not connected physically or digitally for statewide access.

The State Libraries’ facilities in the State Office Building have suffered from water leaks. The State Archives’ building is failing structurally and suffered a large intrusion of water during a roof repair. Its collections are at 98 percent capacity. The State Museum has been at capacity for visitation and storage since the mid-1980s.

The project is being phased because of incremental funding and to protect museum objects from damage during construction. Phase 1, awarded in 2011 to PCL Construction, is complete and included some site work. Phase 2 is the construction of the building, including a vault for object storage and the exterior building envelope. Phase 3 will be the interior build-out for a turnkey facility with a planned grand opening in April 2016.

Phase 2 of the SLAM project is 100 percent funded and is planned to start this winter. Phase 3 is 100 percent priced and awaits award pending the final installment of project funding.

The project team has successfully collaborated and received support from multiple government agencies as well as some adjacent property owners including but not limited to: Department of Education & Early Development, Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, Department of Administration Division of General Services, Department of Natural Resources, Trust Lands Office, City and Borough of Juneau, Alaska Electric Light & Power, Foodland Inc., Prospector Hotel, and Juneau Business Center.

Beginning December 3, 2012, the project will result in changes to the Willoughby District. The subport properties off of Egan Drive near Whittier Street will be exclusively for contractor staging. The permit-only State parking lot at 449 W. Willoughby Avenue will be closed and limited to SLAM construction access.

If you have questions regarding this news release, please contact Kim Mahoney, DOT&PF Project Manager, at 907-269-0822 or kim.mahoney@alaska.gov.

###