|
$22M Denver Hotel on Track for June Finish
Hilton Garden Inn under construction across from convention center
 |
Construction began in January 2006 on the $25-million Hilton Garden Inn Downtown Denver. The project is scheduled to finish in early June. (Left) Developed by the Stonebridge Companies, the Hilton Garden Inn Downtown will be a 220,000-sq-ft, 12-story facility consisting of 221 rooms, three stories of parking, guest amenities and executive services. (Photo courtesy of Alliance Construction Solutions) |
The $25-million Hilton Garden Inn Downtown Denver is on track for completion in early June.
The 220,000-sq-ft, 221-room hotel has been under construction at the corner of 14th and Welton streets, adjacent the Colorado Convention Center, since January 2006.
Drywall has been completed through the 12th floor and the exterior stucco is at least 50% finished. Inside, the first-floor rooms are ready for furniture and the pool is expected to be filled soon.
A low percentage of change orders—less than half of 1% of the total cost—throughout construction has allowed for owner upgrades worth $650,000.
“To have such a low percentage of change orders speaks volumes about the design-build process of this project,” said Bill Joyner, vice president of operations and project manager for Hilton Garden Inn.
Alliance Construction Solutions is the general contractor for the project. The architect is Ivins Design Group. Other design team members include R&R Engineering, Jirsa Hedrick & Associates, Trinity Mechanical, Greiner Electric, Design Force and Geocal Inc.
 |
Rendering courtesy of Ivins Design Group |
FMI: Employers Ramping Up Efforts to Attract, Train and Retain Talent
One of the primary challenges facing construction industry firms is the changing work force, which is forcing companies to develop new ways to find, recruit and retain talent, as the competition for qualified workers continues to increase, according to a just-released FMI report.
The “2007 U.S. Construction Industry Talent Development Report” found that most organizations have increased recruiting efforts at schools, colleges and universities; implemented training to improve specific competencies; promoted internally; and provided internships or co-op programs.
More than 50% of the respondents said they were identifying current gaps in core competencies, employing best practices to retain key talent, establishing core competencies by position and recruiting in nontraditional labor pools.
The report includes a number of “best-of-class” examples of companies, such as Performance Contracting Group, Skanska USA Civil Northeast, Sundt Construction and Wayne Brothers Inc., that are winning the talent war because they have implemented creative strategies to attract and retain employees.
FMI has surveyed construction firms nationwide for the past 15 years about training and development practices. This year, the firm expanded the survey’s focus to look at talent development in a broader context. The report examines several issues and challenges companies are facing in the ongoing war for talent, including recruitment, retention, performance management and succession planning.
Survey results represent responses from a cross-section of the construction industry, including general contractors and subcontractors ranging in size from $50 million in annual revenues to more than $500 million.
CU Celebrating Engineering Days
Students at the University of Colorado at Boulder are celebrating Engineering Days this week with a variety of fun and challenging events.
Hosted by the University of Colorado Engineering Council, Engineering Days is meant to create awareness of the engineering profession and give students the chance apply their engineering skills in fun and creative ways.
The annual college egg drop organized by Theta Tau will be held at 1 p.m. today at the base of the Engineering Center office tower. The event, which will be preceded by a high school egg drop starting at about 10 a.m., challenges students to design a device that will protect an egg from breaking during an eight-story fall.
On Friday, students will hold a rubber band-powered flight contest starting at 10 a.m. in Carlson Gymnasium and a balsa wood rocket launch competition from 1 to 4 p.m. on the business field.
Click here for
more Features >>
|
