New Training Center

Contract 2 is the largest of three phases of the Training Center located in Virginia. This project represents a complex site development, including both building and infrastructure improvements. Mortenson is leveraging our existing federal marketplace expertise and relationships with self-perform civil capabilities to build this critically important facility for the General Services Administration (GSA).

The scope of work includes two buildings to support the administration, training, and development of the end-user for their specific mission. The civil scope of work includes the clearing of 275 acres of wooded terrain and installation of over 500,000 feet of erosion control and tree protection measures, as well as 100 permanent bio-retention ponds. It also includes the construction of approximately four miles of ring road with two pre-stressed concrete bridges, approximately eight miles of high-speed driving track with two steel girder bridges, over 250,000 square yards of asphalt paving, and 1,000,000 cubic yards of earthwork. The utility installation for this project includes approximately 38,000 feet of duct bank, 35,000 feet of water main, and 25,000 feet of stormwater pipe.

The project includes two phases of stormwater management. Phase 1 requires the installation of erosion control and tree protection measures, including silt fence, super silt fence, erosion berms, erosion control blanket, seeding, sediment traps, and tree protection fence. Phase 2 includes the installation of permanent stormwater management features, including bio-retention ponds and underground stormwater pipes.

Construction of the ring road, high-speed driving track, and other site roadways include placement of over 230,000 tons of aggregate base. The four bridges for the project are supported by h-pile foundations on cast-in-place concrete abutments. A total of 292 piles were driven to depths of up to 30 feet. The two bridges for the ring road are comprised of pre-cast, pre-stressed concrete girders with a span of 60 to 70 feet. These bridges are being constructed over an existing stream within a wetland. Coordination with local environmental authorities is an important part of ensuring these bridges are completed with no impacts to the environment. Bridges for the high-speed driving track were constructed using fabricated steel plate girders. Spans for these bridges ranged from 140 to 160 feet.

This facility is located less than 2000 feet from an airfield and requires close coordination prior to and during construction. Mortenson reviewed construction operations with the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) to acquire the necessary approvals for the operation of cranes near the airfield. To obtain approval for these operations, Mortenson utilized crawler cranes to construct each of the four bridges. Mortenson acquired full approval from the FAA and complied with all flagging and lighting requirements during crane operations. The project site is also located in a rural area approximately 60 miles from the nearest metropolitan city. Extensive planning was required to coordinate material deliveries around the project schedule and to ensure timely project completion. Mortenson utilized our local and national resources to meet the needs of the project without compromising cost, schedule, safety, or quality. Additionally, the site required strict adherence to secure access policies for equipment and personnel required as part of working on the active military base. Mortenson established a direct line of communication with the base security team and developed security procedures to ensure the timely delivery of materials and labor while maintaining the high-security standards of the base command.