Talk about working "in a goldfish bowl."
The Ross Group Construction Corporation, based in Tulsa, has been working on the highly-anticipated million-gallon Oklahoma Aquarium since May 2001.
Situated on 66 acres (27 ha), the facility opening this summer will encompass 72,000 sq. ft. (6689 sq m), including the 1-million-gal. (3 million L) tank.
Sharks, octopi, barracudas – you name it – the sea creatures will be taking up residence.
Steve Bighorse, project manager for the Ross Group, said crews will reach substantial completion by mid-August, having had their hands full with this unusual project for the past year.
Oneof the most significant challenges Bighorse faced was the concrete work. In an aquarium project, it's imperative that the concrete laid is watertight. In this case, it required the contractor to pour the concrete in a single sitting, while leaving room for the acrylic that would actually hold the tank itself.
"We had to pour an 80-foot diameter shark tank, and block out openings for the acrylic," Bighorse said. "It had to be one pour so there's no cracks, and water couldn't leak out.
"Also, with the coral reef tank, it was the same way, and it's got its own shape. There's nothing ordinary about it."
The Ross Group rolled out a large portion of its equipment for this job, ranging from excavators to dozers, haulers and skid steers.
"We've got a scraper out there now, building the roads," Bighorse said recently.
The company has also used about 20 subcontractors, including Builders Steel and Seco Electrical. One of the most essential subs has been Chase Concrete, which did the massive pouring the project required.
"Probably the shark tank and the coral reef were the most challenging," said Mike McCullough, project manager for the Oklahoma division of Chase Concrete. "They were pretty tough to build due to the design."
With as many as 40 workers onsite at a time, the contractor poured approximately 300 cu. yds. (229 cu m) of concrete per pour, for an estimated total of 6,000 cu yds. (4587 cu m).
"It was poured in one day," said Matt King, an architect with Sparks, the Tulsa firm that designed the facility. "It's a huge endeavor to pour that amount of concrete."
The concrete surrounding the aquarium will be 1 ft. 2 in. (.3 m.) thick.
Using equipment for White Star Rental, including mini-excavators and a Bobcat 337, McCullough said one of the biggest problems was that pesky troublemaker, Mother Nature.
"The weather caught us several times and made us have to redo somethings," he said.
The acrylic walls of the aquarium had to be set in concrete, per the architect's design. King said he had never worked with acrylic in such a setting before.
"This is our first encounter with an aquarium. It's our first opportunity to do a job with an acrylic tunnel," he said, adding that this may become the largest acrylic-domed room in the world.
Colorado-based Reynolds Polymer manufactured the acrylic used in the project.
When King initially sat down with the aquarium developers, he tried to tap into their vision for the building, sensing that aquarium director Doug Kemper already had a pretty good idea of how he wanted the facility to look and function.
"The challenges were in coordination," King explained. "Especially when you're doing something for the first time, you're not sure what questions to ask."
Envisioning an already expansive building, the group preferred a village-type collection of structures rather than a monolithic edifice plopped down onto the landscape.
To achieve that goal, King designed the complex as a series of component structures.
Working closely with the Aquarium Authority proved crucial to ensure that the design would accommodate the complex life-support systems necessary for the marine animals' health and safety.
Although bringing it all together wasn't easy, Bighorse believes the end result will be spectacular, allowing visitors to see the sea life up close and personal.
King agreed.
"We are proud of the entire facility. We're very proud of the shark tank in particular, the overall building in general," King said.
For more information, visit www.okaquarium.org.
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