Story

Program:  Byce & Associates, Inc. provided engineering services to renovate an existing office building to provide student housing for Kendall College on the Seventh, Eighth and Ninth Floors of the Commerce Building in downtown Grand Rapids.  The project consisted of the renovation of the top three floors of the building, the addition of a stair tower and the replacement of the existing two elevators.  Mechanical renovations included the addition of boilers for heat and cooling towers to reject heat from the water loop which was added to the building. Water-source heat pumps serve each      dormitory and the system is sized for future expansion.  A new smoke management system serves the new stair tower.  Electrical renovations included a new service, power and lighting, and the addition of a new  emergency generator.

Challenges: Requirements of high rise housing dictated the addition of a new stair tower and life-safety systems supported by a new emergency generator. The project was completed as a design build effort and had an aggressive schedule.  This, coupled with the need to complete the project while the majority of the building was occupied, provided the greatest challenges.