SACRAMENTO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

Overview

In April 2008 Turner Construction competed to win the $286 million new airside concourse project, which includes 19 gates and numerous international arrival services. The 40 year-old Terminal B modernisation project began in order to meet the rising demand for passenger services and enhance the ability of the airport to attract new carriers and routes.

The Client

Sacramento County Airport Systems.

The Contractor

Turner is the leading general builder in the U.S., ranking first or second in the major segments of the building construction field. During 2007, Turner completed $9.6 billion of construction. Turner is the only builder offering clients a nationwide network of offices across the U.S. Founded in 1902, the firm is a subsidiary of HOCHTIEF. For more information, visit Turner's website at www.turnerconstruction.com.

Why Synchro?

Turner selected the Synchro software application for the following reasons:

• Turner wanted to demonstrate to the owner that they had capability to fit scheduling around phasing.
• Turner wanted to make clear to the client and owner, how to visualize Turner's resource allocation system, which was not a bell curve, but rather a steep mountain of manpower requirements, to be climbed fast Synchro enabled Turner to clearly visualise the schedule and utilise the unique features of the software, before presenting to the client.
• If the owner preferred different phasing, Synchro could change it and show how phasing was cost-connected.
• Turner also wanted to increase communications with the owner to help them visualize problems early.
• The software provided clear, visual scheduling of the construction 4D modelling.

The Synchro simulation became a powerful tool to demonstrate resource needs to the owner.

What Synchro Ltd Provided

• Conversion of 2D drawings into a 3D model support
• Construction modelling support
• 4D simulation and planning support
• Support during the competitive bid process
  Training of the Project Management and Business Development Team

The Outcome

Synchro became an efficient tool for problem solving and also allowed Turner to simulate efficiently in the design phase to prevent the following problems during the building phase:

• Synchro visualized and avoided the need to move thousands of feet of airport security fence four times during the life of the project.
• Synchro simulated how one crane instead of two would be sufficient to help assure the crane's height and boom were correct. It allowed for less congestion in the construction area and increased safety for the workers as well as lowering costs.
• Synchro revealed the need for an unplanned but critically necessary temporary road for construction traffic to keep essential airside operations flowing and functional.
• Synchronized an optimal paving schedule to prevent blocking the runway for planes to the terminal for 32 days.
• Improved work site zones and phasing sequences with a specific emphasis on safety for workers onsite.

The financial and time-tabling benefits of such advantages clearly demonstrate Synchro's remarkable value to today's complex construction industry.

"We rely heavily on field staff to present solutions during the bidding presentation. They had done the work and knew the job best. With Synchro, we placed them in the best position to be successful. The Synchro simulation was a successful tool in helping Turner attain success," said Ken Harms. "Synchro helped us communicate efficiently in order to achieve our goals. We had all the data but we needed to understand how to communicate it effectively with our client and come out the winner!"

To play a brief YouTube movie clip about Synchro's 4D BIM construction software, simply click here.

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