Proj Overview

Project Overview

Vertiport Chicago, located in the Illinois Medical District eight minutes from downtown, provides a full-range of helicopter services. The buildings consist of a 30,000 square foot hangar that accommodates space rental, fueling stations and maintenance facilities, and an 11,700 square foot, one-story office for private companies to use as a business platform.

The terminal is available 24/7 for the emergency needs of the surrounding medical buildings in the nation’s largest urban medical district.

Precast Solution

The owners selected a load bearing, insulated precast sandwich panel system as an integral part of the building’s design, to take advantage of the rapid construction, high durability and over-all cost effectiveness inherent with precast concrete systems. A total of 35,000 square feet of precast wall and hollowcore floor panels were utilized for the two structures.

The precast panels took less than 2 weeks to erect, even with the challenges of erecting adjacent to elevated train tracks.

 

Project Team

Architect

Ware Malcomb 

Engineer

Alta Engineering, Ltd 

Contractor

The George Sollitt Construction Company 

Owner

Vertiport Chicago 

Precaster

Dukane Precast

Key Project Attributes

  • Vertiport Chicago offers Emergency Medical Service, as well as corporate and tourist helicopter charters    
  • 12-foot wide, 33- to 35-foot tall precast sandwich panels quickly enclose hanger structure
  • Insulated panels cut energy use    
  • Steel form smooth panel texture provides aesthetic appeal    
  • Fluted areas, reveal strips, and white, black, light and dark grey panel colors adds flair   
  • Michael Conklin, President of Vertiport Chicago, chose precast because it “fit the [surrounding] area and for its speed of construction and durability.”    
  • “We should have little or no maintenance requirements,” says Conklin   
  • Conklin is a retired Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel and former Executive Officer of Marine Helicopter Squadron One for President Bill Clinton.   

Project/Precast Scope

  • 29,000 square feet (140 pieces) of precast insulate wall panels   
  • 3,500 square feet (55 pieces) of 8-inch precast hollowcore    
  • Precast interior wall panels and hollowcore plank form a mezzanine in the hanger   
  • Hanger wall panels range from 33- to 35-feet tall   
  • Office wall panels range from 12- to 17-feet tall   
  • 12-foot-wide sandwich panels are 10 inches thick with an R-14 rating