Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-10-13 Euless Articles Constructing tomorrow’s buildings: Expect an explosion in modular design MATT BAKER SEPTEMBER 28, 2020 Next year, a new Hyatt Place Hotel will rise in Waco, Texas. Though it will have all of the typical amenities and features of a modern, new construction hotel, it’s what the guests won’t ever see that will be truly groundbreaking. The project is using the latest evolution in modular design and construction. This process that has grown in maturity over the years, with recent innovations that endow tremendous time and cost advantages. The Waco Hyatt project, for instance, will be constructed almost entirely off site, in the fabrication facility that ModularDesign+ operates in Euless, Texas. A strategic partner of global architecture firm CannonDesign, ModularDesign+ hopes to change the way that owners, developers, architects and contractors think about modular construction. The 110-room, eight-story Hyatt Place Hotel Waco, designed by MWT Architects, will feature both rooftop and ground-level restaurants, a shopping center and a parking garage—all of which will be fabricated in Euless. Once completed, 140 stackable units will be shipped over the course of only three to four weeks to their final destination in Waco. That’s the largest incentive that modular offers: speed to market. The quicker that an owner or developer can begin generating revenue on a space, the better. For all its advantages such as reduced material waste and fewer construction days lost to inclement weather, however, building modular hasn’t always translated into cheaper construction costs. “The old-school methodology of modular construction was that an architect team would design a project, then the general contractor would lease a facility close to the job site and bring in the subcontractors to build the modules,” said Josh Mensinger, vice president, ModularDesign+. “They could never really figure out why there were no cost efficiencies.” At their Euless facility, ModularDesign+ uses the principles of DFMA, or design for manufacture and assembly to streamline operations. DFMA is an engineering methodology that simplifies both the design of a product, as well as the assembly of the component parts. DFMA allows a manufacturer—whether they be producing televisions, automobiles or multi-story buildings—to find the most efficient process to assemble that product. The result is greater schedule control and less waste, among other benefits. “We’re a manufacturer, we’re not a contractor. Our 100,000-square-foot facility that we have here in DFW is actually an assembly line,” Mensinger said. “That’s where we drive the costs—not just the schedule—down because we’re actually taking it from the approach of a manufactured good but using subcontractor trades.” In a trend that has shifted the approach that the industry is taking to modular construction and design, ModularDesign+ is producing structural, stackable volumetric modular units. Once on site, these can be craned into place like Lego bricks, constructing the total volume nearly three times as fast as it would take using traditional, stick-built methods. Henry Ford famously quipped that “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants, so long as it is black.” Ford, of course, revolutionized the manufacturing process with the introduction of the assembly line, enabling his company to quickly and cheaply produce Model Ts and meet growing demand. While that process allowed for less customizability, the tradeoff was affordability, bringing car ownership to the masses for the first time. According to Mensinger, that tradeoff cannot work with construction and design. That is why each project is unique, absorbing the desires and needs of the client and using the manufacturing facility to fabricate an end product that meets those specs as efficiently as possible. “If you go to a kit of parts, you don’t give the client much freedom to build the designs and the buildings that they want to,” said Mensinger. “What we designed in our manufacturing facility is a unique hybrid assembly line that allows us to adjust to the client’s needs.” This assembly line approach requires smaller construction teams, a real benefit during times of labor shortage. Additionally, job site safety is increased with fewer bodies moving around. Installing one modular unit may require only six to eight construction workers, far fewer than the 30 to 40 that would be needed on a similar project being erected using traditional methods. Modular “cassettes” that are inserted into ready and waiting buildings have been around for a while. They are especially useful and efficient in healthcare, hospitality and other asset types with repeatable interiors. This next evolution of modular construction is still in its nascent stage. There are a handful of projects around the world that have gone ground-up using stackable, modular components. As owners and developers are always looking to cut costs and increase efficiencies, the stage is set for this approach to find wider usage. Neighboring Businesses Fear Loss From AA Furloughs Many of the 19,000 American Airlines employees to be furloughed live in North Texas By Ken Kalthoff • Published October 1, 2020 • Updated on October 1, 2020 at 6:56 pm The furlough of 19,000 American Airlines workers starts this month unless Congress approves a new stimulus package that saves airline jobs. Restaurants like Simply Burgers, across Highway 360 from the Fort Worth headquarters, is already suffering from a COVID-19 loss of customers. And now we've got one, and including me, make it two,” said owner Wanna Banthupong. She fears even fewer customers if more headquarters workers are furloughed. Nearby the city of Euless is heavily dependent on American Airlines. Julie Hall, the owner of Miller Custom Cleaners in Euless, said business was just starting to improve after COVID-19 stay-at-home workers started returning to work. “It’s going to hit the bottom line again. I haven’t been able to open my doors to the regular business hours that I had prior to COVID,” Hall said. Her husband is an American Airlines pilot, but she hopes he will not be furloughed. Euless Mayor Linda Martin and her husband are both retired American Airlines employees. “The majority of households in Euless somehow touch American Airlines or DFW Airport,” Martin said. The Mayor worries that current American Airlines workers could have trouble keeping their homes without paychecks. “We’re already feeding a great amount of our community through our mission network and other local charities. And so the food needs, the housing needs, they’ll all trickle down,” she said. Some of the airport property including a hotel, airport headquarters and the rental car center are in Euless. Taxes from the airport and from struggling businesses reduce revenue the city uses to provide services. “We are approaching this situation with American airlines the same way we did with COVID. When everything started shutting down in the spring, we started budgeting and anticipating the worst,” Martin said. “Our losses weren’t nearly as high as we anticipated, so that was a good thing and we’re hoping this will be nearly the same.” Julie Hall said another round of stimulus money would help. “We’re very hopeful the government will make a decision at some point soon to help those in the airline industry. It’s definitely impactful for this whole area,” Hall said. Fort Worth restaurant owner Wanna Banthupong said direct support in the form of government loans might not be a benefit. “Whatever they give us, you’ve got to pay them back, and when you don’t have any business, how are you going to make money to pay them back at the end,” Banthupong said. These Fort Worth election workers will check mail-in ballots for improper signatures BY GORDON DICKSON OCTOBER 05, 2020 05:30 AM FORT WORTH Tarrant County Election Administrator Heider Garcia shows off a sample mail-in ballot. Behind him is a new ballot sorting machine purchased to speed up ballot counting during the Nov. 3 election, for which mail-in balloting has already begun. GORDON DICKSON GDICKSON@STAR-TELEGRAM.COM Tarrant County election officials are expanding the number of people who might be called upon to verify mail-in ballot signatures, in an effort to ensure the election goes smoothly. The move illustrates how concerned officials are that this year’s election, which is expected to draw a record turnout, is presenting many potential pitfalls. Workers are bracing to handle a large volume of absentee votes arriving in the mail, a higher- than-normal amount of people showing up for early voting and the expected difficulty of keeping people socially distanced on election day Nov. 3. Mail-in ballots are already being returned to the elections office in north Fort Worth. Some are being mailed back by residents who live in the county but qualify for mail-in voting — residents 65 and older, and people with disabilities — and others are being dropped off at a drive-through outside the Tarrant County Election Administration, 2700 Premier St. in Fort Worth. Most other residents — including college students, residents working abroad and those on an extended out-of-county visit — can apply for an absentee ballot if they know they will be out of the county during the entire voting period. Monday (Oct. 5) is the last day to register to vote, and early voting begins Oct. 13. The Tarrant County Election Commission and Election Board, two entities that met jointly to discuss issues related to voting season, last week approved an amended list of names of people who potentially could be called to serve on the signature verification committee. The list includes 31 Republicans, 48 Democrats and 10 Libertarians. Heider Garcia, Tarrant County election administrator, said he anticipates using 20 people from each of the two largest parties for checking signatures on mailed ballots, but the additional people on the parties’ lists could be needed if ballot signature verification goes on longer than initially planned. In previous elections, about half that number of people was typically used for signature verification. Several county officials and party leaders urged Garcia to use as many of the people as possible to verify signatures. “You’re going to have a lot of very motivated people on every side who want to look at the ballots,” Tarrant County Clerk Mary Louise Nicholson told the group. But Garcia cautioned that the secured room used for opening mailed ballots in the bowels of the election office doesn’t have enough room for more people to work simultaneously. The room features a fingerprint-activated lock that can only be opened by a handful of election office employees. “I just hope you have a bigger room as a backup plan,” Nicholson responded. Garcia said the elections office, which received $2 million in federal CARES Act funding to improve voting during the pandemic, has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional voting machines — as well as a mail sorting machine that cost nearly $400,000. That machinery, he said, will speed up processing and reduce workers’ stress in the election office. With the new mail sorting machine, “a process that used to take almost four hours now is going to be running 10 or 20 minutes,” Garcia said. Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley told the group he probably would not be in favor of moving the signature verification to a different room because he wants the ballots to be unquestionably secure. “I am very conscious of the need to count those ballots, but when you start talking about moving them out of that room, that gives me pause,” Whitley said. In the July primary runoff, 51 ballots were rejected because of signature discrepancies. Those responsible for verifying signatures work in groups of two, with each person from a different political party. They compare the voter’s signature on the ballot with the signature on the voter registration record and, if both agree the signatures match, the ballot is sent on to be tabulated. If they disagree, the ballot is put away for further review by a larger group, which can then either accept or reject it. The lists of Tarrant County residents chosen for signature verification were provided to the elections office by the political parties. They include: Republican Party: Jan Jenson Sr., Euless; Janet Adams, Fort Worth; Lois Kapp, Fort Worth; Robert McMillian II, Fort Worth; Felix Flores III, Fort Worth; Maria Stone, Arlington; Jamie Hughey, Southlake; Mary Smith, Arlington; Cary Page, Keller; Karen Watts, Grapevine; Rosalyn Blanchette, Fort Worth. More Republican Party: (Preference Possible Judge 1) Kelley Roberson, Fort Worth; (Preference Possible Judge 2) David Lambertsen, Fort Worth; (Preference Possible Judge 3) Janna Easton, Bedford; Darl Easton, Euless; Dr. Carey Page, Keller; Danna Trowbridge, Fort Worth; Mike Johnson, Fort Worth; Miranda Burdett, Fort Worth; Robert David Smith, Grapevine; Dorrie O’Brien, Grand Prairie; Bruce Krieger, Southlake; Fran Rhodes, Fort Worth; Laura Oakley, Grapevine; Nancy Bethards, Colleyville; Mark Liberto, Arlington; David Espinoza, North Richland Hills; Randy King, Euless; Dawn Horton, Grand Prairie; Kelly Canon, Arlington; Diane Doughty, Euless. Democratic Party: Keith Annis, Fort Worth; Amjad Bhular, Grand Prairie; Nadia Bhular, Grand Prairie; Paula Boehme, Arlington; Brenda Brime, North Richland Hills; Kathy Candelaria, Grapevine; Kat Cano, Fort Worth; Cary Clark, Fort Worth; Cathy Clark, Fort Worth; Sandra Cooley, Fort Worth; Carol Cordell, Fort Worth; Brienne Daniels, Fort Worth; Donna De La Guardi, Bedford; Prabhat Dixit, Euless; Pamela Durham, Fort Worth; Lisa Efthymiou, Keller; Martina Garcia Garci, Arlington; Roseann Giambr, Fort Worth; Gerri Hall, Lakeside; Evan Hausenfluke, Azle; Carol Henry-Crowel, Fort Worth; Bob Horton, Fort Worth; Joyce Janson-Frankli, Fort Worth; Marilyn Kepner, Fort Worth; Mary Ann Knight, Mansfield; Marilyn Kortum, Arlington; Theresa Luby, Arlington; Cynthia Mancha, Fort Worth. More Democratic Party: Angelico McKinne, Fort Worth; Myra Mills Tschirhart, Fort Worth; Cassie Mistretta, Southlake; Vicki Moore, North Richland Hills; Charles Neal, Haltom City; Kevin Patrick, Euless; Catheine Patrick, Euless; Sandra Price, Watauga; Stevan Ruiz, Fort Worth; Ashley Sandoval, Mansfield; Kristina Savage, Fort Worth; Martha Sleutel, Haltom City; Doris Smit, Fort Worth; Ed Spence, Crowley; Cynthia Swaim, Fort Worth; Gayland Taylor, Mansfield; Ann Teeter, Hurst; Karen Thompson, North Richland Hills; Martin Youn, Kennedale; Pamela Young, Fort Worth. Libertarian Party: Rene Perez, Arlington; Elizabeth Miller, Bedford; Wesley (George) Fisher, Fort Worth; Daniel Keough, Bedford; Chris Hibbard, Euless; Trey Holcomb, Fort Worth; Duane Hamman, Crowley; Nelson Range, Burleson; Daniel Bledsoe, North Richland Hills; Michael Garber, Euless. Early voting site near Fort Worth shut down after election worker gets COVID-19 BY GORDON DICKSON OCTOBER 13, 2020 10:08 AM, UPDATED 31 MINUTES AGO Voters wait in long lines on the first day of early voting along Basswood Boulevard in far north Fort Worth. YFFY YOSSIFOR YYOSSIFOR@STAR-TELEGRAM.COM FORT WORTH The first day of early voting in Dallas-Fort Worth drew huge crowds and several problems were reported, including the closure of a Euless polling site after an election worker contracted COVID-19. “Last night a poll worker that was trained on 10/8 informed us that he tested positive for COVID-19. Out of an abundance of caution, all workers that were in the same training class were asked to stay home and not show up for work today,” Heider Garcia, Tarrant County election administrator, said in a statement. Garcia said the quarantining of those workers affected three early voting locations: Keller Town Hall, Villages of Woodland Springs and Euless Family Life Senior Center. However, Keller Town Hall and Villages of Woodland Springs were able to open on time Tuesday, as election officials scrambled to move workers from one site to another. “At this time, only the Euless Senior Center remains unable to open,” Garcia said. “We are in the process of finding a replacement crew for the site, and will open it as soon as possible.” Voters may visit elections.tarrantcounty.com for information on all 50 places in Tarrant County where early voting is taking place. Also, before heading to the polls residents can check Tarrant County’s new interactive map which shows voters how long they can expect to wait in line. However, just before noon Tuesday only 16 voting centers were reporting wait times — with the other 34 centers showing “no data available today.” Voters can cast ballots at any of the 50 sites, regardless of where in the county they live. FAR NORTH FORT WORTH Ora Butler, a retiree, was first in line at a Pack Up and Play After School location at Basswood and Park Vista boulevards in far north Fort Worth. She had been waiting from 5:30 a.m. until the polls opened at 8 a.m. “I just wanted to make sure I got it done,” she said. Butler added that, although it took 23 minutes for her to emerge from the voting center once the doors opened, the process wasn’t complicated. The wait at the Basswood site was 30-44 minutes for much of Tuesday morning, according to a new Tarrant County interactive map that shows wait times at all early voting sites. Raymond Ogando, a truck salesman, said he wanted to cast a ballot on the first day of early voting because he doesn’t like the way the country has become fragmented during President Trump’s term. He said he intended to vote for Democrat Joe Biden. “I want to do what’s right for the nation. I feel change is necessary,” Ogando said as he waited in line for about half-hour with about 250 others. Another person in line at the Basswood voting center, Robert Mayers, said he and a few dozen other people had inadvertently waited in line at the wrong polling site, the Summerglen Library. The Tarrant County Commissioner’s Court last week made an 11th-hour change, moving the voting center from the library to the Pack Up and Play After School site. Pack Up and Play After School was formerly known as the Longhorn Activity Center operated by the Boy Scouts. Before that, it was a YMCA recreational center. “We were there from 6 am. until nearly 8 a.m., and now we’re in line here,” Mayers said about 8:30 a.m., as he waited outside the Pack Up ad Play After School voting site. LONG LINES IN ARLINGTON, WOODLAND SPRINGS In Arlington, voters were standing in line for more than 60 minutes to cast ballots at the Elzie Odom Athletic Center, 1601 Green Oaks Blvd. In far north Fort Worth, waits of more than 60 minutes also were reported at the Villages of Woodland Springs, 12209 Timberland Blvd. WHERE ARE THE SHORTER LINES? Much shorter waits were available at several voting centers elsewhere in Tarrant County. As of 11:35 a.m., waits of 0-29 minutes were reported at Northside Community Center, 1100 NW 18th St., in Fort Worth; Tarrant County Arlington SubCourthouse, 700 E. Abram St.; and Southwest Community Center, 6300 Welch Ave. in Fort Worth.