Projects by Category
The engineers at Schneider Structural Engineers apply their depth of experience to a wide range of projects including numerous earth-friendly, LEED® certified structures, industrial clean rooms, hotels, high rises, hospitals, fire and police stations, military facilities, schools and historic restorations. Our cost-effective design solutions incorporate new technologies to meet our clients’ needs and budgets.
Here are highlights of some of our recent projects. If you would more information about our expertise in a specific project category, please contact Ron Schneider at 520-512-8183 or .
Apartments / Condos
E Street Commons
Anchorage, Alaska
Architect: Dean Architects
The strong architectural character of E Street Commons required an innovative seismic load-resisting system. The three-story seven-unit structure with lower-level parking features curved column-free decks, an exterior glass elevator tower and angled exterior load-bearing walls.
Discovery Park Condominiums – Anchorage, Alaska
Architect: Dean Architects
2007 Golden Hammer Award, Anchorage Home Builders Association
This $20 million complex includes three 30-unit buildings and one 26-unit building. All are three stories, with full basement parking garages and first-floor structural steel framing. Wood-framed upper floors allowed prefabrication and rapid construction.
INDIGOmodern Architecture Community – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Rob Paulus Architect
2008 Merit Build Award, Western Mountain Region, American Institute of Architects
Earth-friendly urban reclamation project includes 22 loft-style residences. The units are highly insulated and skinned with durable materials, pre-wired for photo-voltaic power and pre-plumbed for solar water heat.
Indigo Pointe Apartment Homes – Phoenix, Arizona
Architect: L.R. Niemiec Architects
This 72-unit affordably priced apartment complex includes a 12-unit design repeated six times, plus a 2,000-square-foot single-story clubhouse, wood framed with post-tensioned slabs.
The Stylish Scottsdale Townhomes – Scottsdale, Arizona
Architect: L.R. Niemiec Archtects
This 12,250-square-foot urban residential wood-framed five-plex includes four three-story units and one two-story unit, each with a two-car garage.
Education
Northern Arizona University Applied Research & Development
Flagstaff, Arizona
Architect: Burns Wald-Hopkins Shambach
LEED® Platinum, U.S. Green Building Council
2009 International Award, the Royal Institute of British Architects
2008 Design Award, Education / Health Care, Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute
This project is ranked in the top one percent of all green buildings in the United States. The three-story $19 million 70,000-square-foot facility incorporates numerous earth-friendly design innovations, including fly ash in the concrete mix, which reduced the carbon footprint of the structure by 40 percent.
Miramar Community College Fieldhouse – San Diego, California
Architect: Carrier Johnson
This $20 million 57,680-square-foot structure with a two-story component including gymnasium with rigid steel moment frames and offices with cold-formed steel framing.
Federal / Military
Elmendorf Air Force Base Fitness Center Addition
Elmendorf AFB, Alaska
Architect: McCool Carlson Green
2007 Pacific Air Force Design Award
The design of the Fitness Center Addition at Elmendorf Air Force Base suggests elements of flight in the angled roofline and entry canopy. This $17 million 52,000 square-foot two-story structure features entry canopy, angled roof line, super-elevated turns of running track and exposed structural elements. Seismic separation from adjacent structure was required.
Fire Stations
Northwest Fire District Station 33
Tucson, Arizona
Architect: WSM Architects
Designed to meet LEED® specifications, this fire station is a striking example of collaboration and innovation. Architects, the fire district, engineers and neighbors were engaged in the design process. Autoclaved aerated concrete walls insulate and sound proof the living quarters, interfacing with traditional CMU for apparatus bays.
Rincon Fire District Station 22 – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: WSM Architects
LEED® Gold Certification, U.S. Green Building Council
This $2.3 million 15,335-square-foot fire station and battalion headquarters achieved all 10 LEED® Optimize Energy Performance credits. The facility includes 12-bed dormitory, living, dining and fitness areas, two offices and eight drive-through apparatus bays. Seventy-six percent of construction waste was diverted from the landfill.
Rincon Valley Fire District Station 2 – Vail, Arizona
Architect: David E. Shambach Architect
This $4 million 16,230-square-foot one-story fire station designed to meet LEED® Silver requirements. Structural systems include SIP panel roof, wood trusses, steel joists at apparatus bays, ICR and masonry walls and conventional foundations.
Tucson Fire Department Fire Central – Tucson Arizona
Architect: WSM Architects
This $28 million 140,153-square-foot project was designed with two stories above ground and two parking levels below. Challenges include a long narrow site with dedicated green space, large underground sewage main and soft alluvial sand requiring slipform caissons and drilled piers to support the structure.
Hospitals / Medical
St. Elias Specialty Hospital
Anchorage, Alaska
Architect: Kumin Associates
This $19 million 67,300-square-foot structure accommodates architectural function and conceals the seismic load-resisting bracing system. A 3-D computer model for engineering analysis provided steel weights for several framing options for this long-term acute-care hospital.
Southwest Ambulatory Care Center – Komatke, Arizona
Architect: Johnson Smitthipong & Rosamond Associates
This $1.2 million 75,000-square-foot outpatient health center for Gila River Indian Community included primary care, vision and dental services, diagnostic imaging, laboratory, pharmacy, physical therapy and support services.
Hotels / Resorts
Holiday Inn Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Architect: GKI Architects
When construction costs soared, Schneider Structural Engineers re-engineered the five-story 78,852-square-foot Holiday Inn Phoenix, combining cast-in-place concrete first floor with wood-frame and masonry upper floors. This innovation cut millions from the formerly over-budget project.
Miraval Life in Balance – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Mithun
Expansion of the adobe and rammed-earth health resort included renovation and additions to signature spa, fitness center and admin/support building, plus new wellness, yoga and meditation buildings, guest rooms and other lodging.
Industrial / Cleanroom
Ventana Medical Systems
Oro Valley, Arizona
Original Architect: HDR Architecture
Expansion Architect: Advantech Facility Design
2003 Tilt-Up Achievement Award, Best in Class, Industrial/Manufacturing, Tilt-Up Concrete Association
This project combined cutting-edge design, including 15-degree tilt walls, with quick and economic construction. The largest panel weighed 134,000 pounds. This 182,400-square-foot biotech corporate headquarters includes research labs, manufacturing and warehouse space. The shell was completed in just 90 days.
Expansion added three buildings totaling 116,000 square feet – two featuring concrete-tilt-panel walls and wood-framed roofs, one with concrete-over-steel deck floor mezzanine. Optical-steel-framed covered walkway connects all buildings with elevator tower at each end.
ANEWCO – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Paragon Architects
This $6 million 91,800-square-foot manufacturing facility features hybrid panelized roof framing, steel-braced frames, tilt-up concrete walls and steel deck floor.
LEED® / Sustainable
Northern Arizona University Applied Research & Development
Flagstaff, Arizona
Architect: Burns Wald-Hopkins Shambach
LEED® Platinum, U.S. Green Building Council
2009 International Award, the Royal Institute of British Architects
2008 Design Award, Education / Health Care, Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute
This project is ranked in the top one percent of all green buildings in the United States. The three-story $19 million 70,000-square-foot facility incorporates numerous earth-friendly design innovations, including fly ash in the concrete mix, which reduced the carbon footprint of the structure by 40 percent.
Alaska Railroad Freight Shed – Anchorage, Alaska
Architect: ECI/Hyer Architects
The 1941 heavy-timber freight shed transformed from warehouse to office use, following National Park Service preservation guidelines and meeting LEED® standards. Modern engineering and old-school carpentry retain timber-and-truss character while adding thermal insulation and other energy efficiencies. < view project profile >
Martha Cooper Branch Library and Learning Center – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Burns Wald-Hopkins Shambach
This $1.2 million innovative prototype is a neighborhood-centered child-focused facility. The 7,700-square-foot structure features exposed steel and natural daylight, energy-efficient heating and cooling and other “green” strategies.
MLK Depot Plaza, Tower, Garage – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Nelsen Partners
This $20 million City of Tucson downtown revitalization project includes a seven-story tower with 100 residential units, grade-level retail space and below-grade garage. Designed for LEED® certification, the project totals 186,320 square feet. < view image >
Northwest Fire District Station 33 – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: WSM Architects
Designed to meet LEED® specifications, this is one of the first buildings in Tucson to use autoclaved aerated concrete walls, soundproofing and insulating the 13-bedroom residential section. This technology was integrated with conventional CMU for the four-bay apparatus area. < view project profile >
Pima County Wireless Integrated Network – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Durrant and SmithGroup
This $12 million project entailed renovating and upgrading a 50,000-square-foot former bank headquarters into a LEED® certified emergency communications center.
Rincon Fire District Station 22 – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: WSM Architects
LEED® Gold Certification, U.S. Green Building Council
This $2.3 million 15,335-square-foot fire station and battalion headquarters achieved all 10 LEED® Optimize Energy Performance credits. The facility includes 12-bed dormitory, living, dining and fitness areas, two offices and eight drive-through apparatus bays. Seventy-six percent of construction waste was diverted from the landfill.
Rincon Valley Fire District Station 2 – Vail, Arizona
Architect: David E. Shambach Architect
This $4 million 16,230-square-foot one-story fire station designed to meet LEED® Silver requirements. Structural systems include SIP panel roof, wood trusses, steel joists at apparatus bays, ICR and masonry walls and conventional foundations.
Sundt Companies Corporate Headquarters – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: WSM Architects
This two-story concrete tilt-up plan features dramatic Z-wall in lobby and a raised floor system for air and technology distribution. The 47,000-square-foot corporate headquarters incorporates many green and energy-saving features and is designed to qualify for LEED® Gold. The facility includes offices, plus a multi-media Innovations Gallery and the company’s Care Here wellness clinic.
Mixed Use
MLK Depot Plaza, Tower, Garage
Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Nelsen Partners
This $20 million “green” urban revitalization project for the City of Tucson includes a six-story tower with 100 residential units, grade-level commercial space and courtyard, plus a two-level below-grade garage – all engineered to meet LEED® specificiations.
One North Fifth – Tucson Arizona
Architect: Rob Paulus Architect
A 1969 building once slated for demolition was renovated and modernized. The innovative urban renewal project includes 9,000 square feet of retail and commercial space at street level plus 57,000 square feet of apartments with energy efficiencies and sustainable amenities.
Municipal / Justice
Clark County Detention Center
Las Vegas, Nevada
Architect: Durrant
The $81 million Clark County Detention Center includes three buildings totaling 251,000 square feet. Use of pre-cast concrete reduced cost and expedited timeline. A detailed 3-D model of the project used the latest BIM technology.
Anchorage Airport Operations Center – Anchorage, Alaska
Architect: ECI/Heyer
First facility in Anchorage designed with buckling-restrained braced-frame technology to withstand massive earthquake and continue to function as an emergency operations center for airport, fire and police.
Coolidge Transit Facility – Coolidge, Arizona
Architect: Associated Architects
Cantilevered masonry, steel columns and drag struts were combined to meet lateral load requirements and achieve desired look for this 4,200-square-foot structure with a curved sloped roof.
Martha Cooper Branch Library and Learning Center – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Burns Wald-Hopkins Shambach
This $1.2 million innovative prototype is a neighborhood-centered child-focused facility. The 7,700-square-foot structure features exposed steel and natural daylight, energy-efficient heating and cooling and other “green” strategies.
MLK Depot Plaza, Tower, Garage – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Nelsen Partners
This $20 million City of Tucson downtown revitalization project includes a seven-story tower with 100 residential units, grade-level retail space and below-grade garage. Designed for LEED® certification, project totals 186,320 square feet. < view image >
Pima County Wireless Integrated Network – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Durrant and SmithGroup
This $12 million project entailed renovating and upgrading a 50,000-square-foot former bank headquarters into a LEED® certified emergency communications center.
Pima Emergency Communications and Operations Center – Tucson Arizona
Architect: Durrant
This c ast-in-place concrete building was brought up to code for “essential facilities” and the addition was engineered to be blast resistant by strengthening the existing structure with a roof diaphragm of lightweight concrete, reinforced masonry shearwalls and retrofitted pre-cast concrete tees. This design preserves the structure¹s modern architectural integrity. < view project profile >
Westside Police Station – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: WSM Architects
Steel-column steel-framed renovation to convert 128,268-square-foot former K-Mart into urban police station. Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) strengthened roof purlins and beams. < view image >
Office Buildings
Phoenix San Man
Phoenix Arizona
Architect: Associated Architects
Two-story 9,702-square-foot corporate headquarters and warehouse includes varying roof elevations, large circular portico and curving walls. Cost-effective combination of steel, wood and masonry achieved the architect’s desired aesthetics within budget.
La Frontera Center – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Albanese-Brooks Associates
Cantilevered two-story 16,500-square-foot behavioral health center office has concrete masonry walls, steel with concrete deck floor and wood-framed roof.
Million Air – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Seaver Franks Archtiects
Two-story 19,800-square-foot office building incorporates pre-engineered metal building framing with conventional steel-framed architectural feature framing. Adjacent 20,000-square-foot hangar clear spans 98 feet.
MISYS – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: SBBL Architects
This $11 million four-story 120,000-square-foot shell building includes an elevated 168-vehicle pre-cast concrete parking structure. Steel-framed building with radiused walls and parapets was designed for economical and flexible tenant buildouts.
Sundt Companies Corporate Headquarters – Tucson, Arizona
Architect: WSM Architects
Two-story concrete tilt-up plan features dramatic Z-wall in lobby and a raised floor system for air and technology distribution. The 47,000-square-foot corporate headquarters incorporates many green and energy-saving features and is designed to qualify for LEED® Gold. The facility includes offices, plus a multi-media Innovations Gallery and the company’s Care Here wellness clinic.
Religious Facilities
St. Andrews Presbyterian Church
Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Gresham and Beach Architects
St. Andrews Presbyterian Church is a 29,000-square-foot two-story sanctuary and education building with exceptional acoustics. The steel-framed structure incorporates wood-timber columns and supports as well as large expanses of glass that provide abundant natural light.
Retail / Restaurants
North Restaurant
Tucson, Arizona
Architect: Seaver Franks Architects
Structural design is an integral part of dining at the 5,000-square-foot North Restaurant – with its curved façade, soaring exposed-steel ceiling and broad expanse of uninterrupted glass to achieve sweeping city views. The structure incorporates multiple cantilevers and exposed natural materials. Light-gauge metal framing for the vertical support system created a column-free dining room while keeping costs down.
Anthem Ranch Recreation Center – Broomfield, Colorado
Architect: Carrier Johnson
This $5 million project required a ribbed and reinforced post-tensioned mat foundation system. The Center includes a two-story 30,750-square-foot recreation building and single-story 1,372-square-foot pool facility.
Bridge Restaurant – Anchorage, Alaska
Architect: Dean Architects
This $3 million single-story wood-framed structure spans Ship Creek and retains the character of the original bridge. The structural system and architecture are interwoven. < view image >
Clean Freak Car Wash – Phoenix, Arizona
A $1 million free-standing 5,760-square-foot automatic car wash with canopy sail instead of a roof. A series of trusses and X-braces created the roof diaphragm. Steel tube frames were redesigned to be manufactured locally, saving time and expense. < view image >
Hilton Head Theater – Hilton Head, South Carolina
Architect: BMG
This $3.8 million one-story 15,500-square-foot theater features steel joist roof, steel frame with concentric braced frames and cold-formed steel curtain walls.
Retrofit / Restoration
McKinley Tower
Anchorage, Alaska
Architect: Faulkenberry Architects
2006 Award of Excellence, International Concrete Repair Institute
Schneider Structural Engineers value-engineered the seismic retrofit of the 14-story McKinley Tower, damaged in the largest recorded earthquake in North America. Ultra-thin polymers that can attain twice the strength of steel were introduced as an affordable alternative to obtrusive concrete shear walls. This economical alternative also preserved the historic profile of a downtown landmark.
Alaska Railroad Freight Shed – Anchorage, Alaska
Architect: ECI/Hyer
The 1941 heavy-timber freight shed transformed from warehouse to office use, following National Park Service preservation guidelines and meeting LEED® standards. Modern engineering and old-school carpentry retain timber-and-truss character while adding thermal insulation and other energy efficiencies. < view project profile >
One North Fifth – Tucson Arizona
Architect: Rob Paulus Architect
Renovation and modernization of a 1969 building once slated for demolition. The innovative urban renewal project includes 9,000 square feet of retail and commercial space at street level plus 57,000 square feet of apartments with energy efficiencies and sustainable amenities.
Pima Emergency Communications and Operations Center – Tucson Arizona
Architect: Durrant
This cast-in-place concrete building was brought up to code for “essential facilities” and the addition was engineered to be blast resistant by strengthening the existing structure with a roof diaphragm of lightweight concrete, reinforced masonry shearwalls and retrofitted pre-cast concrete tees. This design preserves the structure¹s modern architectural integrity. < view project profile >
Solar Industry
Solar Industry
Nationwide
Schneider Structural Engineers provides the Solar Industry with safe, cost-effective racking systems that withstand wind, sun, snow and seismic forces. Since 2002 our engineers have designed the racking that supports more than 400 photovoltaic power system projects in 27 states, including ground-mounted, roof-mounted, ballasted and tracking systems. Our designs utilize custom aluminum extrusions, which are lightweight and corrosion resistant. On large-scale projects, we saved our clients millions of dollars.