Balfour Beatty Construction Celebrates Dedication of Student Union at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Dallas, TX, September 02, 2009 --(PR.com)-- On Friday, August 28, 2009, students, faculty, and administrative staff at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte gathered for the dedication of their much-anticipated new student union. Recently completed by Balfour Beatty Construction, the expansive, 196,000-square-foot facility promises to be central to campus life for many years to come.

At the dedication ceremony, over 150 attendees celebrated the completion of the facility, which provides office and meeting space for student organizations, student government, and faculty, with amenities such as restaurants, an art gallery, a ballroom, and a Barnes and Noble bookstore.

Totaling just over $65 million, the project marked the largest Construction Management at Risk project ever awarded by UNC Charlotte. With project funding coming largely from student fees, Balfour Beatty’s project team took extra measures, from special safety efforts to educational tours to budgeting solutions, to address student concerns throughout the project.

Said Ryan Allen, Senior Project Manager for Balfour Beatty, “We took the mission of the University to heart—posting UNC Charlotte’s mission statement in our field office to keep the students’ needs at the top of our minds and always guiding us to find innovative solutions for the University’s goals for this project.”

To help realize the full vision for the new facility, Balfour Beatty worked closely with the University and architect FWA Group to tackle significant budgeting concerns. Through value management, Balfour Beatty enabled the university to incorporate 24 options, not in the original budget, into the project. These options included a movie theater, timber bridge, brick paved courtyard, and upscale bistro.

Said Jim Hoppa, Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, “Balfour Beatty understood that the Student Union isn’t just another building on our campus, it’s going to be truly transformational for our students. In terms of amenities and the level of services, we haven’t had anything like the Student Union on campus for almost 30 years. From the beginning, Balfour Beatty recognized the impact the Student Union will have on student life, and they were as determined to get it right as we were.”

Over the past 35 years, Balfour Beatty Construction has completed over 26 million square feet of education projects throughout the United States, including the UNC Chapel Hill Science Complex in Chapel Hill, NC; the North Carolina State University Wolf Village Apartments in Raleigh, NC; and the Palm Beach Community College Countess de Hoernle Humanities and Technology Building in Boca Raton, FL.

About Balfour Beatty Construction
Balfour Beatty Construction has been a leader in the U.S. commercial construction industry for 76 years, providing general contracting, at-risk construction management, design-build, preconstruction, public/private and turnkey services for clients nationwide. The company employs 1,600 professionals and is part of London-based Balfour Beatty plc, a leading international engineering, construction, and investment business exceeding $16 billion in annual revenues. For more information, visit www.balfourbeattyus.com.

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