Best Project: K-12 Education: Mountlake Terrace and Lynnwood Elementary Schools

Mountlake Terrace and Lynnwood Elementary Schools
Mountlake Terrace and Lynnwood, Wash.
Best Project

Owner: Edmonds School District
Lead Design Firm: Bassetti Architects
General Contractor: BNBuilders Inc.
Civil Engineer: AHBL
Structural Engineer: Coughlin Porter Lundeen Inc.
MEP Engineer: Wood Harbinger

The scope of this bundled project for Seattle-area Edmonds School District included replacing two aging schools that were built more than 50 years ago. For cost and schedule efficiency, the team combined similar projects into one package to pool materials and specifications. That also allowed requests for information and submittals to be shared while combining project administration and minimizing indirect costs associated with meetings, quality control reviews, mock-ups and accounting.

The team staggered workflow by combining project schedules, which created a better trade workflow from Lynnwood Elementary into Mountlake Terrace Elementary. When bidding the projects, the team gave subcontractors the option to bid on one school project or both, resulting in net savings from subcontractor package discounts.

The team found other efficiencies as well. While Lynnwood was a net exporter of soil, Mountlake was a net importer. With one earthwork subcontractor between the schools, the design team leveled the work between the sites, limiting the need to bring in new soil.