PCL Builds Big at the Vancouver 2010 Games

Edmonton’s PCL Constructors Inc. is one of the many Alberta-based companies helping to set the stage for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Working on one of its largest projects ever built for one of the world’s largest events, the company’s west coast subsidiary is managing the $800-million expansion of the Vancouver Convention Centre.

During the Games, it will become the Main Media Centre - a hub for nearly 10,000 accredited journalists, broadcasters and technicians who will put together the exciting and dramatic stories sent out across the globe. After the Games, the downtown waterfront facility, with its unsurpassed ocean and mountain views, will become a centre for tourism, business and convention events.

From a design and engineering standpoint, the expansion project is as complex as it is massive, as half of the one-million-square foot building sits above the ocean.  Even for the most experienced contractors, the enormity of the project, which began construction in 2004, coupled with the unwavering deadlines could be daunting.  In May, PCL’s president and CEO, Ross Grieve told the Calgary Herald they are finding motivation within the challenge, “there was definitely a fear factor involved, we’re in the service industry; so although we’ve been around 102 years, you’re only as good as your last job. You have to make sure you protect your reputation and you perform.”

In keeping with VANOC’s third pillar of the Games, sustainability, the project boasts a commitment to environmentally sustainable practices. All of the new facilities are built to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program’s gold standards.  And, perhaps some of the most interesting aspects of this project include a 5.5-acre geometric living roof with native grasses – the largest of its kind in Canada; an artificial reef for marine habitat; a series of pumps that use the constant temperature of seawater for heating and cooling; and numerous links to Vancouver’s cycling and pedestrian pathways.