This project for the TsuuT’ina Nation consisted of the construction of a new 4,388-square-metre, single-storey high school with a second floor mechanical room. This steel structure building features Glulam Beams which were tied into the steel deck, as well as structural masonry block for the gymnasium and theater walls. The scope of work also comprised site work such as regrading the site, building a parking lot and new sports field, adding stairs connecting to the adjacent Sportsplex site, and creating sidewalks to the Adult Learning Centre.

One of the biggest lessons learned on this project, was the importance of implementing BIM/VDC early in the construction process and engaging all stakeholders at the start. Involving the Consultant and subcontractors in the BIM/VDC process allowed for more comprehensive constuctability reviews. Another critical take-away was the importance of engaging with the community stakeholders and discussing their community values and their vision and objectives for the project, as it allowed our team to not only gain a deeper understanding of how the project could mutually satisfy all parties’ expectations, it led to a more cohesive team and a successful project outcome.

Bird believes in building communities, and on this project we implemented strategies and initiatives to employ local labour and offered apprenticeship opportunities to students in the local Indigenous community. Bird was honoured to get to know the people and their culture better by attending several community events. Bird also sponsored the Rodeo and Banquet events, and the local hockey teams.

A large number of client driven change orders and RFI’s impacted the schedule and resulted in a significant amount of time being allocated to on and off site coordination. In order to effectively and efficiently approach these changes, the project team had daily calls with the design team to prioritize items and discuss constructability. The site staff thoroughly reviewed the details and flagged potential issues during these daily calls. Although time consuming, by engaging at this level of service and commitment to the Owner, the result was a successful, high quality project.