1021 O Street State Office Building

To accommodate this accelerated schedule, the State of California Department of General Services (DGS) utilized the progressive design-build delivery method for the first time.

Hensel Phelps and its design-build partners embraced this fast-track challenge and, working closely with the state’s construction manager and criteria architect, commenced construction of the project just eight months after planning began. The team worked at an accelerated pace to incorporate input from multiple tenant groups that all had unique workspace requirements and robust security standards. The phased permitting process required by the California Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM), combined with the need for efficiency and acceleration of the design phase, was accomplished through pull planning sessions focused on the design schedule. Several sessions were held with the entire team of design consultants and design-build trade partners to work backwards from the planned OSFM phase submissions and identify and sequence critical tasks to support the milestones. This highly effective approach led to OSFM approvals of Phase 1 and 2 and the on-time submission of Phase 3 to support the fast-paced construction schedule.

On this historic journey to complete the State of California’s first progressive design-build project, the 1021 O Street project team also encountered many challenges that threatened the accelerated schedule. The team worked through each challenge as they came up with solutions to keep the team safe and the project on track. The three main challenges the project faced while working to achieve the accelerated schedule included:

Civil Unrest: Downtown Sacramento and the Capitol area were ground zero for civil unrest protests, and the project team had to take extra precautions to protect the site from vandalism. Working with the government and the California Highway Patrol (CHP, who provide security for the Legislature), the team was able to coordinate protection with the California National Guard and avoid any major damage to the building and site.

Covid-19 Pandemic: During the height of the pandemic, the team experienced labor shortages of up to 50%, due to both illness and contact tracing requirements. This required the project team to get creative with scheduling. To avoid further delays, the team was able to immediately secure the 1021 O Street Office Building status as an essential project and get certification from the government to that effect, which allowed the team and labor force to continue work uninterrupted as many other jobsites were being shut down. This proactive approach significantly contributed to the project staying on schedule to meet the critical State Legislature move date.

Wildfires/floods: Wildfire smoke was a major concern for workers, but additionally, the wildfires constrained the resources of the California Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM) which had the potential to delay the project’s inspection schedule. To help mitigate these delays, and based on the trusting relationship the team had built with the OSFM, the project team implemented a series of virtual inspections using mobile devices and cameras to coordinate with OSFM staff. These innovative techniques helped keep the project on schedule to achieve the critical legislature move date.