Knowledge Beyond Structure

Rainforest Exhibit is Getting a Facelift

2011-11-29T08:47:00.001-08:00

Those of us who have visited the Topeka Zoological Park know about the Tropical Rainforest Exhibit. This 100 foot diameter acrylic dome, which has become a Topeka landmark, is very much in need of repair. Engineers who have studied this building have determined that the structure of the dome is actually in fine shape. However most of the existing acrylic lenses are original to the structure which was constructed in 1972. In general, the life expectancy for an acrylic skylight is approximately 20 years and these are approaching a service life of 40 years.

Help is on the way! KBS crews are now preparing to construct an addition to the rainforest connecting support facilities that will help preserve the animals and plants while work is completed on the dome and inside the exhibit. Plans for the upgrade include, replacing the sprinkler & irrigation system, as well as every one of the acrylic lenses in the dome, including new seals and gaskets. This is an exciting project for us for most of our employees have visited this facility before as children and we appreciate the opportunity to help preserve this exhibit for our children and grandchildren to enjoy as well. Working around these wild animals is pretty challenging work, but for us it is routine Critical Environment Construction. Follow our progress on this project on Facebook where we will continually post new progress photos. To see the latest go to: KBS Constructors Facebook Page.

Bowyer Building - November Progress

2011-11-29T08:23:00.001-08:00

The Bowyer Community Building in Emporia is showing great progress through November. Crews are working on exterior siding and trim, anticipating the arrival of cold weather. Soon the building will be enclosed so interior finishes can be completed. We anticipate completion of the building sometime after the first of the year. A complete set of November progress photos have been uploaded to our Facebook page, KBS Constructors.

Announcing Splatfest 2

2011-09-23T08:47:00.000-07:00

KBS is organizing a paint ball tournament

To Raise money to benefit Victory Junction Midwest. Victory Junction is a camp that provides life changing experiences for kids with chronic medical conditions/serious illnesses.

Paint Ball Tournament (Bring your own gear)

Saturday, October 1^st (Registration deadline is Sept. 24^th)

Cokeley Farms Hunting Preserve and Sporting Clays, Delia

Starts at 12:00 pm

5-Man Teams @ $20 per man = $100 per team

CONTACT INFO…..Kerry Priddy (785) 633-9058 kerrypriddy@kbsci.com

Victory Gems for Victory Junction

2011-08-08T08:37:00.000-07:00

We are very excited about a new line of Jewelry created exclusively to support Victory Junction. Our colleague, Dave at Design Surveys has a friend in California who designs Jewelry. When she heard about the camp, she was moved to develop a line of items to support camp construction. Please visit her site and consider getting your credit card out while you are there. It's for a wonderful cause. Thank you Kate.

Kansas Children's Discovery Center

2011-08-02T07:30:00.000-07:00

Recently one of our newly completed projects was opened to the public.

The Kansas Children's Discovery Center is such a cool place it makes me want to be a kid again. Apparently I am not the only one who feels that way. When I went to take some photos of the outside of the building, the parking lot was completely filled with cars and there were hundreds of kids inside the facility and these were kids too young to drive.

Make plans to visit this cool new museum when you can. It's "Serious Fun."

For more information visit... http://www.kansasdiscovery.org/

2011 - Catch For A Cause

2011-06-23T09:09:00.000-07:00

We had a great time on June 4th and 5th hosting a fundraiser for Victory Junction. We plan to hold this event every year and we hope that it grows bigger and bigger each year. Lots of people enjoyed free food and drink, live music and fishing. Here is a fun video of the event on YouTube, which you might like to view if you have a few minutes.

Patty Petty to host KBS fundraiser for Victory Junction

2011-06-01T12:44:00.000-07:00

June 4th and 5th, 2011 - Please come out to Hillsdale Lake near Paola, KS for a great time. We will provide food, drinks, live music and fun. We only ask for donations to help build the new camp for children with disabilities or health challenges, Victory Junction - Midwest coming soon to Kansas City, KS.

Garfield Pool Makes Opening Splash

2011-06-01T12:12:00.000-07:00

Saturday, May 28th, 2011, KBS and the City of Topeka cut the ribbon on an exciting new pool at Garfield Park in North Topeka. In spite of the cool weather, swimmers from North Topeka showed up to see the new pool.

http://cjonline.com/news/2011-05-28/brrrr-garfield-park-pool-opens-saturday

Emporia Community Building Ground Breaking

2011-03-29T08:20:00.000-07:00

NASCAR driver and Emporia, KS native Clint Bowyer was in his home town to host a groundbreaking ceremony on the Emporia Community Building which he is funding. KBS Constructors is proud to be associated with this project. On a cold March morning the groundbreaking took place. There is a video available on YouTube if you would like to see the festivities.

Clint Bowyer Gives Back to Emporia

2011-03-10T13:23:00.000-08:00

Emporia, KS (February 28, 2011)— NASCAR driver and Emporia native Clint Bowyer, has made a generous donation to build a new Community Building in Emporia. The new facility is to be of timber frame construction, with 6,500 SF of meeting space, a catering kitchen, and restrooms. Outside there will be a patio and fire pit, surrounded by berm seating and a covered serving area. This project also receives great support from Lyon County, who will provide street and parking improvements to support the facility.

"We are thrilled to join The Bowyer 79 Fund, The Emporia Community Foundation and Lyon County to deliver this new community building," said Dan Foltz, President of KBS Constructors. “KBS is honored to work with design partners Burns & McDonnell, PKMR Engineers and Central Kansas Engineering Consultants to bring this new facility to Emporia. “ Rob Cunningham, Project Manager for KBS Constructors said, “With design nearing completion, we expect to begin soliciting prices from area subcontractors in March, with an anticipated construction start in April. “

Best Solutions are Not Always Apparent

2011-01-21T07:53:00.000-08:00

As we go through life we form assumptions based on our experience. My life experience normally serves me well in this regard. However, there are times when I am surprised by my own assumptions which turn out to be wrong.

For instance, a recent experience we had while constructing a church sanctuary, taught me that I needed to re-think some things I have learned over the years regarding constructing buildings.

Structural steel was, and still is, a cost effective way to construct a large volume interior space. However, few church congregations will accept a painted steel structure as the finished ceiling of their church. This means the contractor must construct some kind of ceiling in addition to the roof structure. This is not an inexpensive task if the desired ceiling is to be a high cathedral ceiling constructed of drywall or plaster, for it requires the use of a lot of expensive scaffolding and it is very labor intensive.

Suppose you construct the building of wood structural members which are pre-finished instead? These types of church sanctuaries were once common in the US, until steel became relatively inexpensive in the latter half of the 20th Century. As a result, steel became almost a default building material for this type of structure, especially in the great plains where forests are pretty much non-existent. So what has changed?

Steel prices have gone up dramatically in the last 10 years with increased demand in the world market, primarily from China. Wood has gone up as well, but not as dramatically. Consider that with this type of wood structure, often called glue laminated structures, what you are using for the structure becomes the ceiling too.

To some people's eyes, including mine, the inside of a wood structure is much more warm and inviting than a drywall, plaster, or acoustic tile ceiling. So, when we were able to save St. Bernard's $100,000 and still give them a beautiful building, we not only found a solution to save them money it was also a very attractive solution. At least this is my opinion. You be the judge.

Joseph Bramlage

Director of Marketing

Want to feel like a Kid again?

2010-12-17T13:53:00.000-08:00

If you could design a children's museum, what would it look like? This is not a rhetorical question. No two architects think alike on this subject. If I tried to design a children's museum it might look like a giant box of crayons or something like that.

As I watched the structure going up on a new children's museum we are building, I scratched my head a little bit. Understand that from the perspective of a builder, a building with few walls or ceilings which are plumb or level goes against everything we know.

If one were in charge of design on a children's museum, how would one know if the design was a good one? Beauty is always in the eye of the beholder and I have seen a few children's museums in my life. Clearly this is one type of building for which few standards exist.

From an architect's perspective, this must be one of the most fun designs they will ever do. As a builder I can tell you we may never feel that way until construction is complete. Believe me, more than one craftsman has been seen scratching their head on this site.

Yet, when we recently installed glass in the Kansas Children's Discovery Center, the building's design started to make more sense to me. Check it out. If this doesn't look like a building you would want to explore, then you should check your pulse because clearly this will be a building for children of all ages to enjoy.

Find out more by visiting www.kansasdiscover.org. While you are there, you might think about making a donation.

Joseph Bramlage

-Director of Marketing

Tomorrow's Energy Today

2010-07-14T08:19:00.000-07:00

Lately I’ve seen a lot of commercials on TV telling me to feel good about “going green.” It all sounds good. I like the idea of driving a clean efficient car, which doesn’t require regular oil changes, or coolant flushes. If I could afford a Tesla Roadster, I would love an electric car with a 200-mile range that can dust a Porsche in the quarter mile. A battery-powered car with a 40-mile range, however, is not practical for my needs. I think even the most ardent environmentalists would agree that alternative energy needs to be practical and affordable.

Call me a skeptic, but I don’t believe politicians and environmentalists all ride bicycles to speaking engagements, or even drive around in all-electric cars. I'm willing to reduce my carbon footprint, if those calling for us to conserve, and "go green" reduce their carbon production to the same levels before pointing their fingers at the rest of us.

If it makes economic sense, let’s keep building windmills and solar energy centers. We must not, however, put an abrupt stop to the drilling for oil and digging of coal unless $9/gallon fuel and $600/month heating bills are a reasonable price to pay for avoiding drilling accidents. Remember when fuel went over $4/gallon? I do, and I didn’t like it much. Most of us need to drive, or ride in cars, to make this economy productive.

In our business, we view buildings as opportunities to provide practical solutions. Solving energy problems, requires practical thinking. I like the idea of a ground source heating system, such as the one we are installing at Wamego Central School.

Taking heat from the earth in winter, returning heat to the earth in summer just makes sense to me. Drilling 50 holes in the ground to install coolant lines can make a mess, but once this solution is in place, it’s say goodbye to the natural gas company.

Is this Critical Environment Construction^TM? Well not exactly, but it is practical thinking to use a heating and cooling system that will pay for itself in less than 10 years and after that costs little to operate. Look for more details regarding this project in the months to come.

Joseph Bramlage - Director of Marketing and Information Technology

Caught for a Cause

2010-06-18T12:45:00.000-07:00

Our big fundraising event for Victory Junction, Catch for a Cause, on Hillsdale Lake was a big success, netting about $20k to go toward construction of the Kansas City camp. If you don't know about Victory Junction you need to visit their website at: http://www.victoryjunction.org/

I'd like to send out a special thank you to the many volunteers, sponsors, and fishermen (men, women and children) who entered the fishing contest. I wonder, should it just be fishermen &

women, or fisher-persons? I digress. Weather didn't cooperate with us, at least the weather may have scared some people away.

We were lucky that the big storms seem to hit before and after each event. Aside from some wet fishing weather and a lake with fish who didn't want to be caught, the event went very well.

The photos are very deceptive because in between the thunderstorms we had some good old fashioned hot and humid Kansas Summer weather. Given that some areas received 4 to 5 inches of rain over the weekend, we were really lucky with the weather. The Lord must have been looking out for us and apparently he heard all the prayers from volunteers asking him to hold off with the storms while we completed this event.

It looks like we may repeat this event next year and our 2nd Annual KBS Ultimate Tailgate Party at the American Royal in Kansas City is being planned now. Watch for more information on both these future events.

Joseph Bramlage

Director of Marketing

Bomb Proof Construction

2010-04-09T13:06:00.000-07:00

Recently in Moscow, terrorists blew themselves up on crowded commuter subway trains killing dozens of innocent people in the processes. Such an action makes little sense to me. Isn’t strapping a bomb to your body and blowing yourself up, like taking an express elevator to a meeting with your maker?

What does one expect to say upon arrival? “Lord, (Allah) I’m here for my reward now and I’m bringing 39 of your innocent children with me to prove I am worthy of my reward.” More likely you might be saying, “WOW, I guess someone left the thermostat set on 3,000 degrees!”

Back here on earth, we mortals are simply left wondering how to prevent a recurrence of the same deadly event. We turn to the government to protect us and they respond with long delays at airports and subways while they search 85-year-old ladies and young children. I hear the terrorist in Russia were women. So I guess searching women and children no longer sounds so crazy.

If you are in the construction business, like me, you might be wondering if there is a way to make buildings bombproof. There may be, but to do that would surely be expensive. It seems like when we make one area of our life less vulnerable, terrorists simply move on to something easier to attack.

Terrorists seem to prefer picking low hanging fruit and they are far too cowardly to stand up and fight for their cause. They simply send misguided or lost souls to do their dirty work while they hide. If someone chooses to kill him or herself, while taking innocent people with them, there is little the rest of us can do. I guess we will have to let God sort things out in the aftermath.

Joseph Bramlage - Director of Marketing and Information Technology

Earthquakes

2010-03-09T12:31:00.000-08:00

Lately we have seen a lot of news about earthquakes. What happened in Haiti was tragic and unexpected. What was not unexpected was the generosity of the American People who rushed in to help, providing millions of dollars worth of monetary aid, food and assistance.

I have never experienced an earthquake, even though I did work in Los Angeles for a while. I mentioned to the locals in L.A. that I’d like to experience an earthquake one day. My colleagues just laughed at me and said, “No you don’t, really.” Coincidentally, the day I left to return home to Arlington, TX, a fair-sized earthquake hit the L.A. area. I just barely missed the experience due to being on an airplane somewhere over New Mexico. Phew!

Having spent some time reviewing construction drawings in L.A., I understand the implications of designing buildings to survive an earthquake. Concrete columns, which in Texas would have been about 15” in diameter, are instead so large one could not reach around them with both arms. Masonry structures are discouraged in an earthquake because it will just simply shake apart. The only way to use masonry is to reinforce it with concrete, steel or some other more stable material. Steel works well because it flexes, but in a high-rise structure, you must consider that a building that is allowed to sway during an earthquake can make the occupants sick in a simple windstorm.

Critical Environment Construction™ takes many different forms. As is the case with most types of CEC™, to make a building truly earthquake-resistant one must be able to adopt a non-traditional view of design.

Joseph Bramlage - Director of Marketing

Constructing With Snow

2010-02-19T13:25:00.000-08:00

The 2010 Olympics are underway. I’ve marveled at the snow construction. The Canadian Olympic committee had to import, by truck, needed snow to construct a snowboard cross track and the half pipe course. These tracks are amazing—more like a sculpture than a construction project. How does one learn to do that kind of work anyway? You can be sure, a lot of experience was required.

I’m old enough to remember Jim McKay’s opening sequence for ABC’s Wide World of Sports. In his words, “the human drama of athletic competition and the agony of defeat.” As a child I learned when to look at the TV, upon hearing these words, to see Vinko Bogataj slide off the right side of the ski jump ramp. This ski jumper survived his terrible accident with only a few bruises and a mild concussion. He returned to competition the very next year. [Link]

This year, we were reminded that in the Olympics, especially the winter games, margins for error are razor thin and errors in judgment can be fatal. During a practice run, luge slider, 21-year-old Nodar Kumaritashvili from Georgia, lost his life in a fatal accident on the luge track. He misjudged a turn and sailed out of the track hitting a support column. Naturally, the designers and builders of the track, which was an amazing feat of construction, did their best to make the track safe. Now the memory of this fatal accident will be with them forever.

In the construction business, judgments are made all the time. In our business we often work around high voltage equipment, and around bacteria, viruses and airborne contaminants. We cannot afford mistakes, for mistakes can be devastating. When working in critical environments, one wrong move or a mistake in judgment could cost millions of dollars or could even be fatal. Preparation and planning are keys to success and more than 20 years of experience with construction in these environments is useful too. Keeping people safe while protecting investments. That’s what Critical Environment Construction is all about.

Joseph Bramlage
- Director of Marketing and Information Technology

Turning a Digital Page Yet Again

2010-02-04T06:50:00.000-08:00

I remember seeing A:\ > on a fuzzy green monitor years ago and thinking I was seeing the future. When the first graphic user interfaces (GUI) arrived, it demonstrated potential for improving the user experience. The GUI was called a paradigm shift, meaning a dramatic change in methodology or practice. We have seen incremental improvements, such as better monitors, faster processors, a library of typefaces and proportional character sets. Laser and inkjet printers replaced dot matrix printers. Digital photos and music added richness to the user experience. Laptops became more portable, yet the design of personal computers and the user interface have remained relatively unchanged for years.

For me, another paradigm shift arrived with the Internet. Being connected is now essential for business. Many of us have computers at home connected to the net, as well. There are about 312 million people in the US and approximately 75% of us have access to the Internet. Does that mean 80 million Americans still only read newspapers, watch TV for the news, or mail letters? This is not likely. Being too young or old to learn is only part of the reasons people remain off the net. I think one large barrier is the design of computers. I simply do not like to read news on a computer screen because my computer is often not convenient. Email has changed my life, but even email is inaccessible at times. Smart phones are cool, but I cannot manage data on a tiny little screen and type on a tiny keyboard.

Media readers have been around for a few years, but until last week, these readers made little sense. Apple has quickly taken the lead position in this market. I believe their iPad product represents another paradigm shift and my reasons are simple. The touch-screen interface and potential for hundreds of applications makes information more approachable, efficient, and convenient. I believe my 79-year old mother could even use this product. The iPad’s near instant on capability means convenience and flexibility. I will carry one like a portfolio. It will likely become my preferred method for daily digital tasks such as reading news or email. Expect to see mobile data entry applications, and interactive kiosks. You will see them in police cars and in offices. They will become GPS navigators, maps, a remote for your DVR—the potential is nearly endless.

Other vendors will close rank and follow Apple’s lead. Whichever model you buy, the glue that holds them together is the digital communication network. Without a network, these products become insignificant. Making sure digital networks remain uninterrupted during renovations and construction is Critical Environment Construction^TM. It’s what we do at KBS Constructors. Making sure your portable digital media is delivered portably at all times. That’s pretty critical.

Joseph Bramlage -Director of Marketing and Information Technology

Is it 2010 already?

2010-01-15T13:47:00.000-08:00

A friend and I recently laughed about how far off the movie “2001: A Space Odyssey” and the sequel “2010” were when trying to predict the future. Note to moviemakers: When predicting the future, don’t include a date.

I expected to be constructing space stations by now, maybe even a hotel on the moon. But alas, governments are still the only contractors in space. This may explain why construction schedules for space stations are measured in decades.

By 2010, we might have expected to travel to the office in a flying car, powered by renewable fuel and fitting inside our briefcase, right? How naive we were back then!

What I didn’t predict was the amount of interdependence between the industries we serve. What happens when phone service is interrupted, for example? How much does a stock brokerage house depend on their communications system? What about Internet Service Providers or a hospital? Simply stated, these firms cannot tolerate a mistake made by a contractor working in a telephone switch room. Businesses depend on services, such as the communication network, and our customers provide those services. That’s Critical Environment Construction.

Looking forward, I see more of the same. The healthcare industry needs contractors who won’t spread airborne contaminates in their buildings. Fear of bioterrorism requires us to pay attention to similar issues when building animal research facilities.
The future for us is in knowing how to successfully work in these environments. I guess for now we will leave space construction for the government to handle. We have our hands full keeping buildings safe and operational here on Earth.

I’d love to hear your take on it. What will be business’s most critical building needs in the decade to come?

Joe Bramlage
Director of Marketing

Water is a Critical Environment, Really?

2009-10-29T07:56:00.000-07:00

As a kid, I loved to swim. After several hours in the pool though, my skin would look like a prune and my eyes were as red as Dracula’s.

Some experts believe pruning of skin is a result of the outer layer of skin absorbing more water than the inner layers. When the outside layer expands more than the inner layer, it causes the skin to wrinkle. No kidding? Well, that explains the wrinkled skin, but what about red and sore eyes?
Working on an expansion of an indoor swimming facility, I have learned new things about pool water treatment. My misconception was that red eyes and a strong chlorine smell to the water is the result of too much chlorine. Actually, the cause can be not enough chlorine! Really? But how can that be?

According to poolcenter.com, the combined chlorine compounds, called chloramines, are produced when a free chlorine molecule combines with a nitrogen or ammonia molecule. These compounds smell bad, irritate the eyes and skin, and get in the way of free chlorine trying to do its job.

There is a better way to treat pool water. The application of UV-C light waves to water reduces the need for chlorine by as much as 75%, and kills some bacteria that are resistant to chlorine. I’ve known about the positive effect of UV light in air filtration systems used in hospitals where very unfriendly bacteria and viruses pose an even bigger threat to the people using the facility.

Because UV disinfection is a physical process, it reduces the need to transport, store, and handle dangerous chemicals like chlorine. UV treatment adds no taste or smell to water. Although direct exposure to UV-C rays is as dangerous to humans as it is to bacteria, a UV disinfection system adds no known carcinogenic or toxic by-product to the water.
These systems require yearly replacement of light bulbs, and they do cost more to install. However, given the benefits I have discussed, UV treatment systems must be considered, especially in a critical environment such as an indoor pool used by so many athletes for swimming competition.

Keeping swimmers safe from bacteria while protecting their eyes from irritation. That’s Critical Environment Construction.

Matt Charvat
Project Manager

Kyle Petty Energizes KBS Ultimate Tailgate Party

2009-10-21T14:07:00.000-07:00

Recently, KBS Constructors Foundation sponsored an event at the American Royal Barbecue to benefit our non-profit organization of choice, Victory Junction Camp. A few area celebrities attended the event, which was called the KBS Ultimate Tailgate Party. Kyle Petty was also at the event, signing autographs and thanking people for their support of the camp.

What was especially amazing to me, was the amount of energy Kyle Petty brings to such events. He has time for everyone who helps with the camp. Clearly, the children of Victory Junction have won his heart, and I guess they must help to fill the void left by Kyle’s son Adam who was tragically killed in a racing accident.

If you do not know this story, you owe it to yourself to learn more about Victory Junction. I suggest you visit this ESPN web link and watch the video ABC produced about Adam Petty’s life and the development of the Victory Junction organization. This video is such a fitting tribute to Adam and the family he left behind.

When KBS was named as contractor to build the new camp in Kansas City, Kansas, it was a very proud moment for me personally. I did not know at that time that involvement in this charity would open my heart so wide. One cannot help but be taken in by the work so many people are doing on behalf of others. It’s truly an amazing place. I cannot wait until we open the doors on the latest camp to be located in Kansas City, Kansas. If you would like to help us build the new camp in the Midwest, visit our buildthebodyshop.com web site for more information.

Joseph Bramlage
DIrector of Marketing

Don’t Retire, Recycle

2009-08-31T12:59:00.000-07:00

My 27-year career in commercial construction has exposed me to many different situations, both stressful and rewarding. Yet along with the stress of maintaining project schedules comes the wonderful feeling of looking at an impressive structure and knowing that you had a part in making that building possible.

Early in my career, I worked along side a seasoned estimator who was nearly 70 years of age and still working. Let’s say his name was Bill—not to protect his identity but because I have forgotten his name. I suspect that over the years, Bill had forgotten more about the business of construction than I had learned. We watched from his office as the nine-story office building across the street was demolished. It was a building he had helped construct when he was about my age.

Bill said, “You know you are old when buildings you helped build are now being torn down.” Although he laughed, I could see in his eyes that he was not ready to retire yet, even at his age. At the time, I thought it might be nice to be ready to put down your pencil and pick up a fishing pole. I don’t think he saw things that way though.

Now, some 25 years later, I know the feeling he was experiencing. In my case, however, many of the buildings I helped build are not necessarily being demolished, just remodeled. The way I look at things, why throw away what you can recycle? As long as the idea is popular, maybe I’ll go on living forever!

-- Joseph Bramlage
Director of Marketing

Welcome

2009-08-19T09:08:00.000-07:00

The Ribbon has Been Cut

Welcome to Knowledge Beyond Structure, the official blog of KBS Constructors, Inc.

We created this blog as an outlet to provide updates on the latest news, opinions, and insight gathered by the KBS team. As a complement to the information presented on our website, this blog will allow us to expand on the story of the work we do and how we do it.

Through articles written by KBS leaders, construction industry experts, and KBS Clients, we will offer various perspectives on the world of commercial construction, particularly as it pertains to the sensitive environments that have made KBS Constructors Leaders in Critical Environment Construction™.

We’ve built many things, but never a blog, so we hope that you will stay posted and follow our progress as we continue to develop Knowledge Beyond Structure, our first virtual construction project.