Jay Paul Company, Moffett Towers

Jay Paul Company’s Moffett Towers is a groundbreaking project for the city of Sunnyvale, California. Not only is it the largest project to be built in the area, it is also the city’s first high-rise project and the largest green project of its size in Silicon Valley.

Located along the southern edge of historic Moffett Field, a former U.S. Naval Air Station, stands a series of beautiful Spanish limestone, Italian granite and glass towers. This new office and R&D campus is the first large-scale speculative office construction project in Silicon Valley. Occupying a 52-acre site, the new construction includes 7 eight-story office buildings totaling 1.8 million square feet, an amenities building with cafeteria, three parking garages with 3,488 spaces, a site parking lot with 1,200 spaces, new roads, demolition and associated sitework. Pedestrian and bike pathways connect to an adjacent VTA light rail station.

“I have had the pleasure of working with Rudolph and Sletten on numerous projects during our firm’s nearly 30-year relationship. Projects we have completed recently with Rudolph and Sletten include the Pacific Shores Center project and the Moffett Towers project. Both of these projects were completed with DES Architects and consisted of multiple buildings on the Bay mud totaling over 1.7 million square feet each. Over the course of these projects, Rudolph and Sletten’s performance in the management of the project budget and schedule through preconstruction and construction has been exceptional.”Janette R. Sammartino, Senior Vice President / COO for Jay Paul Company

The design incorporates environmentally responsible design through the use of energy efficiency, water use, indoor environmental quality, materials use and landscape design. The office buildings are currently registered for LEED Silver CS and new tenant build outs will be contractually required to attain LEED Silver CI. The amenities building received LEED Gold certification in the spring of 2009.

During the demolition process, materials were saved and crushed to be used as base rock for the new parking lots. Parcel Three reused between 18,000 and 20,000 cubic yards of demolition materials. Throughout the process 36% of the new construction materials were from recycled materials. Over 92% of the construction waste was diverted from the landfills through recycling efforts.

Half of all the stormwater is diverted into the landscaping allowing for the plants and soil to absorb the water instead of the city’s storm drains. The owner’s commitment to the environment resulted in the project meeting the city’s stormwater requirements, despite being outside the regulated area.

Such a larger project was not without its challenges. To meet the design requirements of the building, 14 California Sycamore trees had to be transplanted to create the centerpiece of a new business park. Using a patented 14-foot spade, the 45-foot-tall trees were safely relocated on site in only 3 days.

Until now the city had restricted the construction of high-rises. Therefore, Rudolph and Sletten’s project managers needed additional perseverance to stay on schedule and to meet the deadlines. They worked closely with the city to follow the numerous plans through the various departments.

Metal panels for the building’s skin were fabricated at the subcontractor’s yard on a truss frame. This Lean construction method allowed for a more efficient installation process saving both time and money.

At the owner’s requested the parking structure’s completion was moved up on the schedule to accommodate a new tenant. Rudolph and Sletten’s management team had to rethink the building process for the garage. Since the elevator construction was contingent upon the completion of the middle section of the garage, the team decided to build the entire right and the middle sections of the garage first. This allowed the elevator subcontractor to begin work on the elevator as building continued with the left section of the structure. The scheduling change finished the garage earlier meeting the owner’s request.

With each new challenge the Rudolph and Sletten team provided superior management skills keeping the project on schedule and on budget while at the same time addressing the needs of the owner. Expert planning and scheduling gave the project a solid foundation from which adjustments could easily be made to meet challenges along the way.
Go to: http://www.moffett-towers.com/