KBE Building Corporation Garners Four Awards from ABC Connecticut

Online, May 1, 2013 (Newswire.com) - KBE Building Corporation (KBE) (www.kbebuilding.com) has once again taken top honors from Connecticut's Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc. (CT-ABC), winning three awards for its work and one for its safety practices. This is the fourth time that a KBE project has won "Best in Show" and the third time KBE has won "The People's Choice Award" over the last five years. The awards were presented at the annual Excellence in Construction award ceremony.

Three projects were recognized:

- "The People's Choice Award" and "Award of Merit," Connecticut College's Science Center;

- "First Place - Renovation," University of Connecticut's McMahon Dining Hall; and

- "Special Jury Award for Public Service," WFSB Channel 3 Kids Camp's Jennifer L Hawke-Petit Health Lodge.

Connecticut College's Science Center

The new Science Center at Connecticut College won two awards: an "Award of Merit" and the "People's Choice Award."

The $15.3 million, four-story project consisted of a 26,000 square-foot renovation and 14,000 square-foot addition. With its combination of teaching, research, and administrative spaces, the building provides state-of-the-art botany, biology, and computer science laboratories, classrooms, and seminar rooms for teaching and research. The building also supports both structured and informal interactions, with open research laboratories, study spaces, and meeting rooms.

The center also houses specialized facilities for microscopy, robotics, field studies, and dried plant collections, as well as two cold rooms for biochemical experiments, tissue culture rooms, including a Biosafety Level 2 facility for stem cell research and RNA interference experiments, and a new computer science classroom for students to build and test robots.

KBE is pursuing LEED Gold for this project, because of sustainable features such as:

- a modernized greenhouse with precision climate controls;

- the geothermal system that sits 500 feet beneath the surface of Tempel Green - the college's most iconic space - to heat and cool the building;

- reinstallation of the wooden trim from the doors of the original building;

- energy- and water-saving features, including high-efficiency frame hoods, lighting, heating, cooling, and plumbing fixtures; and

- the repurposing of wood from a nearly 90-year-old black oak tree near New London Hall, which was removed for safety concerns posed by its declining health

Energy consumption will be reduced by 33 percent, saving 500 barrels of oil annually, while greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by 60 percent.

The building was opened for classes in August 2012, and the ribbon cutting ceremony took place on October 27, 2012.

Connecticut College Science Center. Photo courtesy of www.paulburkphotography.com.

University of Connecticut's McMahon Dining Hall

The University of Connecticut's McMahon Dining Hall won First Place in the Renovation category.

The $7.1 million project consisted of 14,000 square feet of renovations, including a 5,500 square foot addition, a new dining facility with all new kitchen equipment, and the removal of a storefront. The existing building is composed of two seven-story towers and a two-story dining & lounge area. The interior fit-out portion of the construction was completed in a record 90 days.

Construction for McMahon Dining Hall was completed in September 2012, and the project has been certified LEED Gold by the USGBC.

University of Connecticut's McMahon Dining Hall. Photo courtesy of www.paulburkphotography.com.

WFSB Channel 3 Kids Camp's Jennifer L Hawke-Petit Health Lodge

WFSB Channel 3 Kids Camp's Jennifer L Hawke-Petit Health Lodge won a Special Jury Award for Public Service.

The Health Lodge was completed in June of 2012 as part of KBE's 50 Ways to Make a Difference, an annual community outreach initiative launched in 2009 to celebrate KBE's 50th year in business. KBE provided both a financial donation and construction management services to support the project, which included a complete renovation of the existing 1,000 square foot, single story wood building that served as an infirmary and nurses' station for the summer camp. The renovation incorporated new finishes, heating and electrical systems, new roof, and exterior siding.

The firm also engaged a select group of trade contractors who donated their time and portions of the construction costs to the project.

KBE's 50 Ways to Make a Difference initiative formalizes the construction company's 50+ year legacy of charitable giving, and focuses on providing support for local children, seniors, and military personnel. The annual program is funded by both significant corporate donations, as well as donations and volunteer time contributed by KBE's 120+ employees.

Recently, KBE also won a Community Service Award from the Connecticut Construction Industry Association (CCIA) for its construction of the Health Lodge.

Jennifer L. Hawke-Petit Health Lodge. Photo courtesy of WFSB Kids' Camp.

Best of the Best Safety Award

KBE was also awarded the 2012 Best of the Best Safety Award from the Connecticut ABC for the category of General Contractor with more than 100,000 man hours. The award was based on KBE's excellent Experience Modification Rate, zero lost time incidents, and comprehensive Safety Program.

"We are extremely proud to receive such prestigious awards," said Mike Kolakowski, KBE President and CEO. "It is truly an honor to be recognized by ABC for our work, as well as our peers in the industry. I am indebted to every one of our hardworking employees, and our committed clients and trade contractors for helping KBE become such a distinguished company."

About KBE Building Corporation

Regionally located in Farmington, Connecticut and Columbia, Maryland, KBE Building Corporation is a full-service, single-source commercial construction company strategically positioned to serve the Eastern and Mid-Atlantic U.S. Founded in 1959 and incorporated in 1966, the firm provides preconstruction, construction management, design-build, and general contracting services to clients in the educational, federal, corporate, seniors, hospitality, health care, institutional, and retail markets. KBE has managed more than $2.5 billion in construction volume over the last decade, and is ranked among Engineering News-Record magazine's top 400 construction companies nationally. Visit the company's Web site at www.kbebuilding.com.