Algonquin College Healthy Living Education Renovation

Project Team :

Bryden Martel Architects - Architect of Record

Halsall Associates Limited - Structural Engineers

Goodkey Weedmark & Associates Mechanical and Electrical Engineers

Description :

With this endeavor Algonquin College initiated a Healthy Living Education Cluster in one of the College’s original buildings on the Main Campus. The Esthetics and Hair Stylist programs were repatriated to the Campus and were brought together with the Massage Therapy program. These relocations provide the opportunity to enhance the delivery of both programs and to offer cross fertilizing opportunities by clustering the two programs under a single umbrella.

An inherent component of these two educational programs is practical training that involves serving clients that come from the student body and from the Ottawa community. The objective was for these facilities to provide an appropriate client experience that has some equivalency to commercial facilities offering the same services 

The overall project schedule was challenging. The time available from engagement of the Consultant Team in November of 2103 to the required date of March 10, 2014 for completion of construction documents was extremely demanding. Furthermore, construction activities on site could only start on April 28, 2014 and construction was required to be substantially complete by August 2014. A construction management implementation methodology was employed.

There were two major embedded design challenges for this project.

Spatial concepts for the Healthy Living Cluster required significant modifications to components of the all precast concrete structure which made compensating structural reinforcement mandatory.

The new uses for the renovated areas of the building combined with the requirement for centralized air conditioning necessitated a novel heating, ventilation and air conditioning concept.

The total renovation area is approximately 983 m².