Carson Tahoe Hospital

Providing a competitive cost advantage compared to a steel special concentrically braced frame (SCBF) lateral system, Tilt-Up was selected for the 363,000-square-foot facility because the concrete shear walls provide a longer lasting, more durable exterior that improves energy performance due to their inherent thermal mass. Further, the Tilt-Up shear walls at the exterior of the building provided flexibility for the current layout as well as for future renovations while also reducing the need for interior brace frames. This is the first concrete hospital/healthcare facility of its size to use Tilt-Up panels for the primary lateral force resisting system.

Since the project was located in a high seismic region, the engineers worked with the contractor to design custom-welded hold-down details that are capable of transmitting the high shear and overturning forces as well as allow for the necessary erection tolerances.

The panels for this project received ranking on the TCA Top 10 List (largest panel at 2,742 square feet, third heaviest at 292,000 pounds and fifth tallest at 83 feet, 2 inches).

The design incorporated threaded bar connections at the bottom of panels and embed plates that were welded to embed plates in the foundations. These design elements allowed the large panels to be safely set, with reasonable erection tolerances, and still deliver the large seismic forces into the foundation.

As the cornerstone of the Carson-Tahoe Regional Medical Center’s new 85-acre campus, the facility is a seismically safe, cost-effective structure that allows the owner to incorporate the latest healthcare technologies. The main lobby of the hospital extends nearly the entire length of the structure. The Tilt-Up panels are located in the interior of the building, at the back wall of the lobby, and a glass curtain wall in a saw-tooth pattern was used to define the front of the structure. The façade is primarily painted concrete walls with various elements that incorporate a stone veneer.

This project received recognition from the Structural Engineering Association of California for Best Use of Conventional Technology in New Construction, a Certificate of Merit from Healthcare Design magazine, and the 2006 ACI Construction Award from the Northern California/Western Nevada Chapter.