Navy Pier’s just-opened Ferris Wheel on Chicago’s lakefront was dismantled in 2015 and had to be fully operational in May 2016 for the Pier’s grand re-opening commemorating its 100th anniversary. The new 196-foot-tall Centennial Wheel is nearly 50 feet taller than the previous wheel and features 42 gondolas that each hold eight passengers. The privately funded $26.5 million project included new landscape features supported by expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam blocks placed on top of the concrete roof of an exhibition hall below.
V3 was part of the team of more than 50 subcontractors and provided construction surveying services for the placement of the foam in the spring of 2016. The services began with tying in horizontal control and benchmarks provided by general contractor James McHugh Construction Co. V3 completed a pre-construction topographic survey of the roof prior to waterproofing and other improvements to determine EPS quantities. Following the mapping, a CAD generated model was prepared to incorporate the design into the engineering plans for finished grades of concrete walks, planting areas and other features whose thicknesses were subtracted to define the top of foam elevation. V3 installed lath stakes in the leveling course of the foam and spray-painted the locations where contours shaped the varying surfaces.
Want to know more about this project or V3’s Survey capabilities? Call Chris Bartosz at 630.729.6124 or email cdbartosz@v3co.com.