Tarlton

Tarlton Promotes Sweeso to Manager of Preconstruction and Estimating

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ST. LOUIS (June 21, 2022) – Tarlton Corp., a leading St. Louis-based general contracting and construction management firm, promoted Greg Sweeso, Associate DBIA, to manager of preconstruction and estimating.

Sweeso has been serving as preconstruction lead on the Fuhr Science Center renovation and addition at Logan University in Chesterfield, Missouri, and several design-build projects. In his role as a Tarlton preconstruction project manager, he led preconstruction on the core and shell historic renovation and Block tenant fit-out at 900 N. Tucker Blvd., the Center for Nursing and Health Sciences at St. Louis Community College at Forest Park, and many projects for BJC HealthCare. He joined Tarlton as an estimator in 2015.

“We are fortunate to have such a talented group of preconstruction and estimating professionals at Tarlton,” said Jason Bretz, Tarlton vice president. “We are excited to have Greg managing that portion of our business, which delivers best-in-class preconstruction services to our clients.”

Sweeso holds the Associate DBIA certification from the Design-Build Institute of America and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Saint Louis University. 

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Construction Robotics Featured at 9th Annual AGCMO Tech Conference

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By KERRY SMITH, EDITOR, ST. LOUIS CONSTRUCTION NEWS AND REVIEW MAGAZINE

Robots that supplement construction teams by performing repetitive tasks are preparing for their “invasion” at project sites, according to Tarlton’s Scott Green, presenter at one of the breakout sessions at the 9th annual AGC of Missouri Design & Construction Technology Conference on Oct. 22.

The St. Louis Council of Construction Consumers (SLC3) partnered with AGCMO to host the event, held this year at the Eric P. Newman Education Center in the Central West End.

Green, Tarlton’s director of technology, quality and productivity, told the audience it’s likely that St. Louis’ construction industry will soon embrace what is occurring on the West Coast. Large projects are recruiting robots to perform time-intensive, labor-intensive repetitive tasks to mitigate safety risks and compensate for the shortage of field workers.

“These task-performing machines are assisting in everything from demolition to material handling, bricklaying, laser scanning and more,” Green said. “They’re not replacing the human element, but rather complementing the construction workforce, reducing risk, enhancing efficiency, reducing the potential for human error and reducing safety risks on the jobsite.”

Examples of non-human counterparts that St. Louis jobsites might see soon include:

Dusty Robotics’ FieldPrinter: This robot-powered tool automates the layout process within 1/16-inch accuracy, printing full-size floorplans on the deck for builders.

TinyMobile’s mobile robots: Marking lines on sporting fields is the mission of this bot.

Civ Robotics’ mobile robots: These surveying field robots mark lines on roadways.

Advanced Construction Robotics’ IronBot: This rebar carrying and placing robot relieves the burden of heavy lifting by self-placing up to 5,000-pound rebar bundles.

SkyMul’s SkyMul robot: This drone identifies and ties rebar intersections.

SAM (Semi-Automated Mason): SAM lays up to 3,000 bricks per day, four times faster than a human.

MULE (Material Unit Lift Enhancer): This cargo-carrying robot can lift and place material weighing up to 135 pounds.

Hilti Jaibot: Locating and drilling color-coded holes in ceilings and decks at heights of up to 16.5 feet is this robot’s task.

Boston Dynamics’ Spot: An agile robot, this one navigates terrain, climbs stairs and can carry up to 31 pounds for 90 minutes.

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Edwardsville Resident & Builder To Retire From Tarlton And Grow His Company

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Matt Pfund

By KERRY SMITH, EDITOR, ST. LOUIS CONSTRUCTION NEWS AND REVIEW MAGAZINE

A longstanding leader in the construction industry is announcing his retirement from Tarlton Corporation to devote more time and energy to his own construction firm.

Matt Pfund, senior vice president at St. Louis-based Tarlton, will officially retire in early 2020 after 23 years in his position there to concentrate solely on Pfund Construction, the Edwardsville-based company he founded in 1993, as well as a few other personal ventures.

Pfund and his wife, Kristen, actively own and operate the commercial and residential construction firm that is known for a series of Edwardsville-centric development projects, many of them involving the rehabilitation and repurposing of downtown commercial buildings. In 2018, Pfund Construction received Business of the Year from the City of Edwardsville.

Pfund Construction’s notable projects along North Main Street in downtown Edwardsville include the 2016 rehab of an 1891 storefront (across from the Wildey Theatre) into ground-floor retail and an upper-story loft; the 2017 rehab of the Metcalf Building, a 1920s theater, into mixed-use retail and loft units; and the 2019 repurposing of long-time tavern Laurie’s Place into retail as well.

“We live in Edwardsville and we love continuing to build community here,” said Matt Pfund. “I’ve also really loved working for Tarlton all these years. It’s a great thing when you know you’re able to embark fully on your own venture, but it’s going to be equally difficult to leave a terrific company and fantastic people.”

February 2020 represents the official transition for Pfund from Tarlton to Pfund Construction. Pfund is a construction management graduate of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. He and Kristen have three teenage children.Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

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Tarlton Garners Agc Of Missouri 2018 Construction Keystone Award

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Museum Building addition entrance and original Museum Building.

Award Honors Highest Achievements of Region’s Construction Firms

The historic renovation of the Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum at Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis, with Tarlton Corp. serving as construction manager, won a 2018 Construction Keystone Award from the Associated General Contractors of Missouri. This year’s honor marks the ninth time Tarlton was recognized for a top Keystone Award-winning project since the inception of the competition.

Tarlton was among 10 winners chosen from a highly competitive field of 30 finalists at the 21st Annual Keystone Awards on Nov. 8. The AGC of Missouri Keystone Awards program recognizes contractors who meet and successfully resolve challenges on construction projects.

“Recognition by the AGC of Missouri is one of the highest honors a general contractor can receive,” said Tracy Hart, president, Tarlton Corp. “We are proud of the skill, teamwork and spirit of the Tarlton teams on our projects, and we appreciate that in collaboration with the project owners and stakeholders, we can make these lasting contributions to the community.”

Tarlton’s work on the 7,000-square-foot Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum, an iconic pre-Civil War structure on the grounds of the world-renowned Missouri Botanical Garden, won in the “Building Construction Project Under $10 million” category. The museum, which was opened in 1859 by St. Louis businessman and philanthropist Henry Shaw, served as the Garden’s first scientific research facility, library and herbarium of more than 62,000 specimens. Widely considered one of the most historically significant buildings in the Midwest, the building had been closed to the public for more than three decades. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Working with project architect Christner Inc., Tarlton’s scope of work included an aggressive schedule, unforeseen conditions and an unexpected discovery during the demolition of a plaster drop ceiling: the paintings of three noted botanists on a barrel-vault ceiling hidden above the false ceiling in a room adjacent to the main exhibit hall. The discovery temporarily halted work while conservators from EverGreene Architectural Arts in Brooklyn, N.Y., were brought in for the careful restoration.

Meanwhile, in the main exhibit hall, construction and artistry worked side by side as the Tarlton team restored historic finishes, completed structural improvements and erected scaffolding to allow art conservators to access the ceiling two stories up. There, they undertook the painstaking replication of a painted botanical mural spanning 12 separate panels overhead.

To usher visitors into the space, Tarlton built a modern 2,000-square-foot addition that connects to the museum, which serves as the new accessible entrance and houses public amenities. The two-story addition’s glass curtainwall provides occupants with a feeling of being surrounded by nature and was designed in accordance with preservation principles outlined by the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and the U.S. National Park Service.

Additional updates include an expanded light-filled lobby that offers space for exhibits, artwork and other displays; a renovated lower-level gallery; and a new staircase that links the two floors.

The Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum project garnered additional Keystone Award recognition with a win by Niehaus Building Services LLC in the “Specialty/Subcontractor Building Construction Project Under $3 million” category. Two other subcontractors on the project – Guarantee Electrical Co. and Kirberg Co. – also submitted nominations for their work on the museum. It marked the first time all three finalists in a single category had worked on the same project.

The AGC of Missouri represents approximately 550 construction and construction-related firms in the state of Missouri that perform building, highway, and infrastructure construction. It is affiliated with several national organizations, including AGC of America.

St. Louis-based Tarlton Corp. is a leader in general contracting and construction management throughout the Midwest. The firm has completed many landmark projects in and around St. Louis and holds steadfast to its goal to improve the lives of St. Louisans through construction, civic involvement and philanthropy.Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

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Tarlton Serves as Construction Manager on Multi-Level Parking Garage for Cortex

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FacebooktwitterlinkedinmailTarlton Corp., a St. Louis-based general contracting and construction management firm, is serving as construction manager for a new $12 million multi-level parking garage at 4217 Custom Steel Dr. near Duncan Avenue in the Cortex Innovation Community in St. Louis’ Central West End.

The five-level parking garage will have spaces for 678 vehicles. Construction scope consists of 400 pieces of precast concrete and 3,500 cubic yards of excavation and backfill. Tarlton Concrete will self-perform the cast-in-place concrete, including 50 drilled piers and 2,000 cubic yards of grade beams, walls and slabs, as well as the installation of an elevator. The construction of the new parking garage in the Cortex Innovation Community marks the first phase of three parking garage projects that are planned in the district. The parking garage is slated for completion in May 2019.

The team includes Brian Gibson, project director; Brian Shaffer, project manager; Michael Vemmer, project engineer; Jon Stemme, project superintendent; and Laurie Howell, cost engineer. HOK is the project architect.

“The Custom Steel Drive Parking Garage builds on our success as one of the region’s top construction managers and concrete experts,” said Tracy Hart, president, Tarlton Corp. “We are delighted to work on a project that will have such a positive impact on the Cortex Innovation Community.”

Tarlton also is working with Cortex on Innovation Hall, a 13,800-square-foot networking and event space at 4220 Duncan Ave., next to the Custom Steel Drive garage, where the firm also completed interior fit-outs for building tenants BJC WellAware Center, Microsoft and Cambridge Innovation Center.

Tarlton has completed more than 20 projects in the Cortex District, including the @4240 (4240 Duncan Ave.) core and shell historic renovation; tenant fit-outs in @4240 for Cambridge Innovation Center, Washington University School of Medicine, Boeing, Husch Blackwell and Park Avenue Coffee; BioGenerator lab and office expansion, Cortex 1 building; new lobby conference rooms, Cortex 1; CIC@CET renovations, 20 S. Sarah St.; 4260 Forest Park Ave., new core and shell; Alcami fit-out, 4260 Forest Park Ave.; Duncan Avenue storm sewer extension; various parking lot projects; and work by Tarlton HydroVac Services.

About Tarlton

In business since 1946, Tarlton Corp. is a WBENC-Certified Women’s Business Enterprise that completes projects for wide-ranging clients in the life science, higher education, health care, commercial, power and industrial markets. Tarlton also has special expertise in concrete construction, concrete restoration and hydro excavation services.

About Cortex Innovation Community

Founded in 2002 through a collaboration of Washington University in St. Louis, BJC Healthcare, the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Saint Louis University, and the Missouri Botanical Garden, the Cortex Innovation Community (CortexSTL.com) is a nationally and internationally recognized hub of innovation and technology commercialization. It serves as an anchor in St. Louis’ growing ecosystem of innovative startups and established companies. Cited by the Brookings Institution as a Best Practice among global urban innovation districts, Cortex is home to 350 technology-related businesses, and it provides a deep pool of entrepreneurial support programs available to the entire St. Louis community.

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Tarlton Building Out Innovation Hall at 4220 Duncan Ave.

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FacebooktwitterlinkedinmailTarlton Corp., a St. Louis-based general contracting and construction management firm, is serving as construction manager for Innovation Hall, a free drop-in workspace and event venue operated by Venture Café St. Louis. Innovation Hall
will occupy the north half of the first floor at 4220 Duncan Ave. in the Cortex Innovation Community.

Cortex is developing Innovation Hall as lively meeting space for entrepreneurs, corporate and government groups, as well as start-ups, nonprofits, innovators and artists. The 13,800-square-foot area is modeled after Venture Café’s successful District Hall in Boston.

Tarlton recently completed the core and shell construction of the newest building in Cortex, known as 4220, along with several interior fit-outs for the building’s tenants BJC WellAware Center, Microsoft and Cambridge Innovation Center. Construction of Innovation Hall began earlier this year and is slated for completion in October. HOK is the project architect.

In addition to new core and shell systems, Tarlton’s work on the ground level of the five-story building includes new mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems. The space will include an auditorium, conference rooms, a large lounge area, small café market and a restaurant called The Chocolate Pig. Work on the restaurant involves utility work up through the five-story shaft for roof-mounted equipment, as well as added landscaping for an outdoor patio area to include seating, site lighting and a fire pit.

Tarlton has completed more than 20 projects in the Cortex District, including the @4240 (4240 Duncan Ave.) core and shell historic renovation; tenant fit-outs in @4240 including Cambridge Innovation Center, Washington University School of Medicine, Boeing, Husch Blackwell and Park Avenue Coffee; BioGenerator lab and office expansion, Cortex 1 building; new lobby conference rooms, Cortex 1 building; CIC@CET renovations, 20 S. Sarah St.; 4260 Forest Park Ave., new core and shell; Alcami fit-out, 4260 Forest Park Ave.; Duncan Avenue storm sewer extension; various parking lot projects; and work by Tarlton HydroVac Services. The new Cortex parking garage at 4217 Custom Steel Dr. is under construction.

In business since 1946, Tarlton Corp. is a WBENC-Certified Women’s Business Enterprise that completes projects for wide-ranging clients in the life science, higher education, health care, commercial, power and industrial markets. Tarlton also has special expertise in concrete construction, concrete restoration and hydro excavation services.

Founded in 2002 through a collaboration of Washington University in St. Louis, BJC Healthcare, the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Saint Louis University, and the Missouri Botanical Garden, the Cortex Innovation Community (CortexSTL.com) is a nationally and internationally recognized hub of innovation and technology commercialization. It serves as an anchor in St. Louis’ growing ecosystem of innovative startups and established companies. Cited by the Brookings Institution as a Best Practice among global urban innovation districts, Cortex is home to 350 technology-related businesses, and it provides a deep pool of entrepreneurial support programs available to the entire St. Louis community.Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

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Tarlton Completes Historic Renovation of Shriners Hospital & CID Buildings

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FacebooktwitterlinkedinmailProject promotes sustainability by converting two vacant buildings into modern apartments

Tarlton Corp., a St. Louis-based general contracting and construction management firm, completed the $28 million historic renovation of buildings that formerly housed Shriners Hospital for Children and Central Institute for the Deaf in St. Louis’ Central West End, into The Core Apartment Residences.

Tarlton served as general contractor on the project that transformed two adjacent buildings – Shriners Hospital at 700-728 S. Euclid Ave. and CID at 818 S. Euclid Ave. – into 160 rental apartments that share amenity spaces, including common kitchens and a large community room, as well as a game room, music practice space, media lounge and fitness center. BOBB, LLC was the developer for the project.

The mix of units includes studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments. The scope of work included restoring the existing masonry facade, window repair or replacement, installation of new mechanicals, plumbing, electrical systems and fire protection, paving and landscaping. The new residential development offers a convenient central location to students on the medical campuses of Washington University and BJC HealthCare and the nearby St. Louis College of Pharmacy, as well as people working in the Cortex Innovation Community.

The Shriners and CID buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The two buildings opened within a decade of each other, and each was designed in the Renaissance Revival style by renowned St. Louis architect William B. Ittner. The three-story, 77,671-square-foot Shriners building, which opened in 1924, was the largest facility in a national network of free hospitals created by The Shriners fraternal society to treat disabled children. Central Institute for the Deaf, founded by Dr. Max Aaron Goldstein, opened in 1929 as a school for deaf children and to train teachers in deaf education. The four-story CID building totals 51,207 square feet.

“It’s rare that builders have the opportunity to lead the construction management team on the renovation of two separate, but adjacent historic buildings that have evolved into an exciting, centrally located residential apartment community,” said Tracy Hart, Tarlton president.

The Tarlton team included Matthew Pfund, project executive; Joe Scarfino, project director; Chris Kaintz, project manager; Sarah Mangapora, senior project engineer; Mack Waggoner, project engineer; and Jeff Peterson and Steve Moore, project superintendents. Lawrence Group was the project architect.

The Shriners and CID project is the latest in a number of historic renovations completed by Tarlton. The firm recently restored and constructed an addition to a pre-Civil War building at Missouri Botanical Garden, the Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum. Other historic renovations completed or in progress include 700 Market St. in downtown St. Louis, home to Spire headquarters; @4240 in the Cortex District, a former telephone factory; and Moosylvania, a Baptist church transformed into a marketing agency headquarters.

In business since 1946, Tarlton Corp. is a WBENC-Certified Women’s Business Enterprise that completes projects for wide-ranging clients in the commercial, life sciences, health care, institutional, power and industrial markets, also providing special expertise in concrete construction and restoration as well as hydro excavation and industrial vacuum services.Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

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Tarlton Completes Renovation of Stephen & Peter Sachs Museum at Missouri Botanical Garden

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FacebooktwitterlinkedinmailProject restores one of the Garden’s most iconic buildings, creating interior spaces
that commemorate the Henry Shaw era; new addition provides common-use areas
and public accessibility 

Tarlton Corp., a St. Louis-based general contracting and construction management firm, completed renovation of and constructed an addition to the Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum at Missouri Botanical Garden.

Tarlton served as construction manager on the 7,000-square-foot museum, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The main level of the pre-Civil War, red brick building offers expanded space for exhibits of artwork and other displays. Updates include a light-filled lobby, renovated lower-level gallery and new staircase that links the two floors. A new architectural addition, which safeguards the integrity of the historic building and surrounding environment, connects to the existing structure. The addition houses new public restrooms, fire stairs and an elevator, providing accessibility in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. It was designed in accordance with preservation principles outlined by the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and U.S. National Park Service.

The museum, widely considered one of the most historically significant buildings in the Midwest, opened in 1859 – the same year the Garden officially opened its doors to the public. It housed the Garden’s original library, herbarium and natural history specimens. The building had been closed to the public for more than three decades.

A Garden’s History Revealed

At the project’s outset, the interior restoration was conceived to closely align with the era of Henry Shaw, St. Louis businessman and founder of the Missouri Botanical Garden. The scope of work included restoration of the building’s original tile floor and stripping layers of paint from bookshelves. Energy-efficient upgrades include the installation of insulated glass in the building’s original windows and a new HVAC system.

As the final budget was being developed, the Tarlton team removed part of a plaster drop ceiling in the building’s first-floor rear south room. It was there that crews uncovered hidden pieces of the Garden’s history: the original barrel vault ceiling, which featured the painted portraits of noted botanists George Engelmann, Carl Linnaeus and Asa Gray. The design-construction team was tasked with reconfiguring the mechanical systems on the floor directly above the portraits, suspending the systems above the barrel vault ceiling to minimize vibrations. The team worked with restoration experts, as well as conservators with the U.S. National Park Service, to preserve the portraits.

Exterior work included the restoration of the building’s original wood doors, windows and light fixtures, the replacement of handrails, a slate shingle roof and copper chimney cap, tuckpointing and foundation waterproofing.

The building was designed by noted St. Louis architect George I. Barrett, who also designed Shaw’s country home (known as the Tower Grove House), as well as Shaw’s mausoleum situated on the garden’s grounds. The museum was named for brothers Stephen and Peter Sachs in honor of the family’s support for the restoration. A wide range of generous donors also contributed to the restoration.

“The restoration of the Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum was so well done,” said Dr. Peter Wyse Jackson, president of Missouri Botanical Garden. “The historic nature of the building remains, and we are thrilled to welcome visitors to the Museum Building again.”

The Tarlton team included Andy Kovarik, project executive; Sondra Rotty, project director; Joshua Fisk, project manager; Greg Sweeso, estimator; Brian Julius, project engineer; and Dustin Norton, project superintendent. Tarlton Concrete provided all flatwork and vertical concrete on the project, with Brian Shaffer managing that portion of the work. Christner Inc. was the project architect.

The museum renovation was the second Tarlton project for Missouri Botanical Garden. The firm garnered a 2017 Quality Concrete Award from the Concrete Council of St. Louis for the replacement of the iconic bridge in the Climatron®, one of the Garden’s most popular attractions. 

About Tarlton

In business since 1946, Tarlton Corp. is a WBENC-Certified Women’s Business Enterprise that completes projects for wide-ranging clients in the commercial, life sciences, health care, institutional, power and industrial markets, also providing special expertise in concrete construction and restoration as well as hydro excavation and industrial vacuum services. 

About Missouri Botanical Garden

Founded in 1859, the Missouri Botanical Garden’s mission is “to discover and share knowledge about plants and their environment in order to preserve and enrich life.” Today, 158 years after opening, the Missouri Botanical Garden is a National Historic Landmark and a center for science, conservation, education and horticultural display.  Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

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Tarlton Garners 2017 Quality Concrete Award for Makeover to Bridge in Climatron at Missouri Botanical Garden

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FacebooktwitterlinkedinmailTeam refurbishes well-traveled bridge with ingenuity, sustainability     

Tarlton Corp., a St. Louis-based general contracting and construction management firm, garnered a 2017 Quality Concrete Award from the Concrete Council of St. Louis and American Steel Fabrication for the firm’s work on the concrete transformation of an original wood bridge that connects a main walking path through the Climatron®, a popular attraction to visitors at the Missouri Botanical Garden.

The Tarlton Concrete team replaced the existing 28-foot-long timber bridge deck with a new concrete deck constructed from precast planks welded to the existing steel girders. The concrete was cast into 28 pieces each 12 inches wide by 8 feet long by 4 inches thick with a wood-grain texture to mimic timber planks. Using the precast planks in lieu of a cast-in-place deck allowed the existing decorative fiberglass wraps on the girders to remain in place and cut the duration of construction in half, to less than two weeks.

In addition to the new deck, the bamboo-wrapped stainless steel handrail was upgraded with new bamboo that was attached using rope lashing. The new bridge is designed to accommodate humidity and traffic for years to come.

Creating the concrete planks to replicate real wood planks was a challenge completed last winter in Tarlton’s TEAM facility. “The precast molds were made of standard handset forms lined with an architectural wood grain rubber stamp,” explained Brian Shaffer, Tarlton Concrete project manager.

Tarlton turned to Raineri Ready Mix to develop the mix and colors for the planks. Raineri completed renovations to the Climatron nearly 30 years ago and was an ideal fit for the 2017 bridge project. After only a couple test pours of the specially blended mix and colors, the desired detail was achieved. “The variation of the color settling into the various niches of the rubber stamp truly replicated the color and texture of real wood,” Shaffer said.

According to the Missouri Botanical Garden, the term “Climatron” was coined to emphasize the climate-control technology of the iconic greenhouse dome that was designed to offer consistent levels of humidity to accommodate an extensive collection of plants, including many rare and exotic species. According to Shaffer, these conditions also proved ideal for curing the new concrete work.

In addition to Shaffer, the Tarlton Concrete project team comprised Michael Vemmer, project engineer; Jason Kennedy and Jeff Vogt, project superintendents; and Karen Espy, project assistant.

Tarlton began a second project at the Missouri Botanical Garden this year, serving as construction manager for the renovation and addition to the 7,000-square-foot Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum, due for completion next spring. The museum, which opened in 1859, is considered one of the most historically significant buildings in the Midwest and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In business since 1946, Tarlton Corp. is a WBENC-Certified Women’s Business Enterprise that completes projects for wide-ranging clients in the commercial, life sciences, health care, institutional, power and industrial markets, also providing special expertise in concrete construction and restoration as well as hydro excavation and industrial vacuum services.

The design of the Climatron, which is the first geodesic dome greenhouse and conservatory incorporating the principles of noted American architect R. Buckminster Fuller, was developed by St. Louis architects Murphy and Mackey. It opened to the public on October 1, 1960, winning the 1961 Reynolds Award, an award for architectural excellence in a structure using aluminum. In 1976, the Climatron was named one of the 100 most significant architectural achievements in United States history. For more information, visit www.missouribotanicalgarden.orgFacebooktwitterlinkedinmail

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Tarlton Tapped as Construction Manager on Renovation of Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum at Missouri Botanical Garden

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Crews will restore historic building and construct new addition; hidden gems of botanical history discovered above false ceiling.

Tarlton Corp., a St. Louis-based general contracting and construction management firm, is serving as construction manager on the renovation and addition to the Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum at the renowned Missouri Botanical Garden.

Tarlton’s scope of work on the 7,000-square-foot museum, which predates the Civil War, includes the restoration of the interior to closely align with the era of Henry Shaw, St. Louis businessman and founder of the Missouri Botanical Garden. The main level will be used for exhibits, while a portion of the renovated basement will be used as gallery space and other displays. Work includes the restoration of the building’s original tile floor, and stripping layers of paint from bookshelves. Energy-efficient upgrades include the installation of insulated glass in the building’s original windows and a new HVAC system. The team also will construct a new building that connects to the original museum, which will house public restrooms, fire stairs and an elevator, making the building accessible in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The project is slated for completion in December.

The red brick building, which opened in 1859, is considered one of the most historically significant buildings in the Midwest and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The interior was modeled after buildings at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in England, and the exterior was designed by noted St. Louis architect George I. Barrett, who also designed Shaw’s country home (known as the Tower Grove House), as well as Shaw’s mausoleum located on garden grounds. The building has been closed to the public for more than three decades.

As the final budget was being developed, the Tarlton team removed part of a plaster drop ceiling in the building’s first-floor rear south room, a space that was slated to house the museum’s mechanical systems. It was there that crews uncovered hidden pieces of the garden’s history: the original barrel vaulted ceiling and painted portraits of three individuals who were greatly influential in the field of botany.

Hidden above the drop ceiling were portraits of George Engelmann, known as the “godfather of botanical science of the Missouri Botanical Garden,” a German-American physician, world-renowned botanist, longtime friend of Shaw and founding member of the St. Louis Academy of Science, as well as the National Academy of Sciences; Carl Linnaeus, an 18th century Swedish scientist known as the father of modern taxonomy, the scientific classification system for the naming of organisms; and a damaged third portrait of the pre-eminent American botanist of the 19th century, Asa Gray, of Harvard University. The design-construction team was then tasked with redesigning a portion of the project to preserve the portraits with the assistance of restoration experts, as well as conservators with the National Park Service. The museum was named for brothers Stephen and Peter Sachs in honor of the family’s support for the restoration. A wide range of generous donors also contributed to the restoration.

“We are excited to serve as construction manager on the Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum,” said Tracy Hart, Tarlton president. “It’s an honor and especially gratifying to work on a project of great historical significance and scope for the award-winning Missouri Botanical Garden, a favorite destination for St. Louisans and visitors from around the world.”

The Tarlton team includes Andy Kovarik, project executive; Sondra Rotty, senior project manager; Joshua Fisk, project manager; Greg Sweeso, estimator; Brian Julius, project engineer; and Dustin Norton, project superintendent. Christner Inc. is the project architect.

The museum renovation is the second Tarlton project for the Missouri Botanical Garden. The firm’s Concrete Division recently replaced a bridge in the Climatron®, one of the garden’s most popular attractions. 

In business since 1946, Tarlton Corp. is a WBENC-Certified Women’s Business Enterprise that completes projects for wide-ranging clients in the commercial, life sciences, health care, institutional, power and industrial markets, also providing special expertise in concrete construction and restoration as well as hydro excavation and industrial vacuum services.

 

Founded in 1859, the Missouri Botanical Garden’s mission is “to discover and share knowledge about plants and their environment in order to preserve and enrich life.” Today, 158 years after opening, the Missouri Botanical Garden is a National Historic Landmark and a center for science, conservation, education and horticultural display.  Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

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