Helium: Friend or Foe?

As part of preparing to "operationalize" the new building, the Day One Readiness team has been working over the past few months to identify best practices and wherever possible, gather written (or web) examples.

I have been reading the "Facility Use Guidelines" adopted by the good folks at the UW-Madison Health Sciences Learning Center (HSLC) - it's a thorough document with lots of links to campus guidelines. For instance, there's no need to write a whole big process for catering, because the University has clear guidelines and policies.

And sure, it would be really easy to draft a lot of rules and regulations about keeping the spaces clean and to pick up after yourself but we are all adults.

But helium balloons, now that's a good one.

When I first read the policy banning helium balloons I thought, "well, that Med School is really stuffy. I mean really, who could begrudge a few bright red balloons to welcome students back in September? Or a colleagues birthday celebration, a bouquet of Mylar balloons swaying about?"

Then I remembered we have two major spaces in the new building with ceilings two stories high. The Link and the Concourse are both jewels - and there is nothing more pitiful than watching a couple of balloons begin the painful journey back down as they slowly leak their Helium.

In some facilities on campus Helium balloons are not allowed because they can set off fire alarms and are considered a safety risk. Maybe we should just have a practice that if someone is using these balloons, they need to dispose of the gas the old fashioned way...sucking it in and talking funny.

I'll need to dig a little deeper.

On a Clear Day

Loving life here on campus -- we are just a few short days away from commencement, parking will be a little easier and I won't have to schedule meetings around class change times (driving anywhere around campus during class change means you have to factor in an additional 15 minutes.)

Most of all I am thinking that in just 12 months we will begin moving into our new building. On a day like today when it's a comfortable 75 degrees, sun shining and a light breeze I imagine sitting on the roof terrace of Human Ecology. To the north I will see Washburn Observatory, peek to the west and linger on stately Ag Hall, then full east to take in the glory of our new addition. At night the 100 Women scuplture on the glass wall will be lit with energy effecient LED lights, creating a totally different feel for the area.

I'm counting the days.

Planning the Migration

I could get all clever and talk about the great migrations of our time...bird migration, the Migration Policy Institute, the monarch butterfly, or for smarties, migration as defined by the movement of one atom or more from one position to another within a molecule.

This time I am talking about the Human Ecology migration back to 1300 Linden Drive, going home.

I just sent an email to the good folks at Facilities Planning and Management (FP&M) to let them know at the last all-School meeting we let everyone know they are expected to be packed and ready to move by May 21, 2012. Packing crates will arrive sometime in March/April.

The last day of class is May 11 and finals go through May 19, 2012 and the faculty 9-month contract ends May 27.

Just two semesters to go and we are in the new building!

Double Life

Yup, it's official, I seem to be living a double life.

At yesterday's general faculty meeting I gave a presentation, albeit brief, about the status of "Day One Readiness" - the pseudo military name we've given to the operation to prepare the faculty and staff for occupying the new building. I delivered the information via my new Ipad2, thereby modeling the promise of technology rich spaces and greater flexibility. So, one life I live is dependent on technology, big messages and broad strokes of information so as not to freak anyone out.

Earlier that day I poured through the sign schedule proposed by our talented environmental branding experts from ZD Studio. I had a magnifying glass in one hand and a pencil in the other marking the large floorplans because as those who work closest to me know we have more than 513 areas of the project that will need signs - from the basic code signs that tell you where to exit in case of emergency, to what's to be found in the elevator lobby. They know this because I've been whining about it since this past January. This life is rooted in detail, flipping tiny, painful, minute detail.

But you know what? Even when I am hunched over a floorplan, thinking about what doors will have an access code versus a key, or how many chairs we may need for the cafe, I remind myself what we do is transforming.

On Wisconsin!

The Coffee Generation

Okay I admit it, I am old. I can say that not just because I turned fifty last week (boo hoo) but because when I think about coffee a really old , very nostaligic ad campaign hits me - describing the "coffee generation" and "coffee achievers" - check out this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rea-yBgOSo Way back when coffee was described as the drink that "picks you up and calms you down" - only Madison Avenue could have crafted such a brilliant line. Coffee achievers in this ad spot include David Bowie (really? David Bowie?) and Kurt Vonnegut, the brilliant mind of "Slaughterhouse-Five." I love my java...and in just about a year I will be able to get a cup o'joe in the cafe of the new building. The cafe is located on the second floor, visible from the Link and across the way from the Student Clubs area, making this a lively juncture. The Union will be operating the cafe and if one thing is clear, it's that our students, staff and faculty run on coffee -- and its gotta be good coffee. But what else should the Union be thinking about in terms of menu and offerings? Take a few moments and share your opinion by clicking the link below for a quick, online survey: https://uwmadison.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_b1Qy2jnATpm2qmE If it's good enough for David Bowie, that's all I need to know.

Rock My World

It's my new obsession...sheetrock.

Frankly I feel a little freaked out that while I have been watching the web-cam of the construction of the new addition, there has been a frenzy of activity in the existing building. My 17-year old daughter would say I am "hovering" or a control freak, but the construction camera doesn't tell the whole story. I can't seem to get other there fast enough to track all the progress in the existing building-it's like a huge beehive. Just a few short weeks ago, most talented photographer Lori Ushman and I were strolling around open floors, weaving in and out of metal studs. And now I find out the construction has progressed to a stage where the walls are about 2/3 sheetrocked (or as they say in the trade, rocked).

What the heck? I'm not mentally prepared - I've been looking at paper plans for so long I get woozy.

So yesterday I drove over to the site, pulled on my Wellington boots and walked up to the third floor. Yup, the walls are up in the Interior Design studios, faculty offices and the department office. I stood in the new space specifically for critiques, nestled in between two studios. It's wicked cool.

My world is officially rocked.

Are you mocking me?

I may have mentioned this a few times, but I am learning more about design and construction every day. Some experiences have already paid off - I've switched my dining room light fixture from traditional glass to a drum shade and the result was dramatic. Simple change you say? In my house, nothing is simple but that's a story for another day.

The thing that now has me really intrigued is the construction mock-up.

For years I've seen these modest installations on construction sites and never knew what they were. When Microbial Sciences was being built, I thought the mock-up was actually an elevator lobby. One person told me it was where the electric was connected to the rest of campus. A third thought it was the start of a bus shelter designed to match the building.

We were all wrong.

The mock-up is a valuable tool for the architects, contractors and campus. Built outside on the construction site, these "mini-buildings" are constructed with the exact materials specified for the project and are representations for viewing and inspecting how each material performs and if needed, make adjustments. For instance, the team may look at different colors of mortar, or test the reflectivity of glass. I learned the mock-up is useful for testing the structure for air infiltration or water penetration, and believe it or not to test for seismic movement.

The mock-up for Human Ecology is slated to begin in the next few weeks - it should be really great.

I've Changed my Mind

Now I think the wood posts (in place while the concrete cures in the new addition)...

...look more like idols from Easter Island.

Cool New Space

One of the most impressive areas in the complex will be the Concourse, located on the west end of the third floor in the new addition. The third floor of the addition has been poured and the contractor is working on the fourth and final floor - this photo taken March 2 is from the perspective of standing in the Concourse looking up towards the fourth floor-Centers area.

The south facing glass wall will be two stories high, and when complete this special gathering space will serve as a point of connection for students, faculty, and visitors.