Address: 6211 N Atlantic Ave, Cape Canaveral, FL 32920

Work: KENPAT designed, manufactured and installed the exterior metal façades and structural wall systems

Vertical: Government

General Contractor: SKANSKA

Architect: GWWO Inc./Architects

Dates: 2012 – 2013

Awards:

• 2014 ABC Central Florida Excellence in Construction Eagle Award
• 2014 ABC National Excellence in Construction Eagle Award

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Port Canaveral Welcome Center

Situation

An integral part of Florida’s Space Coast and Canaveral Cove’s revitalization, Exploration Tower is owned by Canaveral Port Authority. Its opening coincided with the port’s sixtieth anniversary of its establishment and the five-hundredth anniversary of Ponce de Leon’s landing on Florida’s east coast. The new seven-story Port Canaveral Exploration Tower Welcome Center features historical exhibits on the Port Canaveral area, from the first settlers to the twenty-first century space program.

Task

The Canaveral Port Authority commissioned General Contractor SKANSKA USA to create the one-hundred-seventy-five-foot-tall Welcome Center. SKANSKA hired KENPAT to design, manufacture and install the exterior metal façades and structural wall systems of the tower.

Action

A notable feature of the project was the construction of the southern wall of the building, referred to as the "sail" wall due to its resemblance to a ship’s sail. This wall is composed of structural panels, assembled from curved structural framing, and covered with aluminum cladding panels that were factory-painted with special iridescent paint.

Following the project schedule, KENPAT had the structural panels manufactured to exact tolerances within a controlled factory environment, adhering to strict quality control measures.

Simultaneously, while the structural panels were being manufactured, KENPAT directed the production of the cladding panels. GWWO Architects selected Valspar's Blue Pearl II color-changing paint to encapsulate the themes of revitalization and transformation represented by the Port Canaveral area. This innovative, multicolored system employs mica flakes to create a consistent, iridescent appearance.

The panels were placed on top of the slab in soft containers filled with sand, which was gradually released until the desired height was achieved to within an eighth of an inch. At this point, the panels were securely attached to the steel/concrete framework.

Custom-made curved hat channels were then installed over the structural panels to serve as the primary attachment points for the aluminum rain screen cladding panels. These hat channels had to be radiused horizontally and vertically wherever the wall exceeded a fifteen-degree slope. Developing the capability to achieve this complex radius was a significant accomplishment for the KENPAT team, as the initial response suggested that such a task was not feasible.

The ultimate test for the accuracy of the planning process and execution was whether the last of the continuous line of panels around the building fitted on the convex back surface on the observation deck. KENPAT passed this test with flying colors.

After the curved panel portion of the project was completed, attention then shifted to the installation of the composite cladding on “non-curved” surfaces to complete the exterior work done by KENPAT. The front side of the structure was composed of progressively smaller floor plates that cantilever from two main sloping pipe columns. On these floor plates were constructed the exhibition and office space, indoor and outdoor observation decks, an 83-seat theater / auditorium, meeting and function space, and a café. Keeping with the overall theme of the structure and its use of aluminum cladding for the exterior, KENPAT also added these panels to this side of the structure.

Result

Despite the very tight schedule, the project was successfully completed with no lost-time injuries nor safety issues. The completed tower has been praised by the media, other construction organizations and, most importantly, by the people of Port Canaveral and the surrounding area.

This work was also recognized by the ABC Central Florida Chapter, which awarded this project the 2014 Excellence in Construction Eagle Award. Additionally, the project earned the ABC National 2014 Excellence in Construction Eagle Award.