UCSD: JACOBS MEDICAL CENTER

CLIENT: Enclos Corp.

YEAR: 2016

LOCATION: La Jolla, California

OWNER: The Regents at University of California, San Diego

ARCHITECT: Cannon Design

GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Kitchell

CONSTRUCTION PHOTOS COURTESY OF: Enclos

Enclos contacted Mac Design Works (MDW) at the last minute to create shop fabrication details from a Revit model. The structural steel contractors were unable to start the fabrication details in a timely manner, so Enclos reached out to MDW to expedite the detailing process. The architect’s design called for an enclosure system flexible enough to accommodate numerous wall geometries, including flat, segmented, curved, and folded panel conditions. Many of the medical center’s 10 stories feature vision glass splitting from the spandrel glass, curving wavelike beyond and behind the concrete slabs. These "folds" are typically done in two pattern combinations, concaving two feet within the building. The freeform curved structure minimizes traditional 90-degree building corners, creating a unique and dynamic façade.

Mac Design Works, as part of the Enclos Design-assist team, faced the challenge of designing a secondary steel structure to support the façade within a severely restricted time frame, allowing the contractor to commence fabrication almost immediately. To address this, a collaborative parametric approach was adopted, involving structural engineers, a 3D parametric modeling group, and MDW. They edited the complex secondary steel frame geometry based on a parametric model to ensure constructability. Frequent exchanges of the model among Enclos, the architect, and façade consultants preserved design intent while enabling rapid updates based on evaluations from all project members. Each drawing issue was divided according to floor level to ensure a steady flow of information, with a total of 10 stories meticulously detailed. Each structural member was unique, requiring numerous fabrication details to ensure ample geometric references were available for QA checks on the fabrication floor. The attention to detail in the drawing packages ensured subcontractors could understand and accurately construct the intricate designs.