Winnipeg’s RBC Convention Centre’s $180 million expansion construction succeeds with collaborative design/build initiative Canadian Design and Construction Report special feature Located in the heart of Winnipeg, the RBC Convention Centre has undergone a $180 million expansion which has almost doubled its size to 264,000 sq. ft., making it a landmark for the city, as well as the largest tier-two publicly owned con- vention centre in Canada and the nation’s fourth largest publicly owned convention centre. The expansion, designed to achieve LEED Sil- ver certification, includes an additional ballroom, underground parking and more than 135,000 sq. ft. of third floor exhibition space. Existing space in the centre has been renovated and upgraded. Stuart Olson performed design/build services for the project. Allmar and Branko Demolition & Disposal Ltd. added expertise. The new centre’s design has been created through a joint venture of Winnipeg architects Number TEN Architectural Group and LM Architectural Group and associate architect LMN Architects of Seattle. Matthew McInnis, Stuart Olson project man- ager, says his company’s role was to manage the project team, including the design consultants, trade contractors, and suppliers, to ensure the project’s requirements were met. “Stuart Olson collaborated with the consor- tium of LM and Number10 Architects (LM10), along with Crosier Kilgour and Partners structural engineers, and SMS Engineering for the mechan- ical and electrical design to prepare the design for the new expansion.” During the preconstruction phase, an inte- grated project delivery approach involving many meetings with key team members, resulted in the drawings fully capturing all necessary features. This, he says, minimized change orders during the construction process, streamlined the process, and also created cost certainty for the owner. “Stuart Olson, together with the consultant group, also strategized on the design schedule; resulting in the overall design being broken up into various drawing packages to allow the ten- dering of work and material procurement to be done in a sequential fashion to suit the needs of the construction schedule on site.” The phased design approach allowed for a fast track construction achieved between breaking ground in July 2013, and the first event in the new expansion in November 2015. This first event proved to be one of the project’s key challenges. 32 – May-June 2016 — The Canadian Design and Construction Report