Following two years of planning and construction, the concrete pour of the main tank of the $160-million Ocean Pavilion at Washington’s Seattle Aquarium is complete. The tank is two feet thick at minimum and includes 680 cubic yards of concrete and 355 tons of rebar – four times more rebar than a typical core. Turner Construction Company is the general contractor and LMN Architects is the designer. To view a time lapse video of the pour, click here.
In planning for the pour that would essentially have no straight edges, Turner worked with its partners to create 229 panels that were CNCed foam glued to Peri backing and sprayed with a truck bed liner. The team used software for concrete geometry that has double curvatures.
Additional construction milestones to be achieved this year include completion of the shell, core and roof, main exhibit form, habitat structures and installation of the habitat acrylic windows and animal life support systems.
In support of the Seattle Aquarium’s mission to cultivate an ethos of care and action on behalf of marine life, the project team is working to achieve goals for net-zero emissions and net-positive energy for the pavilion, and analyzing embodied carbon in the new building. Building materials being selected are free of toxic chemicals, as well as minimize plastics, vinyl, biocides and red-list materials.
The pavilion is expected to open in 2024.
Learn more about the project at seattleaquarium.org/ocean-pavilion.
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