Overview

Located in the heart of downtown San Francisco, the University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry is a nationally renowned medical school and treatment center that serves more than 135,000 patients each year.

The school sought to transform its 395,000 square foot, seven-story building into a state-of-the-art facility dedicated to the education and practice of dentistry.

Southland provided design-build plumbing and process piping services throughout the building, including its large lecture halls, outpatient dental clinics, research labs, office space, food service courts, and bookstore.

Our Approach

The Southland team conducted extensive research to understand how the facility planned to be used and to further determine the complexity of the piping throughout the building. Our team also took care to limit any impact the operation would have on clinical activities as well as any fragile or valuable materials housed in the building, such as the University's nationally recognized skull collection.

After completing this initial research, our team used 3D BIM modeling to design the mechanical equipment room. Once completed, Southland was able to provide process systems within the facility, including oxygen, nitrous oxide, lab air, surgery vacuums, dental vacuums, natural gas, and purified water.

Result

By replacing domestic hot water boilers to provide greater capacity, Southland improved the building's overall energy efficiency with water savings of 36 percent.

The team also refurbished the existing building equipment to like-new conditions and successfully coordinated its integration into the new building management system, completing the project quickly, efficiently, within budget. The project was turned over to University of the Pacific in February 2014.

Successful Partnerships
Owner: University of the Pacific
GC: Plant Construction Company
Architect: SmithGroup JJR
In the Media
PHC November Issue Featuring University of the Pacific Project Case Study