Iron Ore Workforce Housing
Additional Info
Award Winner : ModSpace
Architectural Excellence : Iron Ore Company of Canada needed workforce housing in remote Labrador City for an iron ore mine expansion project. ModSpace worked with designers to develop and deliver five large dormitories for workforce housing. The five dorms stand three-stories high and measure 22,320 square feet. Each has 87 private bedrooms, laundry and janitor rooms and a kitchen that will allow workers to remain onsite. Inside each dorm, fully-appointed rooms include all the basics for comfortable living such as beds, closets, bathrooms with showers, computer desks, night tables, personal refrigerators, televisions and internet access.
Cost Energy Effectiveness : The buildings were designed to be resource efficient with Energy Star-rated washers, dryers, refrigerators and televisions throughout. High-efficiency ventilation was also installed in every building, while three fire cabinets on all floors provide additional safety for workers. Using in-house Design-Build capabilities, and offsite modular construction, ModSpace delivered this enormous project on time and on budget. The result: Iron Ore Company was able to dramatically improve productivity by could keeping workers closer to their project site and fully capitalize on this emerging mining opportunity.
Design Firm Name : Groupe Secto Enr
Occupied Date : 9/19/2011
Production Start Date : 11/15/2010
Project Location City : Saint-Bruno (Lac St.-Jean)
Project Location State Name : QC
Technical Innovation : With winter temperatures often reaching as low as -50 degrees Celsius, any construction in the region would prove challenging, but the rooms needed to be ready as soon as possible to house the 500 mine workers and ensure the project remained on track. The shortage of local construction resources meant building permanent structures would take far too long. ModSpace delivered and installed the first three large dormitories in just three months. Two more buildings followed just a few months later. As the ground freezes as deep as 10’, ModSpace had to excavate deeper than most areas to make sure that site services were not susceptible to freezing and that the site was compliant with all applicable codes. The frequent wind further complicated the large-scale installation as no items could be lifted via crane if the wind was higher than 28 km/hr. ModSpace closely monitored the wind speed to make the most of times when the crane was available for use.
Total Square Feet : 111600