Baker Hughes Oil Services Office in Dickinson
Owner: Baker-Hughes Corporation
Architect/Designer: Energy Architecture
Engineer: Pinnacle Structural Engineers
General Contractor: Crossland Construction Co.
Concrete Contractor: Potter Concrete
Concrete Supplier: Dickinson Ready Mix
Baker-Hughes is a major player in the western North Dakota oil fields. In order to keep pace with the western North Dakota oil-boom Baker-Hughes is undertaking several major facility expansions in the state. One of those projects is the construction of a new joint facility in Dickinson, ND. This massive project undertaking provided 735,000 square feet of industrial/truck parking and 91,000 square feet of light vehicle parking. A primary consideration
for the use of concrete was the safety advantage of the light colored surface. The light color was able to enhance the service lighting of the site plus add contrast for objects and people working at night. Another major consideration was the ability to construct the high strength pavement with optimized components, including minimal aggregate base, a product in short supply in the oil fields.
The parking facility will service 8 separate buildings on the property. Engineers selected a 7.5” thickness for the heavy duty areas and a 5” thickness for the light vehicle parking. A special placement of 10,000 square feet of decorative concrete at the entrance to the main office building added a nice touch. Here, a dark gray integral concrete slab enhanced the entrance plaza, providing contrast and aesthetics for this important location. A unique feature of the slab involved some southern construction amenities with the installation of redwood lumber expansion joints at 90 foot spacing. These were protected at the pavement surface with a special joint sealant to minimize water entrance. The combined parking area for this project totaled more than 835,000 square feet and utilized 20,000 cubic yards of concrete.
Construction on the parking areas began on July 1, 2011 and was completed in just 52 days.