News

JAMA Engineers are taking a small suggestion and are running with it – to the benefit of clients and the firm. The Stanford Escondido Student Housing project is an enormous effort, full of submittals, reviews and countless hours of coordination. In a recent meeting with a peer reviewer, a quick conversation about seismic performance of existing campus structures sparked an idea with JAMA team members: what if the University could easily understand the ramifications of seismic events on all campus structures through a single, easy interface? Piggy-backing on a performance assessment calculation tool (PACT) software that JAMA programmer Scott Hagie had developed with the Applied Technology Council several years ago, the team adapted the program for campus use. With simple input by campus personnel, the tool allows in-depth scenario planning. Users can quickly understand the potential consequences of a building’s response to earthquakes, including: • Casualties (life loss and severe

The Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) facility at Harbor-UCLA topped out in February, marking a significant milestone in the march towards a January 2019 completion. The 78,000 square foot, 4-story research and bioscience incubator is an anchor of the 11.5-acre research park at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, considered LA County’s first biotech hub. LA BioMed is an independent, non-profit biomedical research organization that was originally founded in 1952. Today they employ more than 120 principal investigators and 400 researchers in and work as a public-private partnership between LA County, the Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, and the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. Their mission is to find innovative solutions for healthcare through biomedical discovery. JAMA’s structural approach on the research facility utilizes 13” thick mild reinforced two-way concrete slabs to satisfy the vibration criteria due to the equipment within the lab spaces. In addition, PT

JAMA’s new office – in the same building in Downtown Los Angeles but on the south side of the 4th floor – features bright interiors, ergonomic stations and plenty of community. After months of hard work, consolidation of papers and files, and regular treks to the opposite end of the building, JAMA employees have settled into new digs; Suite 400 of the Federal Reserve Building. The new layout groups employees in collective team areas, but offers a variety of break-out and collaboration spaces. Fun facts about the space and the people who made it happen include: Architect: Studio MMD, Michael MacDonald, AIA Contractor: Holwick Constructors, Inc. Furniture Vendor: Herman Miller & PIVOT Interiors Usable Square Footage: 16,580 SF Exterior Patio Space: 1,320 SF Carpet Area: 6,467 SF Main Spaces and Communal Areas: • 73 desks, 5 private offices • 2 small conference rooms, 1 large conference room • 2 phone booths, 3 banquets • 1 plot/print room • 1 server room • 1 large kitche

JAMA has started off the New Year with another promotion, elevating Structural Engineer Ben Rogowski, SE to Project Manager. Ben’s new title is an acknowledgement of his exceptional engineering and leadership skills, and his efforts to expand JAMA’s already comprehensive advanced technology skills. He and other’s efforts are moving JAMA’s capabilities beyond mere production further into structural design and analysis to increase efficiencies and explore more exciting structural solutions. Ben’s project experience extends across a wide variety of project typologies and scopes, from the adaptive reuse of an 80-year old warehouse into the HATCH Life Science Incubator, to the engineering of ConXL moment frame systems for a new 75,000 square foot Design-Build Coast Hills Credit Union offices, to the engineering of the new San Diego State University Basketball Performance Center. Current projects include a number of wood-frame and steel-frame designs across the Western United States.

A fearless group of JAMA employees and friends headed out on a winter hike in January to enjoy LA’s beautiful weather and explore some of the parts unknown outside of the office. The outing explored the Old LA Zoo Hike, a just under 4-mile hike through a seldom-used part of Griffith Park in Los Angeles. With spectacular views of nearby Glendale and the San Gabriel mountains as well as up-close experiences with parts of LA’s original zoo enclosures, this outing offered a little something for everyone!

We’ve seen a lot of foot traffic in and out of the office these days, particular with swag in hand. Why – because it’s job fair season! JAMA actively seeks out inquisitive, motivated interns and employees from higher education institutions. This year JAMA engineers Adena Nik, Kurt Clandening, Greg Orozco and others have participated in job fairs at UC San Diego, UC Los Angeles, Cal Poly San Louis Obispo, Stanford, UC Berkeley and SEAOSC. We’re thrilled at the interest in our firm and the prospects for some great future employees. For people interested in a career at John A. Martin & Associates, see the Employment section of our website.

In early January Partner Jackie Vinkler served as a judge for ENR Magazine’s ‘Best of the Best’ awards program, which recognizes the nation’s best projects and project teams. The award process is the culmination of a nearly year-long effort put forth by dozens of industry judges and the ENR editorial team to identify the pinnacle of design and construction achievement in the entire U.S. among projects completed between May 2016 and May 2017. In addition to Jackie’s participation, JAMA’s University of Arizona Biomedical Sciences Partnership Building, located in Phoenix, was honored with a ‘Best of the Best’ award in the Higher Education/Research Project category. The project, which included efforts by Kurt Clandening, Greg Orozco, Michael Brown, Scott Willard and Art Padilla, was done in collaboration with Martin affiliate Martin, White & Griffis (MWG) of Arizona.

The commemorative last steel beam was put into place recently at the UofA Health Sciences Innovation Building (HSIB) project in Tucson, a world-class center designed to be the vanguard for inter-professional health education in the US. The $165 million facility broke ground in 2016, and is expected to be complete by Fall 2018. Designed by CO Architects with Tucson-based Swaim Architects, the 10-story, 220,000 square foot building is located on the west side of the Arizona Health Sciences Campus. The project is envisioned to foster collaboration among multidisciplinary teams of students and faculty in four colleges: medicine, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Classrooms can accommodate as many as 150 people in flexible “flipped classroom” format, which prioritizes group work over lectures. The building also includes a special events space that allows for more than 1,000 people. JAMA’s team includes Kurt Clandening, Greg Orozco, Scott Willard, Mike Brown and Art Padilla. Construction