PULP: Previously Used Lumber Products

By Deon Bahr

In the early 70s, a young BHVH was working on a huge landscape master plan for the Lincoln Airport Authority. Over the course of this work, our client revealed his plan to burn down 34 three-story, Air Force barracks. This delighted the fire department and left the rest of us absolutely appalled at the amount of smoke that would introduce into the atmosphere.

Hat in hand, I presented a scheme to get rid of the barracks, salvage the high-quality materials, preserve the atmosphere, and return a profit for our client. We divided the buildings into groups of four and prepared plans and specifications that allowed contractors to bid on them.

I was very excited about this project and wanted BHVH to have an opportunity to be involved. To avoid exposing the firm legally, we formed the PULP Partnership: Previously Used Lumber Products. To make sure we would win a group of buildings, we bid high on one group and low on another group. We won both bids. So now we had eight huge wooden barracks to salvage.

I still don’t see how we were able to recruit firm partners. From 1974 to 1976, we bought a dump truck, hired a contractor, and rented a storage building. All partners were required to work to complete the task. Then, off we went, completely underestimating the amount of effort it would take to salvage the materials.

Major value in the materials consisted of Number 1 Structural Grade Douglas fir 2 x 12 and 2 x 14 (no knots) with lots of 16p nails. Susan Bahr is now an expert at pulling nails using two crowbars.

Partners:  Deon Bahr, George Haecker, Lynn Vermeer, Jim Handeland, Bob LeZotte, Bob Hanna, Stan Milles, Bob Findley, Bob Kalkowski, Craig Wanamaker. After paying expenses, and a lot of hard work, we netted about $1,900/ partner and avoided lots of smoke.

PULP 1974

BVH Sustainable Action Plan

Our fundamental value lies in our dedication to people and the creation of purposeful, context-specific architecture. One salient purpose revolves around safeguarding our planet, its communities, and the environment by integrating climate-sensitive architectural solutions. Demonstration of this is our Sustainable Action Plan, which outlines three key goals:

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View our Sustainable Action Plan (SAP) here.

HIGHLY SUSTAINABLE PORTFOLIO
BVH seeks to deliver high performing buildings. For example, recently completed and located on the MCC South Omaha Campus, the new MCC Auto Tech Facility is a 100,000 sf building that serves as home of the College’s Automotive Technology and Automotive Collision Technology programs. This highly sustainable community focused project achieved LEEDv4 Silver certification through the purposeful incorporation of nature and biophilic elements. The program facilitates key partnerships between the college and private industry partners such as Toyota, Scion, and Lexus.

MCC Case Study

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As architects, designers, and community leaders it is our responsibility to be stewards of our social, financial, and environmental resources. Today’s buildings demand smart solutions to foster a better quality of life as well as the responsible use of finite resources. As communities, owners, and occupants demand higher standards we must rise to the challenge—providing innovative, creative, and data-rich solutions. We cannot remain complacent with the status quo, but rather lead in our profession to set a new standard.

 

 

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