Joe Schneider recalls when he and Dave Garske approached Vince Granato about a series of near misses at the construction site of the $1.2 billion TCORE project, the centerpiece of the $2 billion PDX Next program to transform the airport Portland International.
“We told him we need time to solve this problem,” says Schneider, Skanska’s senior vice president, who with joint venture partner Hoffman Construction managed the prodigious feat of placing an 18 million-pound wooden roof for in the new terminal.
“He said, ‘tell me how I can help,'” Schneider recalls. “A different leader might not have accepted it. That’s why we’ve been so successful. Everyone loves working with him.”
The pause to review security protocols resulted in a few weeks being added to the calendar and no security incidents. The first phase, including the 9-hectare wooden roof, was completed last year. “Working in the core of the airport, Vince is great at finding the balance between maximizing the space contractors need to do the work and minimizing the impact on operations and the traveling public,” says Garske, recently retired from Hoffman. . “He brings a positive attitude to the team, but holds team members accountable for their responsibilities. He has a unique ability to bring out the best in people.”
Granato, a project manager, has spent his nearly 40 years at the Port of Portland “doing every job there is to do.” A finance person by training, he started as an analyst at the airport, moved into operations and real estate, did marketing and has worked with all departments and divisions.
In eight years as chief operating officer, “he was in charge of all operations and the marine terminal,” he says. “I have seen the whole airport remodeled, starting in the eighties. I was probably one of the few people who could understand how this project was going to happen.”
Granato worked closely with Schneider (right) and Garske to ensure a unique wood structure and the rest of the $1 billion TCORE project was completed safely and successfully.
Photo courtesy of the Port of Portland
The project, now entering Phase 2, involves almost doubling the size of the main terminal, within the existing footprint, and creating a modern design to improve operations and the passenger experience. The design replaces 200 seismically obsolete columns with 34 to support the 18 million-pound, 380,000-square-foot roof, while opening 100-foot x 150-foot bays between the columns to create more operational flexibility.
The undulating roof is made up of 1,350 uniquely shaped panels, usually 11 feet by 30 feet, to create it. Components were built on the airfield, including skylights, insulators, mechanical components and finishes, then divided into 16 “cassettes,” each about 120 feet by 110 feet, and moved on self-propelled modular conveyors.
But the intense work taxed the crews. “The workers were tired, there was too much overtime; we were feeling the pressure of trying to meet the deadline,” Schneider recalls. “A superintendent came to us and said, ‘Guys, this is a schedule issue. We’ve got to address it or it’s not going to go away.’
Granato remembers being pulled out of a meeting by Schneider and Garske. “I trusted Dave and Joe to understand their team and this was a serious issue. The joint venture has always looked internally to say what we can do better before coming to me with a problem. Reconfiguring the plan was a big decision . The three of us turned to the staff and said, ‘Slow down,’ and we’re going to delay the project.’ We knew it would be a challenge, but it was the right decision.”
Schneider adds: “Projects like this require a steady hand and a calm leader, and that’s what Vince is all about. When people get angry, you need that calm side that gets us through. It gave the feeling that everything is going to be okay.”
