American Dream Meadowlands
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Project Timeline
Start Date: 2012
Completion Date: 2021
American Dream Meadowlands
Triple Five Group
Triple Five Group
Structural design and construction supervision
Buildings, Commercial
Meadowlands, East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA
Spanning 4,800,000 square feet and hosting over 500 stores and restaurants, the American Dream Meadowlands shopping center stands as a retail and entertainment complex just minutes from the heart of New York City. This expansive hub features the country's first indoor ski hill, an indoor amusement park, the largest indoor water park in North America, an NHL regulation-sized indoor ice rink, a movie theater, an 18-hole miniature golf course, and an extensive array of retailers. The Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park sprawls over 300,000+ square feet, boasting over 35 rides, while the DreamWorks Water Park, covering 225,000+ square feet, boasts 40 water slides and 15 attractions, including a 1.5-acre wave pool and a 142-foot-tall body slide.
MGA Engineering proudly served as the structural designer and Engineer-of-Record for these new recreational and entertainment facilities owned by the Triple Five Group in Meadowlands, New Jersey, USA. Our activities encompass conceptual design, collaboration with all project consultants, detailed design of all structural elements and connections, production of engineering drawings, and planning for modularization, fabrication, and erection.
Building Layout
The new recreational and entertainment facilities that MGA engineered consists of four individual buildings. The Connector Building serves as the "bridge", connecting the new facilities to the existing mall building, and houses retail and restaurants, an ice rink, mini golf course, and three large skylights. The Core Building, serves as the corporate offices for Triple Five, and, as well, houses the main electrical and mechanical systems for the surrounding buildings. The Amusement Park features several roller coasters, an arcade and other various theme park rides, whereas the Water Park features multiple water slides, water features and a giant wave pool.
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American Dream Site Conditions
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The new construction is currently occupied by east peripheral and south connector roadways, landscape areas and undeveloped land
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The subsoil consists of highly compressible fill, marsh deposits, and varied clay, which are not suitable for support of the proposed structure. Therefore, all loads are supported by piles to bedrock
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Four types of piles were used for this project:
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Concrete filled steel driven pipe piles
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Continuous flight augered (CFA) piles
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Micro piles
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Rock socketed drilled shafts
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American Dream Amusement Park
Did You Know?
MGA took professional responsibility for the stability of the Amusement Park structure during construction phase in order to accommodate an accelerated schedule. Each phase underwent modeling and calculations. With the assistance of the inspection agency, the wind and weather conditions were continuously monitored to ensure the wind gusts did not exceed the allowable limits. This proactive approach contributed to a secure construction process.
Amusement Park Data
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Total area: 299,000.0 sf
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Length: 792 ft
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Width: 370 ft
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Structural spans: 100 to 170 ft
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Building height: 70 to 110 ft
Scope of Work
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Foundation & concrete work
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Accommodating erection equipment
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Accommodating electrical conduits
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Slab interstitial space
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Steel superstructure
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Structural Engineering Models
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Analysis
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Tekla
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Connections
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Interface with other disciplines
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Mechanical and electrical
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Amusement park rides
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Main Challenges
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Modularization planning
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Schedule driven project
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Accommodating erection cranes
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Accommodation of electrical and drainage piping
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Provisions for special rides
American Dream Water park
Did You Know?
MGA took the lead in the planning of the interstitial space, prioritizing maximum space utilization and the most economically efficient solution. Leveraging our expertise in industrial piping projects, we optimized the allocation for pipe routing to enhance overall efficiency.
Water Park Data
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Foundation System
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Continuous Flight Auger (CFA) Piling for the main structural slab
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Rock socketed large diameter drilled shafts for the arch system
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Base structural slab: Cast-in-place concrete
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Interstitial space: Geofoam and cellular concrete
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Surface structures: Concrete pools
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Superstructure: Arch and long span truss systems
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Length: 917 ft (279.5 m)
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Width: 310 ft (94.5 m)
Scope of Work
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Foundation & concrete work
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Accommodation of erection equipment
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Accommodation of electrical conduits and pool piping
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Slab interstitial space
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Steel superstructure
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Modules and arches
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Steel connections
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Interface with other disciplines
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HVAC modularization
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Architecture
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Theming
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Pipes
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ETFE
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Main Challenges
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Modularization planning
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Schedule driven project
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Erection planning
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Accommodating erection cranes
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Accommodation of electrical and pool piping
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ETFE Studies
American Dream Core Building
Core Data
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Covered area: 180,000 sf
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Five level structure:
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First three levels: Concrete flat slab construction
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Remaining levels: Conventional structural steel beam/column assemblies
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Interstitial space has been provided to accommodate underground utilities
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Base structural slab: pile supported
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Main Function
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Maintenance and administrative space
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Shower and locker space for the water park
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Restaurants and special events space
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Main mechanical services for the new extension
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Scope of Work
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Foundation & concrete work
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Steel superstructure
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Steel design
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Steel connections
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Interface with other disciplines
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Architecture
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Piping
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Electrical
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American Dream Connector Building
Did You Know?
Recognizing that long-spanning beams are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of vibration, MGA took proactive measures to address this concern. Specifically, for the Connector buildings where long-span steel beams were necessary to accommodate the roadway passing underneath, we applied advanced design techniques to minimize vibrations experienced by the building occupants. Additionally, MGA conducted special vibration studies modeling the effects of customer movement around the Connector buildings, and complemented the study with actual physical measurement data.
Connector Building Data
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Two irregular shaped buildings that connect the existing mall to the new Water Park and Amusement Park
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Total Floor area: 550,000 sf
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Elevated structure located above the 5th connector road
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Houses an NHL class skating rink
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Long structural spans with structural depth restrictions
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Special vibration mitigation design features
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Special numerical fire resistance studies
Scope of Work
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Foundation & concrete work
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Lateral load resisting system
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Steel superstructure
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Fire protection
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Elevated Ice Rink
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Interface with other disciplines
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Mechanical and Electrical
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Main Challenges
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Planning above roadway
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Height clearances above roadway
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Designing around existing underground utilities
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Structural depth restriction
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Long spans
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Random column layout
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Non-regular mall layout
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Vibration mitigation measures