The Challenge

This six level, 720,000 square foot facility is the home of the Pittsburgh Penguins NHL Hockey and also used for the functions of basketball, arena football, circus, indoor soccer, concerts, tennis, volleyball, stage shows, and exhibitions.   The arena is a Gold LEED certified building with 62 suites plus 4 party suites; 2,000 club seats; and 236 loge box seats.

Chester’s role in the project was representing the Sports & Exhibition Authority of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County (“SEA”). Chester Engineers, teamed with Oxford Development in a Joint Venture, was the arena Owner’s Representative (“OR”), overseeing all phases of design and construction of the new $321 million multi-purpose facility. 

The Interdisciplinary Approach

The Consol Energy Center was a very complex project with an extensive number of stakeholders requiring very close collaboration and management with the Penguins, SEA, State of Pennsylvania, architect, engineers, the public, governmental agencies, consultants, construction managers, subcontractors, and hundreds of construction workers. With public funds involved it required a high level of transparency.   The OR team established integrity and diversity in the bidding strategy, prepared bid award recommendations, reviewed and processed payment requests, updated cash flow reports, provided oversight of substantial completion and punchlist process, and ensured that all contracted parties followed established procedures for an orderly prosecution of a project of this magnitude. 

The Sustainable Result

The sustainable result is one of the best multi-purpose arenas in the United States that will serve Pittsburgh Penguins Hockey, concerts and many other venues for the City of Pittsburgh. The project was designed an built with sustainability and environmentally conscious design in mind and rewarded with a prestigious LEED Gold rating.  The project remarkably finished on time and under budget, excellent safety record and no unresolved construction claims.