91视频

An Oregon company is fabricating the structural steel frame for a $4.2 billion transit terminal being built in San Francisco.

Oregon Iron Works, a division of Vigor Industrial, signed a 鈥渟ubstantial contract鈥� in the millions of dollars to help assemble an earthquake-resistant steel exoskeleton for the Transbay Transit Center, said Tom Hickman, vice president of sales and marketing. He declined to give an exact dollar figure.

Workers at the metal fabricating company’s facilities in Clackamas and Vancouver, Wash., have spent the past few months welding portions of the steel frame. The first pieces are expected to be ready in about a month for shipment to the downtown San Francisco job site where construction is under way.

The process of fabricating a pipe truss steel structure for the exterior of the terminal is complex, Hickman said. The steel pipes that Oregon Iron Works crews are welding together can be up to 45 feet long with 2陆-inch-thick walls; they can measure almost 3 feet in diameter.

鈥淭he challenges come even with manufacturing of the component parts,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t’s a very technical project from a welding standpoint.鈥�

The final product will be both elegant and strong, Hickman said.

鈥淭he component parts will be assembled on-site and turned into what will be a very, very beautiful structure,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his exterior structure is designed to take the very largest earthquake that San Francisco could be hit with.鈥�

The project, dubbed the 鈥淕rand Central of the West,鈥� will replace an outdated bus terminal with a new multimodal transit center anticipated to serve more than 100,000 passengers a day. The center, scheduled for completion in 2017, will serve as a hub for regional bus and subway lines, Greyhound, Amtrak and other transit services.

Hickman said he anticipates the large-scale project to occupy hundreds of workers at Oregon Iron Works for the next couple of years. The company is the only Oregon-based steel fabricator involved in the project. Clackamas-based Marks Metal Technology, Canby-based American Steel, Portland-based Lampros Steel and Tualatin-based Oregon Sandblasting & Coating are supplying materials.

Oregon Iron Works is a subcontractor for the project hired by trade subcontractor Skanska USA. The general contractor for the project is Webcor/Obayashi.