Convention Center, South Expansion
Las Vegas, NV

The South Hall expansion to the Las Vegas Convention Center adds 1.3 million sq. ft. of exhibition and convention space to the facility, making a total of about 3.2 million sq. ft.  To obtain this much space, the building structure had to be designed as a 2-story facility.  In order to connect to the existing convention center, the building also spans over Desert Inn Road.  Although there are only 2 stories, the building is actually as high as a 4-story structure and the upper floor was designed for the same vehicular/display loading as for the main floor.  This means that the second floor exhibition area has the capacity to provide access to fully loaded tractor-trailer rigs and other heavy construction equipment.  During setup and removal of shows, large vehicles can drive directly to the required location on the display floor.

The second floor elevation is 35 feet above the main parking lot.  Access to this floor by heavy trucks and equipment is provided by a pair of ramps and an 80-foot by 600-foot elevated staging platform on the south face of the building. 

R₂H provided structural design and drafting services for the ramps and the elevated platform as a sub-consultant to the project’s principal structural designers.  These ramps consist of mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) retaining walls and fill.  The platform is composed of structural steel plate girders and a concrete deck.  Also part of R₂H’s responsibilities, were the stairs and other miscellaneous architectural accommodations in the area.

In addition to the design services described above, R₂H provided the prime consultant with an independent peer review of the entire building project.  This work included independent checks on the vertical and lateral structural systems as well as a review of the project’s technical specifications.

Renovation and Expansion
This is an $890 million renovation and expansion of the entire Las Vegas Convention Center Campus.  The goal of the expansion is to provide a new concourse that will allow easy indoor movement between the three main exhibit hall spaces (north, central and south halls) and to add meeting room space to the south exhibit hall. 

R₂H Engineering is responsible for the renovations to the south hall, including support for the mechanical equipment, providing new electrical mezzanines, provide additional power and the new meeting rooms for peak load conditions.  R₂H also provided the design for hot water and chill water pipes from the existing central plant to the new concourse and meeting rooms for heating and cooling.  This required supporting new piping across many existing structures and to provide routing that minimizes the impact on convention center’s operations.  In addition, R₂H also did the renovation of an existing food service and restroom facility that sits inside of the existing central hall and is involved in the renovation of the existing concourse that connects the north and central halls.