Advanced manufacturing center seeks general contractor bids
A rendering of a high bay area to be used for research and development at AMICSTL.
St. Louis Business Journal. December 19th, 2024
The nonprofit group behind construction of an advanced manufacturing center in north St. Louis and Ranken Technical College posted a request for proposals Thursday for a general contractor.
The deadline for proposal submission is 5 p.m. Central Time on Jan. 24, said Tracy Henke, chief operating officer and deputy executive director of the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Center-St. Louis. A pre-proposal virtual meeting will be held at 2 p.m. Central on Jan. 7.
Tracy Henke, chief operating officer and deputy executive director of AMICSTLGreater St. Louis Inc.
An award of the project is set for Feb. 7, with construction expected to start Feb. 21 and completion in 18 months. The award will be made by AMICSTL’s board of directors based on the “lowest, responsive, responsible bidder whose qualifications meet the project requirements.”
The posting on AMICSTL’s website states that the proposals will be for construction of two buildings in the 4300 block of Finney Avenue totaling 89,600 square feet with 55 feet above grade as its highest point. It will be clad in three façade types including curtain wall, aluminum composite metal panel and a translucent polycarbonate system that maximizes daylight while reducing glare.
The structures will include four high-bay manufacturing areas, lab and incubator spaces, offices, collaboration spaces and a multipurpose area that will serve as a maker space. There will be an elevated bridge across Finney Avenue. Ranken owns the 7-acre site and is in the final stages of crafting a long-term lease with AMICSTL, Henke said.
Supporters of the project say the goal is to make the St. Louis area a driver of research and development efforts to create new products, processes and materials – potentially creating hundreds of new businesses while providing "strong, diverse and equitable growth" for the region.
In July, AMICSTL said it had raised about $40 million, which will enable completion of the first phase. The price tag of the first phase in part will be determined by the responses to the RFP for the general contractor, Kory Mathews, CEO-executive director of AMICSTL, said at that time.
The AMICSTL board members are:
Chairman Dennis Muilenburg, co-founder, chairman and CEO of New Vista Capital, and former president and CEO of The Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA).
Kevin Cahill, vice president, strategic initiatives, St. Louis Economic Development Partnership.
Leslie Gill, president and CEO of Rung for Women.
John Hixson, retired former vice president, defense initiatives, St. Louis Economic Development Partnership.
Jake Hummel, president of the Missouri AFL-CIO.
Sanjam Khurana, vice president and chief financial officer of Boeing’s Air Dominance Division.
Kory Mathews, president and CEO, AMICSTL.
John McDonnell, former chairman of the McDonnell Douglas Corp. and founding chairman of the board of BioSTL.
Mark Temkin, shareholder at the Riezman Berger PC law firm.
Michael von Gebel, president of the Vandeventer Community Development Corp.
Harvey Wallace, co-founder of certified public accounting firm Brown Smith and client development adviser with Private Fiduciary Solutions.
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https://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/news/2024/12/19/advanced-manufacturing-center-seeks-bids.html