KFC YUM Center
Louisville, Kentucky
The KFC Yum! Center is a 22,000-seat arena on the Ohio River waterfront in downtown Louisville, Kentucky. The arena is used primarily for University of Louisville basketball games but also hosts numerous concerts throughout the year.
Patriot was selected to join the construction team to provide materials testing and engineering services throughout the construction period. In addition to the arena itself, the project included a multi-level, below-grade parking garage and an urgent care facility.
Construction Materials Testing & Engineering
Patriot had a dedicated full-time Project Manager on-site who attended progress and quality control meetings, and managed the Patriot staff working on the project. Patriot also maintained an on-site laboratory equipped with a concrete compressive strength testing machine for fast, real-time testing.
The entire structure is supported by deep foundations consisting of augured cast-in-place (ACIP) piles. Patriot developed a pile load test program to aid in the design of the production piles. Their site-specific approach included instrumentation such as vibrating wire strain gauges to evaluate load distribution along the length of the test piles.
Patriot’s Responsibilities Included:
- ACIP pile foundations and installation
- Pile caps and grade beams
- Concrete foundations and slabs
- Pre-cast concrete, post-tension concrete, and structural concrete
- Maturity meter testing of mass concrete placements
- Reinforcing and structural steel
- Masonry and asphalt
- Placement of structural fill
In addition to standard construction materials testing and engineering, Patriot completed other special inspections required by the Kentucky Building Code.
Some areas of the site required additional geotechnical evaluation prior to the commencement of construction. Patriot conducted engineering evaluations of subsurface soil at those select locations to validate conditions and recommendations provided in a previous geotechnical report from another firm.
Today, the KFC Yum! Center is a bright spot on the Ohio River waterfront in Louisville, one that provides enjoyment to thousands of people every year!