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| Honed and split face concrete masonry units contrast with natural sandstone and stucco accents. Steel trellis treatments shade the west and south elevations to reduce interior heat gain and sun glare. |
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| On the heels of the Knight Transportation project and its unique unit-finishing requirements, Besser representatives conducted a five-day course for Cemex Nevada and other Pacific Region site staff. Hands-on, interactive sessions between a classroom and the Nevada Ultrapac production line covered machine setup, proper adjustments, maintenance, electrical troubleshooting and mold changes. |
A new Knight Transportation site in North Las Vegas, Nev., earned kudos from the Concrete Masonry Association of California and Nevada, which showcased the project in its Profiles in Architecture newsletter earlier this year, and the Cemex employees who produced its concrete masonry units.
Cemex Operations Manager-Masonry, Nevada Division-Pacific Region Chris Hill took his staff on a field trip to the major fleet operator’s newest satellite business office and driver lounge. The building is the first in a series, a second one planned to house fleet fueling, truck repair, parts storage and dispatch office. A New York Stock Exchange-traded company, Knight Transportation runs 4,000-plus tractors and 8,800-plus trailers nationally, and has been named to the Forbes Magazine Top 200 Best Small Companies 15 years in a row.
Cemex landed the office and driver lounge contract because it was able to satisfy the architect’s call for units with three split faces and a honed face. The latter type had to be created with cured, split units, plant crews sawing off split corners and facing them with a honed segment—yielding a custom 8- x 8- x 16-in. product. The units were molded on a Besser Ultrapac four-at-a-time machine, which at the Cemex Nevada line runs alongside another Ultrapac and a V3-12 Vibrapac machine.