Buffalo Thunder Resort, Santa Fe, N.M.
Posted
09/1/2009
Located 12 miles
(19 km) north of Santa Fe, the resort is designed to be a four-star
destination and includes a 150,000-square-foot(13,935-m2) Las
Vegas-style casino, 390-room Hilton Santa Fe North, and complete
luxury and conference amenities.
The resort sits on 587 acres (235 hectares) and is owned by the
Pueblo of Pojoaque. The Buffalo Thunder name was chosen because it
is a symbol of spiritual strength for Native Americans, according
to Tribal Governor George Rivera. The casino's Southwestern
pueblo-style design incorporates artwork from pueblos throughout
New Mexico.
The project
utilized approximately 7,000 linear feat (2,134 m) of Flex-C Trac
from Flex- Ability Concepts to create theming elements, soffits and
radii throughout the resort.
"We've used Flex-C Trac in the past and like the benefits of it,"
said Ryan Smith, project manager with KHS&S Contractors, the
framing and theming contractor and installer. "The structural
capabilities of the 16-gauge Flex-C Trac were extremely important
in our decision to use the product. This kept us from having to
bend and/or cut metal of the same thickness, which would have been
very difficult and time consuming."
The Flex-C Trac
was primarily used in the ceiling and soffit applications. "Some of
the soffits had huge drops-15 to 20 feet [5 to 6 m] from the deck
above. There were also many extremely heavy theming elements that
had to be supported from above," Smith said. "Due to the height and
the complex shapes and angles we were dealing with, we needed to be
able to preform the shapes on the ground. The Flex-C Trac allowed
us to do that. It's very easy to work with. Once we were happy with
the shapes, we attached the Flex-C Trac to our subceiling, which
was heavy gauge studs acting as joists 12 or 16 inches [305 or 406
mm] on-center spanning the steel beams. In some cases, we
constructed complete soffit systems on the ground and then lifted
them up and secured them in place."
Owner: Pueblo of Pojoaque, Santa Fe
Architect: Thalden Boyd Emery Architects, Tulsa, Okla.
Framing and theming contractor/installer: KHS&S Contractors,
Dallas
Distributor: Cal-Ply, Albuquerque, N.M.
Metal track system: Flex-Ability Concepts, Oklahoma City
www.flexabilityconcepts.com