North America’s top themed entertainment destinations transport guests to a new time, a new place or an entirely new world. Our resume of over 100 themed projects delivered for clients such as Disney, Universal, SeaWorld and Merlin Entertainments are defined by on-time delivery, impeccably planned logistics, relentless dedication to quality and top-tier safety records. Our construction experts leverage this experience to continually raise the bar in building fun beyond imagination.
Once a project is underway, the scheduled completion date is fixed and immutable. On-time delivery is crucial for the satisfaction of our clients and their guests. In bringing to life the 10 lands and more than 50 rides and attractions of LEGOLAND Florida, the design-build team was challenged to turn over the theme park from inception through design and construction in just 15 months. Maintaining a rapid pace of work, we coordinated activities among as many as 700 workers each day to deliver this 150-acre interactive wonderland.
Working in the heart of active theme parks welcoming millions of annual visitors, we carefully plan logistics so that we remain invisible to guests. Consistent, clear communication with park operators allows us to prevent interruption to the ongoing operations of the park as well as adjacent retail, restaurant and hospitality properties. Our strong safety culture ensures everyone in and around the project site is considered, evidenced by our safety records among the best of any of our clients’ projects.
Our seasoned staff understand the nuances of working alongside art directors, architects, engineers and contractors to facilitate design reviews, communicate expectations, and ensure each detail is installed just right. Themed buildings incorporate elements like hand-carved stucco, custom cast trims, handmade windows and doors, rockwork and thematic paint, while remaining functional. Working on a highly themed park expansion project, we constructed a building themed to look weathered and partially dilapidated, with walls designed to tilt as much as 15 degrees. Through extensive coordination with artists and consultants, numerous mock-ups and diligent quality control, we delivered the client a structure that appeared rundown but was fully weatherproofed and functional.
While theming elements visually transform guests’ experiences, complex mechanical and electrical systems work their magic behind the scenes, providing the infrastructure for lighting, sound and special effects to dazzle guests in both ride and show components. These systems require a high degree of coordination between PCL, engineers, consultants, commissioning agents and inspectors.
On a recent attraction project packed with special effects along a nearly one-mile coaster track, the installation of ride electrical components included more than 40,000 wire terminations. We maintained a tracking spreadsheet for all the ride’s the wire connections to track the process through to completion, ensuring the client a high-quality ride electrical install.
When building the American Dream mega entertainment and retail complex, which boasts an indoor themed amusement park and water park, we completed 5,000 inspections in 60 days by following Lean principles. We increased the presence of inspectors on site, implemented a collaborative scheduling approach to enhance the efficiency of inspection scheduling and utilized Bluebeam to create a visual log of inspection progress, ultimately increasing our inspection output from 16 daily inspections to nearly 100.
In working collaboratively with clients and partners, we have delivered more than 100 successful themed entertainment projects, many of which have been recognized as exemplary, award-winning projects by Engineering News-Record, the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) and the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC).