Tag Archives: curved steel roof structures

Albina Co., Inc. Recognized at “The Spheres” IDEAS2 Presidential Award Ceremony

“The Spheres” in Seattle, Washington have been all the buzz lately! “The Spheres” were featured in the May 2019 Edition of Modern Steel Magazine as the buildings were awarded the AISC’s IDEAS2 Presidential Award for Excellence in Fabrication!  Just this last week, our VP of Sales, Brad Lund, was able to attend the award presentation ceremony at “The Spheres” in Seattle and we were awarded a plaque to display in our office. See below for some AMAZING pictures!


Albina Co., Inc. was the steel bender/roller for the Curved Steel Bio-Sphere buildings in Seattle, WA. Albina bent 750,000# and 1,050 pieces rectangular tube steel bent the easy way and a portion bent off-axis. Almost 8 miles of welding work and grinding was avoided because of Albina’s ability to bend a portion of the project. Almost NO correction was needed during fabrication or erection as the bends fit to the fixtures within 1/32nd of an inch! Albina Co., Inc. also bent the handrails and spiral staircase for the interior of the buildings.

Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Interior Shot of the “webs” used to help create “The Spheres”
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Brad Lund receiving the AISC IDEAS2 Award for Presidential Excellence in Fabrication
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Curved Steel Handrail 2nd floor of “The Spheres”
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
A close up of the “webs” used to help create “The Spheres”
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Curved Steel Handrails and Spiral Staircases on the interior of “The Spheres”
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Curved Steel Spiral Staircase at “The Spheres” (looking down)
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Curved Steel Spiral Staircase at “The Spheres” (from ground level)

“The Spheres” Grace the Cover of Structure Magazine

“The Spheres”, the recipient of the AISC 2019 IDEAS2 Presidential Award for Excellence in Fabrication grace the cover of the August Issue of Structure Magazine! The article focuses on the inspiration, the vision and the design of “The Spheres.” Albina bent 750,000# and 1,050 pieces rectangular tube steel bent the easy way and a portion bent off-axis for this project. Almost 8 miles of welding work and grinding was avoided because of Albina’s ability to bend a portion of the project. Almost NO correction was needed during fabrication or erection as the bends fit to the fixtures within 1/32nd of an inch! Numerous Pacific Northwest businesses collaborated to make The Spheres possible.

Curved Steel Sections of The Spheres Erected
Curved Steel Sections of The Spheres Erected
The Spheres in Seattle Washington
“The Spheres” Seattle, WA.

24,000# of Curved Steel for UC Health Longs Peak Hospital in Longmont, CO.

Albina Co., Inc. bent at total of 24,000# of steel including 12 ¾” OD x .375″ wall material and MC12 x 10.6# material for the new steel-framed UCHealth Longs Peak Hospital in Longmont, Colorado. The project is featured in the July issue of Modern Steel Construction and the article details many of the structural design challenges as well as the importance of early involvement of specialty fabricators.

Curved Steel Roof for UCHealth Longs Peak Hospital in Longmont, Colorado
Curved Steel Roof for UCHealth Longs Peak Hospital in Longmont, Colorado
Curved Steel Roof for UCHealth Longs Peak Hospital in Longmont, Colorado

“The Seattle Spheres” win Presidential Award for Excellence in Fabrication

The May 2019 Edition of Modern Steel Magazine features an article on the Seattle Spheres as they won the Presidential Award for Excellence in Fabrication! 


Albina Co., Inc. was the steel bender/roller for the Curved Steel Bio-Sphere buildings in Seattle, WA. Albina bent 750,000# and 1,050 pieces rectangular tube steel bent the easy way and a portion bent off-axis. Almost 8 miles of welding work and grinding was avoided because of Albina’s ability to bend a portion of the project. Almost NO correction was needed during fabrication or erection as the bends fit to the fixtures within 1/32nd of an inch!

Curved Steel Spheres
Curved Steel Spheres Seattle, WA.
Curved Steel Spheres Seattle, WA.

Curved Steel Roof Structure at Rainbow Recreational Center in Oakland, CA.

Albina recently bent 96,000# of steel consisting of 75 pieces of  TS10″ X 6″ X .500″ WALL A500 GR B and TS 10″ X 6″ X.625″ WALL A500 GR B bent the hard way for the curved Steel roof structure at the Rainbow Recreation Center in Oakland, CA. The renovation and expansion of the Rainbow Rec Center is a 13.7 million dollar project expected to be completed by Spring 2019.

curved steel roof structure rainbow recreational center-1
curved steel roof structure rainbow recreational center-2
curved steel roof structure rainbow recreational center-3

“The Spheres” Given AISC’s 2019 IDEAS2 Presidential Award for Excellence in Fabrication!

Another Awarding Winning Project in the books for Albina Co., Inc. “The Spheres” have received the AISC 2019 IDEAS2 Presidential Award for Excellence in Fabrication! Albina bent 750,000# and 1,050 pieces rectangular tube steel bent the easy way and a portion bent off-axis for this project. Almost 8 miles of welding work and grinding was avoided because of Albina’s ability to bend a portion of the project. Almost NO correction was needed during fabrication or erection as the bends fit to the fixtures within 1/32nd of an inch! Numerous Pacific Northwest businesses collaborated to make The Spheres possible. Way to Go Team & Congratulations!

Amazon Curved Steel Spheres
Curved Steel Spheres

Another IDEAS2 Awarding Winning Project in the Books (Literally)!

Sponsored by the American Institute of Steel Construction, the Innovative Design in Engineering and Architecture with Structural Steel (IDEAS2) recognizes projects where structural steel has been utilized in an innovative manner. We have been an integral part of many award winning projects, but this year, our curved steel was featured on the award-winning project of the UC Davis Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art.

In honor of this years award winners, the AISC produced a high quality coffee table flip Book of the winners. The UC Davis Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art is featured on pages 39 and 40 Feel free to check out the whole book to see the entire list of winners.

Curved Steel Roof UC Davis

Curved Steel Entry

Curved Steel Roof UC Davis

50,000 Square Foot Permeable Roof

Curved Steel Roof UC Davis

Overview of Curved Roof Structure

Murray Park Amphitheater Rennovations Include Curved Steel Roof Structure

Albina bent 55,000# of wide flange W24 X 76# A992, W30 X 108# A992, W36 X 135# A992, W36 X 170# A992 for the Murray Park Amphitheater in Salt Lake City, Utah. Over a planning period that lasted several years, the city received input from patrons and citizens that focused on the needs and wants for improvements to the amphitheater. The largest improvement to the amphitheater was a curved steel roof over the stage and orchestra pit. “In the summer, we have microburst storms that roll in at around three or four in the afternoon and rain out events,” Sorenson said. “The stage can also get very hot, which limits what you can do in the afternoon. If we had a roof, we wouldn’t have to cancel. It would allow us to keep events running.” One of Albina Co., Inc.’s slogans over the years is “We’ve Got You Covered” and in this instance, we truly did! The wide flange was all bent the hardway to a radii range of approx. 90 ft – 100 ft. and it was all bending to AESS (Architecturally Exposed Structural Steel Standards).

Murray Park Amphitheater Curved Steel Roof Structure

Murray Park Amphitheater Curved Steel Roof

Curved Steel Everywhere you Look in Seattle!

We spent this last weekend in Seattle as we took our son and some friends up to a Mariners game. We had Saturday morning to spend in the city, and everywhere we looked, we stumbled upon projects containing curved steel that we have been a part of! The Jimmy Hendrix Museum, The Spheres and Spiral Staircase at The Spheres, the New Spiral Staircase in the Space Needle, the Canopy at the Seattle Great Wheel, the Dale Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum, the pedestrian bridge at the Museum of Flight, and art projects outside of corporate offices. The list goes on! What a true experience to see Brian showing the kids all of the curved steel projects Albina has done over the years! It was a great teaching moment to explain how the entire process works from the beginning of a project to the end and how all the different players work together to accomplish one final product. We were extremely proud to be the steel bender of choice for these amazing projects in the Pacific Northwest. And stay tuned, there are great things happening in the PNW and many more high profile projects coming up!

"The Spheres" at Amazon Curved Steel

"The Spheres" at Amazon Curved Steel

The Seattle Great Wheel Canopy Curved Steel

Curved Steel Art Work

Curved Steel Canopy at “The Village at Medford Center” in Medford, Oregon

We recently completed a project consisting of 82,000# of bent steel for “The Village Medford Center” in Medford, Oregon. The Village is the center of a major environmental and architectural transformation at Medford Center, which is the premier entertainment-oriented shopping and dining experience in Medford, Oregon. Part of the architectural upgrades included a new dynamic sign program featuring an arched entryway with an illuminated pendant pine cone sculpture and a new 80-foot tall architectural tower, that will be visible from the I-5 freeway.

We rolled 24 lengths of Tube Steel 16″ X 8″ X .500″ WALL A500 GR B the Hardway to a 42 foot inside radius. All material was bent to AESS standards (without heat)!

We also rolled 16 lengths of Tube Steel 6″ X 6″ X .500″ WALL A500 GR B down to as tight as a 27 foot radius.

Curved Tube Steel Canopy at The Village at Medford Center

Curved Tube Steel Canopy at The Village at Medford Center

Curved Tube Steel Canopy at The Village at Medford Center