The schedule for the LDS Conference Center called for completion of the 1,500,000 SF facility within three years, even though the design was not complete. This required a joint venture between the state's three largest contractors, forming Legacy Constructors. The design schedule was streamlined, the main hall was fast tracked and working drawings were produced piecemeal to get the project under way.
The facility is the home of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and used by congregations of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as community cultural events. The facility is the largest auditorium in the world, seating over 21,000 people. It also includes a 900-seat “small theater", broadcast and theatrical performance facilities and a 1,300-car underground parking garage.
Structurally, the Conference Center is an engineering marvel. The facility includes 10 radial trusses, each up to 287 feet in length and weighing up to 550 tons. The king truss alone weighs 621 tons. This allows for a clear-span roof distance of over 280 feet, creating an auditorium with unobstructed views from 21,000 seats. On top of this roof, there is a four-acre rooftop garden complete with a meadow, water fountains and trees.
There are a total of 116,000 cubic yards (88,700 cubic meters) of reinforced concrete in the conference center and 27,000 tons (24,300,000 kilograms) of steel, including reinforcing bar, structural steel, and miscellaneous pieces. The perimeter walls and shear walls are up to 30 inches thick.
The numbers that go with the electrical systems are equally mind boggling. The building contains 50,000 miles (80,000 kilometers) of wire and 780 miles (1250 kilometers) of conduit. There are 330 panels for power circuits and more than 300 panels for lighting. Because of the enormity of the necessary system, an Ethernet network — with multiple levels of redundancy — was chosen to transmit lighting control commands throughout the building. Some signal distribution runs are as long as 2000 feet (600 meters), and use fiber optic cable as a backbone.
The interior of the building has very high quality finishes. The walls of the lobby are cherry and pear wood with granite floor tile throughout. The facility is completely computer controlled for the HVAC systems and is tied to the Church’s central control systems. The theatrical systems in the main hall have computer controls for the sound, scenery movement and lights to allow for complete pre-programming of an event.
