SAN JOSE, Calif., May 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Northern California developer SWENSON announced today the company has secured a United States patent for Landmaker, the firm's award-winning structural design. U.S. Patent 9,297,158 B2 dated March 29, 2016 credits inventors C. Barron "Barry" Swenson of San Jose, Don R. Peoples of Milpitas, Hardip P. Pannu of Moraga and Bo J. Lundmark of Long Beach. Legal Assignee to the patent is Green Valley Corporation, parent company to SWENSON.
In 2000, this team of inventors set out to create a simple, easy to build and cost effective structural solution for high-rise concrete buildings. It took years of collaboration from some of the top minds in the world to become a reality and to launch what is now officially known as the Landmaker structural system.
Hardip Pannu is a specialist in the field of structural design since graduating at the top of his class from Punjab University with an honors degree in Civil Engineering. Mr. Pannu has made an international name for himself having designed acclaimed structures such as the Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, AZ.
Barry Swenson, a native to Silicon Valley and major advocate for high intensity housing and transit oriented development, assembled the team of inventors so he could replicate this design as a solution throughout the Bay Area.
Don Peoples, also born and raised in the Valley, graduated from Santa Clara University and UC Berkley with a civil engineering undergraduate degree and then a structural engineering graduate degree. After the Loma Prieta Earthquake in 1989, he dedicated his career to ensuring safety for his neighbors in the Bay Area starting his own company – Peoples Associates Structural Engineers. Mr. Peoples and his team received four different awards for their Facebook data center structural design including Distinguished Building Award Citation of Merit by the American Institute Architects Chicago Chapter and Best of the Best Projects #1 by Engineering News and Record.
Bo Lundmark graduated at the top of his class from a Swedish technical university where his early value engineering design success warranted his tag-line re-engineering, new thinking, pushing the limits – and the Landmaker system does just that. Mr. Lundmark has accrued a number of patents throughout his career involving the design, method and construction process of multiple story structures.
The Landmaker structural system has been hiding in plain sight among the San Jose skyline for years having been incorporated into over six SWENSON high and mid-rise towers in the San Jose area since design inception. Notably nearing completion Century Center Towers in north San Jose, and most recently completed Centerra Apartments in downtown San Jose adjacent to San Pedro Square Market.
The patented, proven system consists of strategically placed shear walls and columns to achieve extremely high structural integrity, without sacrificing cost or more importantly safety. The Landmaker system was designed with the end-user in mind – meeting the stringent California Seismic Safety Codes for Hospitals and Emergency buildings.
"Our family has been using the Landmaker structural design system since it was developed in 2000," says SWENSON president and fourth generation developer Case Swenson. "This patent solidifies Landmaker's relevance in the market and the value it brings to high-rise projects across the country." While the primary focus is on structural safety and sustainability, the inherent cost benefit is undeniable. It allows the developer/owner to take advantage of the air rights of a property to achieve a higher density on the same piece of land. Landmaker creates buildings that are safer, stronger and more marketable to residential and commercial developers and investors as well as the tenants themselves.
For more information on Landmaker, visit barryswensonbuilder.com/landmaker.
About SWENSON
For one hundred years, the Swenson family has been a dynamic partner in building Northern California. Four generations of expertise, along with a proven Design-Develop-Build platform, deliver an unparalleled level of creative design, quality developments and efficient construction practices. Throughout the Golden State, the wide range of construction and development services by SWENSON is backed by decades of resources, referrals and sound business practices that have made the storied company a respected leader in the community. For more on the legacy development company, visit Swenson.com.
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