Media

The Grand Canyon Skywalk hangs from the canyon's western rim, 4,000 feet above the Colorado River. That's twice the altitude of the world's tallest skyscraper.

Lochsa Engineering of Las Vegas, formed by Idaho alumni Mark Hedge '85 and Jess Haldeman '84, '86, took on the structural engineering challenges of Skywalk. Their job was to make the all-glass Skywalk safe and secure.

What were the challenges?

Shifting canyon winds and building on the edge of high limestone cliff.

What was the answer?

Eighty-four steel rods embedded nearly 46 feet into the limestone to secure Skywalk.

The project has captured a lot of attention, from the public and other engineers. "It's so different," said Bill Karren, a principal with the firm and the lead structural engineer. "We've gotten worldwide attention from it. But, it's actually smaller than our usual projects."

Booming Las Vegas has kept Lochsa Engineering busy.

"Jess and I started from scratch," said Hedge. "But we saw a lot of potential for civil, traffic and structural engineering."

Their first big job in 1995 was a 900-room hotel tower for Circus Circus. Next came the two-tower Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino with 5,500 rooms.

Now, their list of projects include bridges, schools, convention centers, healthcare facilities, theaters, retail malls, resorts and office towers around the U.S. Lochsa opened a Boise office in 2005 where 18 employees, including four Idaho alumni, are engineering another building boom.

"Las Vegas is on the cutting edge in terms of architecture and engineering," said Hedge. "We're benefiting from that, but it all started with the engineering education Jess and I got at the University of Idaho."

The College of Engineering is celebrating its centennial in 2007, and is proud to recognize Lochsa Engineering's significant contributions to 100 years of engineering at the University of Idaho.