UBC sues 3 companies hired during $40M seismic upgrade of Museum of Anthropology

The University of British Columbia is suing three companies that were contracted for the $40-million project to seismically upgrade the Museum of Anthropology.

The civil suit is seeking unspecified damages for breach of contract and negligence from named defendants Nick Milkovich Architects Inc., Equilibrium Consulting Inc. and Senaltek Ltd., alleging work they did left the museum's signature Great Hall damaged.

According to the claim, problems started when liquid grout seeped inside new beams and adhered to internal tensioning cables.

It says the grout prevented the beams from being "fully tensioned," and had to be removed.

"The University says that Grout Seepage, and the resulting damage it caused to the Museum's Great Hall building, was caused by the acts, errors, omissions, negligence, fault and breaches of contracts of the defendants, and each of them," reads the claim filed in B.C. Supreme Court.

The filing does not describe the scope of the damage, but UBC spokesperson Erik Rolfsen said in an email to CBC News that the building is seismically safe and passed all testing, with all the issues alluded to in the lawsuit "remedied to the highest standard." 

"The claim deals with costs incurred by the project's insurer in fixing problems that arose during construction," he said. "The university will not comment further as this matter is before the courts."

None of the allegations against the three companies have been tested in court and no responses have been filed.

The Museum of Anthropology reopened in June of 2024 amid much fanfare after being closed for 18 months for seismic work and other improvements. 

Designed by Arthur Erickson and opened in 1975, the museum — and especially the Great Hall — is considered an architectural masterpiece.

Erickson's former student, Nick Milkovich, whose company is named in the lawsuit, was hired by UBC in 2017 as the prime consultant and coordinating registered professional for the renewal project.

According to the museum website, the Great Hall was completely demolished and then rebuilt to modern standards on top of newly installed, below-ground base isolators that "absorb the impact of seismic activity, separating the building from the ground and from the adjoining museum structures."

CBC reached out to Nick Milkovich Architects Inc., Equilibrium Consulting Inc. and Senaltek Ltd. for comment but did not hear back by time of publication.