Construction Management

Construction Management, Governors Island Ventilation Building Facade and Elevator Replacements and Rehab, BB-80

This 2 year project called for facade, elevator and other work at the Governors Island Ventilation Building, the Brooklyn Ventilation Building and the Manhattan Blower Building.  it was part of the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel Rehabilitation Program initiated by the Authority to ensure the Tunnel's continued dependability well into the 21st Century, which is crucial to the vitality of the New York Metropolitan Area.

We managed and inspected construction under Contract BB-80, which included the following items of work:

• Abatement of asbestos containing materials
• Abatement of lead containing materials
• Maintenance and protection of traffic (including waterways)
• Emergency egress rehabilitation at the Governors island Ventilation, Brooklyn Ventilation, and Manhattan Blower Buildings, which required repairing concrete treads, installing new stainless steel doors, replacing or rebuilding stairs and landings, installing emergency exit lighting with battery back-up, and handrail extensions to meet building code requirements
• Governors Island Building exterior facade replacement, which called for removing the existing panels and installing a granite cladding panel system; repairing masonry; installing a new framing system to accommodate the new granite panels; landscaping and exterior accent lighting.  HAKS also certified the control inspection of the facade system; a representative sample that included structural framing, granite panels and seals were pressure loaded to simulated wind loads, and deflection readings were taken to ensure compliance with design requirements
• Elevator system replacement at Governors Island Ventilation Building and Brooklyn Ventilation Building, which included replacing the elevator hoist machines and motors, controllers, traveling cables, limit switches, hoist-way wiring and conduits; replacing or overhauling car and counter weight rails, hoist-way entrances, buffers, car and "hall" stations; overhauling car frames and guides, "safeties" and platforms; installing top of car operating station; installing mechanical ventilation inside the machine room; overhauling the counterweight assembly and guides; outlet, stop switch and lighting replacements; replacing existing electrical power supply to the elevator and elevator machine room with separate power feeds, and replacing control wiring for the new elevators
• Dock and fender system rehabilitation at the Governors Island Ventilation building included restoring rip-rap, repairing timber lining, replacing deteriorated timber braces for oak piles with creosote-treated timber, pretreated timber or plastic piles; replacing damaged deck planks; tuck-pointing granite seawall joints and install geotextile fabric, and replacing timber pile bracing, missing timber protection boards and fasteners as needed

The project was completed on time, under budget and accident-free.