The Limbach Informer
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New England Branch Has Moved
Limbach Announces Relocation of the New England Operations to Wilmington, MA
Wilmington, MA (February 2016) Limbach Company LLC is pleased to announce that the New England branch has relocated its offices to Wilmington, MA effective as of November 1, 2015. Located at 46 Jonspin Road, Wilmington, MA 01887.
“We are excited about the move to the Wilmington facility because it provides an updated and cohesive office space for employees in addition to a completely remodeled, highly efficient 15,000 SF fabrication shop and warehouse that allows us to expand our business and meet our customers’ needs.” said Dennis Sacco, JR. – VP & Branch Manager of the New England branch.
The newly renovated office and warehouse space is approximately eight miles from the previous location and is conveniently located along the Route 93 – 495 corridor north of Boston. It offers a new and updated pipe fabrication shop complete with new electrical services and ventilation systems, two overhead bridge cranes, automated welding and pipe cutting stations, as well as a more efficient layout to support Limbach’s continued growth and expansion. The new location provides a better work environment for staff, while underscoring our commitment to both our customers and our employees.
Limbach’s New England branch portfolio of projects currently includes Boston Medical Center, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Wellesley College, Harvard Dunster House, Draper Labs, Pilot House and Primark, just to name a few.
PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: COLUMBUS MUSEUM OF ART
Located in downtown Columbus, Ohio, the Columbus Museum of Art expansion project included construction of the new 50,000 square foot Margaret M. Walter Wing and renovations to an addition constructed in 1974. The new wing included a basement, post-tensioned beams and slabs, structural steel roof framing, roof and skylights. The renovation work encompassed the demolition of the existing exterior precast, interior selective demolition, steel modifications, and a new roof and skylights.
New fire protection, plumbing, mechanical, electrical, and low voltage systems were included. The original 1930’s main building and Beaton Hall building remained open to the public and operational at all times during the project as well as portions of the existing 1970’s building.
The Construction Manager at Corna Kokosing Construction Company selected Limbach based upon its ability to coordinate and construct, large complex projects with unique building constraints safely, on time and within budget.
Even though this was a Plan & Spec project, many issues were identified early in the process and constructability solutions were developed including:
- Logistical and Physical – Numerous constraints increased the difficulty of this project such as the project location (Downtown Columbus), and the lack of an adequate lay-down area, which increased the need for prefabrication.
- Operational – As the existing museum needed to remain open during construction, its major mechanical utilities had to remain operational. Temporary chillers and boilers were provided and multiple shutdowns were utilized to keep the museum operational at all times.
- Coordination – The coordination process was complicated by the fact that this was a museum, and its architectural features took precedence over its mechanical systems. Increased coordination efforts were needed to make sure the HVAC systems fit into their intended locations. There were also unique/stringent noise requirements, which required the use of lined duct and sound attenuation systems.
PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: JACKSON NATIONAL LIFE
The Jackson National Life Home Office Expansion project is a 260,000 square foot corporate office complex adjacent to the existing Jackson National Life headquarters in Lansing, Michigan. The project also included a 500 square foot elevated connector from the existing headquarters building to the new corporate office complex and conference center.
With the help of Limbach Engineering & Design Services’ in-house engineering and planning capabilities, we were able to take a leadership role in identifying areas for Value Engineering and BIM coordination. For example, BIM was used to fit ventilation systems into the available space on the ground floor without having to increase shaft dimensions. This freed up precious penthouse floor space while maintaining the desired ceiling elevation of the executive entrance. The benefits for the owner were reduced ductwork costs and avoidance of additional structural costs, thus achieving the architectural quality goal.
Several other Value Engineering ideas were brought to the table such as modeling the cooling towers to demonstrate that the desired piping pitch and flow could be maintained with the towers at a lower elevation, resulting in reduced structural cost and improved aesthetics. Our team also redesigned the roof storm drain to obtain the desired architectural ceiling elevations not achievable with the original layout, avoiding the cost of an architectural redesign. The under floor HVAC system was redesigned to eliminate miles of in-floor piping, improving performance of the perimeter zones and generating up-front savings of $1 million for the owner.
Our Team’s technical and practical expertise was key to completing this project on time and within budget without conflicts, delays or architectural redesign.