Holdfast Training Services Trial Blog

Now back after leave, it is time for an update on Phase 3.  I am now working in the USACE Baltimore District Head Quarters Mechanical Design Section and have managed to get my own office complete with window, a perk normally only given to section Chiefs, like my line manager.  So with this excellent start in mind I found out which projects I will be working on.

Caven Point Marine Terminal

This is the USACE New York District hub for their Operations Division to run research on the rivers and sea areas around New York.  On a nice point of land opposite a car recycling plant and the Manhatton skyline (complete with Statue of Liberty) it has a unique position with in the Army Corps. In Nov 12 it was hit by a 10ft high tidal surge produced by Hurricane Sandy.  Although the building withstood the surge all the documentation and equipment in the building was destroyed.  Now a shell with some tools and computers in it, $29 million has been set aside to create a new building to replace the current set up.  This project has a few unusual characteristics.  Firstly USACE is the customer, design authority and project manager and as such there is no contract.  This means that many of the normal contractual issues can be simplified ie last minute changes to designs by the user completed by group consensus,  but does also leave scope for issuses like last minute user changes!  The money is coming from a Federal fund set up to repair government buildings damaged by the Sandy specifically.  So far $6 million has been spent from the awarded $35 million hence our budget of $29 million.  However while we are designing to this budget if another government agency finds they could do with money from this fund the New York District must give it to them.  Consequently there is now pressure to get the money allocated to this project before someone else spends it!  New York District Military Design Branch has requested that Baltimore Mechanical Design Section help out because their own section is over stretched.  We will be providing the HVAC and Fire Protection designs for this building which is currently designed to 35%.  This means the building envelope design is nearly complete but no subsystems have been designed in terms of Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing. Normal procedure would see us comleting a 65%, with most Mechanical design complete, in 6 months and 95% ready to advertise publicly by this time next year.  However the Project Manager now needs a 95% design by mid Feb 14 in order to secure the funding.  This works out well for me as I should get to go through the whole design process (and complete my outstanding UK SPEC competencies) by mid Feb 14.  At the moment we have a blank canvas on the design.  We carried out a recce just before leave, met the design team and the end users who are actually fromthree departments: Support Staff who mend boats and look after the building, the Survey Staff who do the scientific research, and Construction Division who have admin offices there for the civil works programs they run in the area.  The new building must therefore incorporate a maintenance workshop, research labs (basic nothing hi tech) and office space.  The Office and Lab space is now to be raised 10ft above grade so that future events do not cause any damage, with all fittings in the workshop, which will be at grade to get boats in and out, at either 6ft or suspended on retractable mounts.  The building must also meet Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) and prove to be not only more efficient than the current building but with minimal or positive impact on the environment.  So plenty to think about!

View of Manhattan through the unseasonable weather

The Marine Terminal. Note the rust line on the walls which shows how high the surge was.

The ugliest building I have seen in New York. It is a 1920’s design and is an office block!

Nathan Hale Hall, Building 4554, Ft Meade
Hale Hall was a building belonging to Army Intelligence when it caught fire in Oct 2006.

The top floor was largely gutted and since then the building has been open to the elements.

Hale Hall Today.

Money is now available to get the building renovated and back in use as an administration building. A number of structural repairs will be needed as it still has no roof. It will also require a new HVAC system too. This will be my next project although there is no indication yet of the size of the budget. The initial meetings have only just started on this project so I look forward to site visits in full 4R because of the biological contaminants associated with exposure to the elements (racoon and bird poo!).

And in other news:
The transition to Baltimore has been painless although the commute on the light rail is interesting as Matt Fry alluded too in his blogs. The conversations can be very random! The District Christmas party was a unique affair. Not only was it a dry event, it was held at 1100-1500hrs! The food was a very good buffet Christmas lunch Caroline and I we were honoured to be on the top table next to the District Commander. Here I noticed another difference between the US and UK – the knife as part of your cutlery is very much ceremonial! After food there was reindeer racing, a raffle drawn by Santa (the District Commander) and some party games including one where I was the best dressed Christmas Tree thanks to the military guys in the District.
The weather has been pretty unseasonable with snow prior to and over Christmas and more since New Year. The Polar Vortex is coming tonight with temperatures expected to drop to -16. That might be another snow day!