HRP Hired For "Out-Of-The-Box" Engineering Project
November 7th, 2022
HRP’s civil engineering group was recently tasked with a real “out-of-the-box” project that gave us the opportunity to use some creative thinking. The task was to design and construct a sustainable building project in Farmington, CT to be used for community outreach purposes. The client had a short turnaround time of just 10 days, but HRP is not afraid to take on difficult tasks for their clients.
Design
The team started with a round table discussion on the best course of action for the design and construction of the building. Once we received the survey of the site, the team started with some preliminary concepts for the client. After the client approved the preliminary designs, the team got to work on some CAD design (Cardboard Aided Design).
The building had some difficult structural design hurdles to overcome to convert the existing site structure without affecting the productivity of the current occupants. One concern that needed to be addressed was how to prevent the weight of the doors from deflecting the footing and affecting the structural integrity of the building. The solution was to add ballasts to the footing, improving the rigidity of the building by a factor of safety of 2. When designing the roof of the building, wind loads needed to be taken into consideration with strong nor’easters brewing in the HVAC system. The roof was designed with additional vertical bracing to mitigate the wind loads.
The site is in a commercial zone and needed to add a landscaping area to meet Farmington’s zoning requirements. After reviewing the different vegetation options with the client, the team decide to arrange the vegetation on the road frontage on PM Ave. After submitting the plans to the local zoning commission, the site was approved for construction.
Construction
The team sourced sustainable building materials recovered for re-use. The construction started with the purchase of construction grade recycled cardboard reinforced with #8 rebar. Before the contractor broke ground erosion control measures were installed. After erosion control measures were installed, clearing and grubbing commenced with the removal of outdated plans stored on-site. As the construction was underway, the contractor received a citation for sediment and cardboard leaving the site and entering PM Ave. As much of the work took place after hours, we believe the contractors may have been impaired by typical 3:12 activities affecting their ability to maintain a clean workstation.
Our Engineering Practice Leader, Tom Battles, observed all phases of construction and provided feedback as necessary. Unfortunately, during the construction, mother nature was not on their side - with rain in the forecast limiting the ability to paint the newly constructed building. In the end, it turned out beautifully, truly one-of-a-kind compared to many of the neighbors who opted for pre-fab construction.
Open for Business
The building was opened to the community and used to provide energy assistance (i.e., candy) to many local children. We look forward to working with this client again next year and hope the kids enjoyed our work as much as we did. Happy Halloween!
Christopher Parrotta, Project Consultant at HRP Associates, Inc.
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