Neilson Library Construction Update, November 12, 2018

Construction crews and equipment will be working in close proximity to Hatfield Hall on Tuesday, November 20 and Wednesday November 21. There will be a crane arriving on the site between Hatfield and Wright Hall on Monday.

Delivery of structural steel for the north addition below grade roof will be arriving on the site. A crane will unload the steel from the flatbeds onto the concrete floor of the north addition. The sketch above shows the positioning of the flatbed truck delivering the steel and the crane that will be unloading it.

The steel delivery drivers have been instructed that they will not idle their vehicles on the sight. This delivery will involve one flatbed truck per day arriving around 7 a.m. Crew will escort the vehicles in and out through John M. Greene gate. If schedules hold we expect deliveries of the steel deck to arrive in similar fashion on Monday November 29. Work to erect the steel and install the decking will run from November 19 through December 10. When that work is completed we’ll have another large concrete pour for the roof deck. The dates will be provided once they are confirmed. None of these activities are particularly noisy or disruptive, but will be more noticeable to the campus than the activity currently underway down in the hole.

Project Updates

South Addition

Concrete work to create the new south sub basement and in ground structures for the new south addition are nearly completed. Waterproofing, utility work and the underground connector into alumnae gymnasium will be completed early in 2019. Work on alumnae gymnasium will not begin in earnest until next summer.

1909 Core

Masonry reinforcement of the exterior brick wall is finishing this week. There is a lot of work ongoing in the core including removal and replacement of unsuitable soils. Finding space for the various operations, de-watering the work site and providing suitable surfaces for vehicle movement has been a challenge.

The drilling of piles down to bedrock in the core building is underway and will continue over the next two weeks. The piles pictured here will support a series of cantilevered supports cut into the existing 1909 west pavilion wall to help carry vertical loads on the exterior walls.

The same operation of installing piles to support the 1909 exterior wall loads repeats on the east pavilion walls. These 24" cores are cut from the east pavilion foundation and show the frequency of foundation supports being inserted into the existing walls, approximately 80 total.

Exterior Masonry 1909

New brown stone, granite and brick are being sourced to replace not only the west cornice, but also to infill and repair where the exterior skin has been removed or damaged from previous work. Portions of the exterior of 1909 Neilson that have been concealed since 1962 will once again be exposed. This picture shows a test area where new sample brick have been installed to compare with existing.

Work will continue in the 1909 core throughout the winter preparing it for installation of the structural steel that will arrive onsite in March 2019.

If you have any questions about the project, please feel free to drop me an email.

Contact

Charlie Conant
Project Manager
Facilities Management
413-585-2424
cconant@smith.edu

Peter Gagnon
Capital Construction Director
Facilities Management
413-585-2406
pgagnon@smith.edu

Roger Mosier
Associate Vice President
Facilities Management
413-585-2400
rmosier@smith.edu