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From: Ronnie
Smith, Vice Chancellor, Administration and Finance
Subject: Hurricane Katrina Recovery – Update #28
Posted: October 27, 2006
The design teams have been asked to suspend most of their active
work on planning for the permanent repairs and the related 406 Hazard Mitigation
proposals, while a number of major policy matters are resolved by the new FEMA
leadership. These policy matters will materially impact on how the design
process will move forward and what components of the project costs will be
eligible for reimbursement. We are cautiously optimistic that a number of the
policy matters will be resolved in ways that will benefit the plans for
rebuilding the Health Sciences Center. In the interim, the design teams are
refocusing their efforts on the "scope alignment" process; where they develop
and refine their damage assessments and reconcile them to the FEMA estimates. In
some instances, the scope alignment has resulted in significant increases in the
damage assessments and the value placed on the needed repairs, so the efforts
have been paying off.
The recent discoveries of additional mold growth in parts of the
Dental School Clinic and Administration buildings have consumed a significant
portion of our time and the time of the architects and engineers who are
responsible for the repair projects at the Dental School campus. The Office of
Facility Planning and Control has worked closely with the team to rapidly
develop and implement measures to protect the buildings from additional damage
and to complete the environmental remediation of the interior spaces. A room by
room environmental assessment has been completed, and the consultant is
developing the bid specifications for a new remediation contract. The on-site
contractors are rapidly assessing the building HVAC system controls on upper
floors, so that necessary repairs can be completed. Portable dehumidifiers and
HEPA filters have been brought on site and are operating within the critical
portions of the building to help curb any further mold growth while the more
comprehensive repairs are rapidly completed. More specific information is
available below.
At 1542 Tulane Ave., there have recently been several change
orders reviewed and approved. Work on these new tasks will begin shortly. The
change orders are focused on completing some additional work that will move us
closer to being able to use the upper floors of the building. Additional change
orders are anticipated to be necessary as power is returned to the building, the
contractors complete their work and further assessments can then be made by the
architects & engineers.
While not related to the hurricane, the project to improve the
lighting at the Student Parking lots on the downtown campus has progressed well.
Inclement weather has recently slowed some of the work, but the contractor
continues to take advantage of breaks in the weather to move forward. A bid is
also on the street via the Office of Facility Planning and Control to make
needed repairs to the electrical systems that feed the various parking lot
control systems at lots around campus. Bids will be opened next week, and we
hope to see a contract awarded shortly.
Here are highlights of work that has been accomplished since our
last update was posted two weeks ago.
Dental School Temporary Repairs
- Phase One Updates:
- The Phase 1 electrical contractor has been on site making a list of
materials needed to connect the remaining light fixtures on the 1st
floor.
- He has recently begun the task of illuminating additional
fixtures on the 1st floor.
- The electrical contractor is also making plans to begin working on
the condensate & chilled water pump motors and the motor control center.
- The chilled water & condensate pump motors have been removed for
shop repairs.
- Temporary emergency repairs of the Motor Control Center (MCC)
are scheduled to begin next week; these temporary repairs are
necessary to "properly" operate the temp chillers and HVAC system
until the new MCC is delivered & installed.
- Phase Two Updates:
- The Phase 2 electrical contractor has been on site finishing some
punch-list items (i.e., testing the dock lighting, clean-up of debris &
materials, etc.).
- The mechanical sub-contractor has been working to completing the
identification and labeling of the remaining sewerage & drain pipes.
- Elevator Repair Updates:
- The call station buttons and lights arrived for the Dental School
elevators, but will not be installed until the hall doors arrive. No
revised delivery date has been given for the new doors
- Mold Remediation Updates:
- The environmental consultant has completed his detailed, room by
room survey of the Clinic and Administration Buildings. Based on this
work, he is preparing a bid solicitation that will be used to secure an
environmental remediation contractor.
- Efforts to stabilize the buildings air quality so that additional
mold growth will be inhibited have continued.
- The Phase 2 environmental remediation sub-contractor set-up
negative-air machines and portable dehumidifiers on the upper floors
of the Dental School buildings to help arrest additional mold
growth.
- The Phase 2 mechanical contractor has begun checking all of the
building Air Handling Units for proper operation. This will help to
insure that all areas of the building are receiving proper amounts
of chiller and/or heated air as the temporary chillers and boilers
are brought on line.
- The inspections in the Clinic Building were completed on
10/25/06.
- The inspections in the Administration building began on
10/26/06 and the work was completed on the 2nd and 3rd
floors.
- The contractor is making a check-list of all the items that
require repair/replacement in the air handling unit rooms in both
the Clinic and Administration Buildings. As the design team and
LSUHSC review and approve the lists, the contractor will order parts
and complete repairs.
- The contractor is identifying all of the thermostats and
actuators that require repair/replacement in the two buildings. Over
90 thermostats were found to be malfunctioning in the Clinic
Building alone. By the end of today, 12 more thermostats were
identified in the Administration Building on the 2nd and
3rd floors.
- The various sources where exterior (unconditioned) air can enter
the building have been identified and are being closed or sealed as
necessary.
- Random sampling of the humidity within the buildings indicates
that the levels have been reduced to a point that additional mold
growth should not be occurring. Periodic testing will continued
until the temporary repairs to chillers, boilers and the associated
motor control center are completed, the AHU’s have been repaired or
verified as operating properly, and the thermostats replaced as
necessary.
1542 Tulane Ave. Temporary Power Project:
- Entergy powered up their electrical vault in the basement at 1542 Tulane
on 10/16/06.
- The power from the vault to the switch gear was tested and
determined to be good.
- The contractor powered up the switchgear and the rest of the equipment
installed as part of the Temporary Power Project on 10/17/06.
- They began the process of going throughout the building; verifying
that the electrical panels they intended to supply power to now have
electricity.
- The 1000KV transformer was left on to provide temporary power in the
basement.
- The fourth floor riser and the 480KV transformer that powers the
panels on the upper floors were turned off during the evening hours and
turned back on during the days, so that the contractor could test/check
the many electrical panels on upper floors of the building.
- The testing of the electrical panels throughout the upper floors of
the building continued throughout the entire week and was completed
during the following week.
- The small generator that had been powering temporary working lights in
the basement was removed. The lights are now being powered via the switch
gear.
- The environmental remediation contractor returned to 1542 Tulane Ave.
earlier this week to clean out the drains and sump pits in the basement.
- The intrusion of ground water into the basement has continued to be
a problem for the contractor. Temporary, manually controlled sump pumps
are operated daily, but the drains and sump pits also appeared to be
clogged or restricted in some areas.
- The remediation contractor (also licensed as a Master Plumber) is
using a snake to muck out debris and pressurizing the lines to remove
trapped debris.
- Several of the proposed change orders to address additional work
required to bring the building up to standards necessary for re-occupation
of upper floors have been approved recently. Work should begin on some of
these change orders in the near future, while others may have longer lead
times on needed items.
- Additional change orders are anticipated to be necessary to address
damage that has not yet been identified, while the temporary repairs to
the basic building systems were being completed.
Central Utility Plant VFD and Pump Repairs:
- Now that the 2nd pump and VFD have been repaired and are
operational, the remaining work on the VFD and pump that were repaired last
fall is underway.
- The contractor ran a raceway from the filter to the VFD.
- The junction box that was previously installed over the VFD was
moved to the filter. Connections were made from there and run to the
VFD.
- The sub-contractor came out to correct the amp output reading on the
VFD. They will return on Friday to finish making the correction.
- The new filter has been connected to the VFD and pump.
- The test and startup for the refurbished VFD and motor and new filter
was completed on 10/26/06.
- Entergy was able to access the Energy Management System and they
were able to command the chilled water pump VFD.
- They were able to shut down the refurbished motor and start up the
original motor. This motor will run until next week to check that it is
fully operational.
- Then the refurbished motor will be started up again to run full time
and the original motor will be used for backup.
- Corrections to the amp output monitor will be made to the new VFD
while the older motor is being tested.
- When the test has been completed, the refurbished motor and new
equipment will be put back into service.
Student Parking Lot Lighting Project:
- The contractor finished backfilling the trench that contains the
electrical conduit in Student Lot #3.
- They are running wire from each light pole to the distribution
panel. This work is substantially complete in this lot.
- They repaired a section of conduit that was found to be damaged.
- The contractor has been digging the trench that will carry the conduit
in Student Lot #2.
- As the trench is being dug, they are running the conduit and
backfilling the trench as the conduit is laid.
- Approximately 50% of the trenching has been completed.
- The new light poles for the Student Parking Lot Project were delivered
early last week.
- Plans to begin pouring the new concrete bases for the new light
poles at Lot #3 has been delayed for several days due to heavy rains and
wet soil conditions. When the weather permits, this process will begin.
- The new circuit breaker panels have been delivered.
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