MCAA and our Supplier Partners know contractors aren’t just looking for solutions, you’re looking for Smart Solutions.
The new Mercy Hospital Joplin in Joplin, MO, is on schedule to open in 2015, thanks in part to efforts by U.S. Engineering. To meet the needs of this fast-track effort to replace the former St. John’s Mercy Regional Medical Center, destroyed on May 22, 2011, by an EF-5 tornado, U.S. Engineering used a host of Trimble solutions to establish one of the industry’s most efficient, accurate, and repeatable design-to-fabrication-to-installation workflows ever put in place on a hospital project.
Prefabricating plumbing systems offsite can save time and money, but getting those systems to the jobsite poses its own challenges. For Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, CA—future home of the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers—FW Spencer and Son, Inc., had to transport the high-capacity, back-to-back gang toilet systems that it had fabricated at its facility to the jobsite while maintaining a strong joint with a rigid seal. They chose Husky couplings from Anaco because they are designed to withstand joint movement while maintaining full joint integrity.
The speed and ease of installation with Viega ProPress® fittings, as well as overall lower costs, were significant factors for MMC Contractors as they installed more than 15,000’ of stainless steel piping in a new solar power plant in the southwestern United States. Jim Ed Thompson, project superintendent at MMC Contractors, said that by using Viega ProPress to join stainless pipe, MMC’s installers saved a significant amount of time per fitting.
To streamline the large amount of paperwork generated by each project and jobsite and to make it easier for key project team members to access, share, and update information, West Chester Mechanical Contractors, Inc., partnered with iBusiness Technologies to convert their processes and project documents to mobile, digital formats. The move was prompted by recommendations from both the MCA of Eastern Pennsylvania and Apple®.
Modern Piping Inc. put the PipeWorx 350 FieldPro™ System from Miller Electric Mfg. Co. to work to save time and enhance safety for a job where some welding took place hundreds of feet in the air, far away from the power source. International food and agricultural producer Cargill had purchased an unfinished corn wet-mill ethanol plant in Fort Dodge, IA, in 2011 and contracted with Modern Piping of Cedar Rapids to complete the construction on an aggressive schedule.
With 24 months to install 130,800’ of pipe, Palmer Christiansen Company relied on Victaulic for high-quality systems that reduce labor costs and installation time. As a result, the new federal courthousein Salt Lake City, UT, is expected to open in March 2014, with the mechanical system coming in on budget and ahead of schedule.
To win the bid for a new Early Childhood Learning Center in Dayton, OH, Starco, Inc., proposed using GRINNELL products to speed installation time and GRINNELL Mechanical Services (GMS) to plan ahead for maximum efficiency. Northmont City Schools, based on the outskirts of Dayton, broke ground on the Early Childhood Learning Center in 2012, and Starco was awarded the hot and chilled water services for the project in 2013.
To install a central air conditioning system in a high school campus’ main residence building during the short summer break, John E. Green Company called on Aquatherm for an easy-to-install, in-ground piping solution that allowed them to meet the rush deadline. The Aquatherm piping also proved to be an environmentally friendly solution for the University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy (U of D), addressing concerns about the potential problems of burying pipe.
For the gas piping in the new Candlestick Heights apartment complex in San Francisco, CA, Broadway Mechanical-Contractors, Inc. (BMC), chose TracPipe CounterStrike® because it is easier to install than traditional black iron pipe, saving BMC time and money. The fact that TracPipe CounterStrike, OmegaFlex’s premier corrugated stainless steel tubing (CSST), provides vastly superior safety performance in earthquakes made the product the ideal choice for the job.
Minimizing installation time was an especially high priority for Braconier Mechanical & Plumbing Services’ work on a children’s hospital, so they used Jay R. Smith Mfg. Co.’s new Quarterback Water Closet Support for the project. Tom Stone, president of Braconier, said the Quarterback provided a 50-percent labor savings because it’s quicker to build and assemble and more adjustable, offering more flexibility when compared with the older Linebacker model.
For a challenging project with a short timeline, BMW Constructors, Inc. (BMWC), partnered with Lifting Gear Hire (LGH), who not only supplied the appropriately sized, tested, and certified lift equipment but also expertise in developing a lift plan. As a result, BWWC set two 15’ x 52’ cooling tower unit sections inside an active, working refinery without disrupting day-to-day operations, completing the project on schedule and under budget. In addition to coordinating placement and use of a 550-ton crane, submitting an engineer lift plan for approval, and preparing the site to meet the project soil compaction requirements, BMWC was also responsible for removing the HVAC/scrubber units.
By installing new BITZER compressors to replace aging, inefficient, and unreliable technology, ACCO Engineered Systems of Glendale, CA, helped Cedars Sinai Medical Towers in Los Angeles improve the health of its two 11-story buildings. The upgrade not only met the needs of the building’s inhabitants but also qualified for a substantial rebate.
MMC Contractors credits Autodesk® Point Layout construction software with helping them shave weeks off the construction schedule for the Martin Army Community Hospital at Fort Benning, GA. “The time and accuracy benefits we realized on the project are a great example of why we moved away from manual point layout processes,” explained Keith Flowers, vice president of construction planning for MMC Contractors. “When you can do things faster and more efficiently, you’re more competitive.”
The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) new energy efficiency mandates, which take effect April 16, 2015, will require higher energy factor (EF) ratings on virtually all residential gas, electric, oil, and tankless gas water heaters. These changes will impact how water heaters are manufactured, distributed, and installed.
By moving from an outdated accounting system to WennSoft Signature® and Microsoft® Dynamics® GP, Chicago-based HVAC firm Atomatic Mechanical Services dramatically streamlined its accounting processes, improved its service management capabilities, enhanced its customer service, and boosted employee productivity.
A GPS tracking system can make your fleet more effective and efficient. GPS Insight suggests what to look for when buying a system.