With all the facilities projects happening on campus, Director of Facilities Bruce Sanderson and his team stay busy from week to week. Here is just a quick look at some of the tasks that have been completed, are currently in progress and have yet to begin.
Many renovations have been made to Eck Hall over the past year including the installation of a ballasted roof system, expanded classrooms and more lab space for students in the Nursing and Allied Health programs. Eck Hall will continue to be renovated into the summer of 2017 and will involve the remodeling of the existing anatomy lab into a new radiology area. The existing anatomy lab will then be moved into the Bishop Gerber Science Center when the construction process has been completed.
Construction toward completing the Bishop Gerber Science Center is currently on schedule. The Dondlinger Construction team is in the process of framing the walls and installing trusses which will provide support for the roof. Sanderson acts as the point of contact on behalf of Newman, working closely with Dondlinger and other contractors.
Below is a timelapse video of the construction of the Bishop Gerber Science Center showing the progress from August through October, 2016.
On Nov. 11, Sanderson, President Noreen M. Carracci, Ph.D. and Vice President for Finance and Administration Jennifer Gantz met with the brick supplier in order to make the final decision on the type of brick to be used on the Bishop Gerber Science Center, which will match the existing Eck Hall building.
“We are trying to have the building roof and walls completed by Jan. 1 so that we can continue to work over the winter,” Sanderson said.
One of the new renovation projects entails the installation of a new carpet in Eck Hall to possibly be completed over the winter break.
“We are currently requesting bids for a new carpet in Eck,” Sanderson said. “We would have done it during the past summer, but with the renovations going on our timeline was too tight. [However] we are fortunate to have renovated over the past summer and finished on time.”
The date for the demolition of the Heimerman building has been extended in order for classes to continue. However, the Dondlinger Construction team plans to keep the building operational through mid-June of 2017, Sanderson said.
In order to enhance the appearance of the campus even further, five dead trees are scheduled to be removed.
“We are expecting to receive a quote soon which will help us select a vendor,” Sanderson said. “Depending on what the weather looks like, we should be able to begin the process in the upcoming fall.”
Money was donated by Father Joseph Gile, dean of graduate studies and continuing adult education, to plant five new trees as replacements.
Sanderson added, “New LED lights are being installed in the weight room area in O’Shaughnessy Hall over the course of the next two weeks. This will amount to considerable savings and the area will not need to be looked at as frequently [due to the LED’s reliability]. This simple improvement will reduce the electrical cost by as high as 60 percent in that area.”
