Encompassing nearly 300,000 sq ft on a 70-acre site, the three-building aluminum remelt and extrusion complex allows scrap metal to be remelted into 24-ft-long billets ranging in diameter from 7 to 18 in. A tight schedule and weather delays required construction to be performed either out of sequence or concurrently. Still, the project finished at budget. The construction team worked closely with the structural engineer to design and utilize stem walls in certain areas of the buildings so that deep concrete foundations for casting furnace pits and large, floor-level equipment could be built at the same time.

With building erection and other construction tasks taking place around excavated areas, safety was a concern. A 60-ft-deep hole excavated for a casting pit required extensive hydraulic shoring and bracing along the interior, while special barricades provided safe access and prevented falls. Air quality in the hole was continuously monitored during work on the pit’s base and walls. The team worked 226,600 hours with no recordable incidents or lost-time accidents. Despite design changes that were incorporated during construction, the project was completed ahead of schedule and the owner was able to begin training staff on the equipment before turnover. In addition to the buildings, the project also included construction of large outdoor concrete pads for storage, concrete water wells for equipment, truck scales, a complete forced main sanitary system and several parking areas.