New Tower. There is a lot happening in the new tower than cannot be seen from the loading dock or other locations in our existing building—and a lot that can be seen. Last week concrete was poured for the rest of the second floor. This week the west side of the fourth floor is being prepared for concrete to be poured next week. After that, shoring can be removed from the sub-basement lecture rooms and the sloping concrete floors can be poured there. (Because shoring cannot be installed on a sloped surface, the sloping lecture-room floors are not yet in place.) In preparation for that work, the steel trusses that support the building above the lecture rooms and learning studio will be coated with cementitious fire-proofing material this week. Also, concrete-block walls are being erected along the south side of the first floor and in the basement and sub-basement areas. Rooms are taking shape in the parts of the tower that can’t be seen from outside.
Analytical Student Interaction Space. With the analytical labs in temporary space in the Medical Sciences Center, diagonally across the corner of University Avenue and Charter Street from our building, there has not been sufficient space for students to work on group projects. That situation has now been addressed by providing a study area on the same floor as the temporary analytical labs. Last week the facilities committee certified completion of the renovation of the space and this week we expect furniture to be installed so it will be ready for students to use.
Lab Mock-Up. In addition to the mock-up of the exterior and structural features of the new tower near parking lot 45, an indoor mock-up will soon be installed in the second-floor of Daniels. This mock-up will include casework, fume hoods, and other features of our new labs, both in the tower and the area of Daniels that will be renovated later in the project. Once the casework and hoods have been installed, those who are interested in seeing what our new labs will look like will be able to visit the mock-up.
Street Closures. North Mills Street is closed between Conklin Court (the alley) and University Avenue for the next six months and traffic is one-way north from Johnson Street to Conklin Court. The complete closure of Mills Street between Johnson and University that had been scheduled for December 11-13 has been postponed until mid-January.
Loading Dock. There are no scheduled loading-dock closures this week. There may be brief closures at unpredictable times.
This information is up to date as of Friday afternoon. Email bulletins will be provided as needed.
John Moore and Bob McMahon