Lab Mock-up. A sampling of representative fume hoods, lab counters and casework, cabinets, sinks, and cabinets has been available since Wednesday of last week for examination by those who will be overseeing our new laboratory facilities. The lab mock-up shows that we will have great-looking facilities when the tower construction and Daniels renovation are completed. It also affords an opportunity to find glitches in the design or implementation of our new labs. This Wednesday we will be hosting members of the design team to work with them to make certain that our new labs support learning in the best way possible.
New Tower. Concrete has now been poured for roughly half of the fifth floor in the tower; the rest is scheduled for this week. The tower fifth floor is at the same level as the fifth floors in our existing buildings, which means that the new tower is rapidly overtaking Mathews in height. By the end of this semester the tower will reach its full vertical extension.
Much is happening underground as well. Shoring has been removed from the areas that will become 360-seat and 250-seat lecture rooms and it is now easier to imagine what they will look like when finished. This week crushed stone will be conveyed into the sub-basement through an opening that will become a skylight for the informal study area between the lecture rooms when the building is complete. The stone will form the base for the sloped seating area of the lecture rooms. Ductwork for heating and cooling the lecture rooms is also being installed.
Fire Sprinkler Project. Installation of fire sprinklers and fire-safety equipment on the eighth floor has gone very well—well enough that the installers expect to be able to do one side of each floor in a week instead of two weeks! This means that when it is time to move out of a lab temporarily, the move will only be for one—not two—weeks. It also means that the overall project can be completed more quickly than we expected. Both are big pluses for our department.
Work on the east side of the seventh floor is scheduled to begin on Monday February 3, as previously planned and work on the west side of the seventh floor will begin a week later, on February 10. By February 14 the seventh-floor work should be completed (except for testing and replacement of ceiling tiles). Sprinker work will move to the west side of the fourth floor on Monday, February 17.
Chemistry Learning Center. Work on the new home of the CLC is on schedule for occupancy early this summer. This past week walls were in place and “mudders”, some on stilts, were finishing the plasterboard joints and screw holes to make the walls look nice.
Street Closures/Reopening. Mills Street will be completely closed between University Avenue and Johnson Street from January 30 through February 3 for installation of a luffer jib on the large red crane. After installation, the part of Mills Street between Johnson Street and Conklin Court will reopen, but the northern section of Mills Street will remain closed because the crane will be located there for months.
Dayton Street has now fully reopened. Don’t forget to watch for traffic when walking or biking across Dayton Street.
Loading Dock. There is no scheduled closing of the loading dock 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