The Covington High School Football Stadium had suffered from years of neglected maintenance. The expansion joints in the stadium had failed and leaked into the lower concourse as well as restroom and concession areas. Western Specialty Contractors was contracted to address these issues.
Western’s crew began the project by removing 500 lineal feet of fencing that dividing the different areas of the stadium. The bleacher seats were then removed. After 20 years of exposure to the elements, soft drinks, and chewing gum, the concrete surface had to be cleaned. This was accomplished using hydro blasting equipment. Mechanical grinders were utilized to remove the gum and on heavily soiled areas.
To protect the 33,000 square foot concrete surface against moisture intrusion, Western installed a three coat Sonneborn deck coating system. The coating not only offers skid resistance to the treads and risers, but is aesthetically pleasing and a positive waterproof membrane.
Prior to the deck coating application, the Western crew installed an Emseal preformed expansion joint system in the lower walkway area.
To complete the project, Western applied a specialty color matched elastomeric coating to the rear parapet, complete with the stenciling of the school’s logo. The bleachers were reinstalled along with new chain link fencing.
Built in 1937, the Xavier University Gymnasium originally was referred to as “The Barn” because of its exterior wood veneer. The structure underwent a significant face lift in 1987 inspired by Pope John Paul II visit to the University when the gym’s exterior wood was replaced by eight inch split-faced block and an addition built in the rear of the structure.
Over the years, the marriage between the block at the original structure and the addition failed to allow for proper expansion and contraction and the building suffered cracks in the exterior masonry along with water intrusion. After various attempts at temporary solutions by others, Western was called to offer a permanent fix to the cracking masonry.
Western ultimately removed the necessary blocks along the crack and reinstalled new block with steel reinforcement to create a true expansion joint. This will allow for future movement. The original block was custom made for the project. It was not possible to match the color or texture of the block, however the movement situation and water intrusion problem was corrected.
Western provided Xavier with the option to stain the block in an effort to blend the new in with the old. This may be performed at a later date.
South Shore Harbor Boat Slips is one of the largest boat slips located near the New Orleans Lakefront Airport overlooking Lake Pontchartrain. It housed 26 large vessels prior to Hurricane Katrina. The storm demolished and/or relocated the boats that remained in the harbor and left the covered slips unusable and virtually unrecognizable.
Western’s scope of work was to remove the remaining damaged panels and purlins and completely replace the outer skin of the slips (approximately 30,000 square feet) with interlocking Zee panels manufactured by Berridge.
In addition to the replacement of the panels, Western’s scope also included the replacement of the guard house that overlooked the harbor with a new modular guard house, renovations to the public restroom facilities and the oil containment facility, all of which suffered severe wind and flood damage during Katrina.
The VA Hospital in Biloxi, MS is a general medical and surgical facility. It has more than 700 beds and overlooks the Bay of Biloxi. The VA Gulf Coast Veterans Hospital Care System is a tertiary care facility that is, a teaching hospital. It provides a full range of patient care services with state of the art technology.
Western’s scope of work involved the removal and replacement of 30,000 lineal feet of joint sealant, much of it had reverted. In addition to the sealant work, 80,000 square feet of previously coated exposed aggregate asbestos panels that make up the exterior facade of Building Three were cleaned and coated.
The nature of this project called for a fast track, early completion time frame. This was accomplished with a team effort of Western’s New Orleans and Birmingham branch offices. The project incorporated window replacement throughout the entire building. The Western crew had to coordinate schedules with the window
