Puget Sound Trail
November 14, 2008
By Mike Knape

UPS working to repair ailing Fieldhouse

While the lack of a primary gymnasium presents a serious hindrance to athletics, Facilities Services is working 24 hours, seven days a week to make the most of the bad situation. The construction provides the University the time and resources necessary to make improvements.

“We have to take advantage of this opportunity while we have it. It takes close to two weeks to take down all of the scaffolding alone, so we’re doing everything we can right now,” Bob Kief, Director of Facilities Services, said.

Lighting and acoustics are two of the main improvements. The University hired BCJ, the architectural firm working on the Center for Health Sciences building, to help. Lighting is supposed to be about approximately 75% brighter than before.

The most drastic change is immediately apparent upon entering the Memorial Fieldhouse. The structural additions made to the roof truss system, including 300 lb steel plates on the ends of each truss, led to the removal of the drop ceiling in favor of the original wooden vaulted ceiling.

Significant safety improvements are also being made. As one of the primary earthquake shelters, it is important that the Memorial Fieldhouse is seismically safe. The end walls have been strengthened to keep the building sturdy.

The improvements also include new roof sprinkler systems and the complete rewiring of the electrical systems. A new air and heat system should be up and running by next year.

Not everything has gone smoothly however. Since the Memorial Fieldhouse closed over a month ago due to failing roof trusses, construction efforts have been put to the test by everything from lead paint to electrical issues.

“There’s definitely been a domino effect. All of the problems are related, we can’t fix one without fixing them all. We had to go through very systematically to find out exactly what was happening and why,” Kief said.

The resources devoted to this end are substantial. There are three different scaffolding companies in use, enough so that any new scaffolding brought to the site is coming from out of the state.

“We have to keep a very sequence path of action in order to manage everything at once. It’s a maze of people right now, so every day is a planning day. We have engineers coming in at every step to make sure things are right,” Kief said.

Fieldhouse construction has not affected the construction of the new Facilities Services buildings however. Facilities Services will move from their current offices behind theme row into the new complex in the coming few months. The project is on time and on budget.

Kief had nothing but praise for Sierra Construction, the company doing the bulk of work for both projects.

“Sierra has done an amazing job from the start. They have a great safety record, they’re always very proactive. Not to mention all of the work has required incredibly skilled labor,” Kief said.

Safety continues to be an important facet of the project. The fire department comes in weekly to make sure everything fits code. Handheld air monitors are constantly checking the air quality around the site to keep workers safe.

Kief is very confident that the Fieldhouse will open sometime mid February.