Completing Abatement Demolition Projects Faster
How to Increase Efficiency by 15% in Your Next Healthcare Abatement Demolition Project
A CASE STUDY
A medical center preparing to undergo renovations was confronted with a potential issue regarding the presence of a hazardous material - asbestos.
The medical center called GHP in late 2019 to conduct a survey and assess a third-floor women's services area. This was in preparation for a renovation project spanning an entire wing of the hospital.
Our survey included sampling of flooring, walls, ductwork, piping, and low ceilings. It revealed that asbestos-containing materials lay hidden in the mastic underneath the bottom layer of flooring. The presence of asbestos was not consistent throughout the third floor. Partial abatement had occurred during previous renovations, but some asbestos-containing building materials were leftover.
To ensure safety and air quality and avoid project delays, GHP treated all the flooring as asbestos-containing materials and abated all the flooring. We performed all abatement and demolition services on time and on budget even after ongoing schedule changes from the pandemic and unexpected issues along the way.
Project Highlights
Timeline:
November 2019-March 2023
Project schedule was extended due to the pandemic
Budget (demolition and abatement only):
$893,527
Project Scope:
Initial survey to test for hazardous materials
Schedule of 18 phases
Phases 1-3: Asbestos abatement
Phases 4-18: Abatement, mold remediation, and clean demolition
Project Outcomes:
Successfully abated flooring areas within the project scope and within the allowed schedule
Partnering with the general contractor to stay on schedule so the company could continue with renovations to the healthcare facility
Estimated time savings 45 working days in the schedule due to all abatement and demolition under one scope
Estimated cost savings of $134,000 from general conditions and mobilization/demobilization fees
Project Stats:
50,000 square feet of abatement and demolition
18 phases of abatement
126 days of abatement and demolition
2-3 patient rooms blocked off for abatement and demo at one time, plus corridors, support rooms, and nurse stations
Abated and removed 37.5 tons of vinyl flooring and 5 tons of 12x12 floor tiles. (The majority of the 3rd floor was double-layered)
Client
The client for this project was a medical center in the Midwest that needed asbestos abatement and demolition work for a third-floor women's services area in preparation for a renovation.
Challenges and Objectives
Renovations in older buildings are challenging to begin with, but when there is asbestos abatement and demolition needed in a healthcare facility, there is an added level of complexity. GHP was tasked to work on-site to perform abatement and demolition within an entire wing of a hospital.
One of the biggest challenges was managing a tight schedule and staying on target, especially as the project began right when the pandemic started. This project was divided into a schedule of 18 separate phases, with each phase taking 2-3 patient rooms offline at a time.
GHP faced additional complications related to healthcare settings. Since this wing of the hospital building hosted patients dealing with labor and delivery, the asbestos abatement team had to observe strict quiet hours during the afternoons so patients could rest. It was crucial to maintain a strategic schedule so the abatement and demolition didn’t affect hospital operations.
The project also encountered unexpected challenges, one of which was discovering additional mold growth after the asbestos abatement was already complete. It appeared to be historical microbial growth from mop water getting under the baseboard. We found a significant amount of mold, anywhere from 10-50 square feet per phase. This added an unplanned element to our scope of work.
Solution
The project general contractor faced a constantly changing schedule that needed to be revised as the project slipped past 18 months due to the pandemic. The schedule went through 6 major revisions to speed up the work. Throughout the more-than-3-year endeavor, it was up to GHP to maintain consistent communication with stakeholders.
When a project involves a large area of work and is broken down into 18 phases, there is a lot more stopping and starting, coordination, and management required that makes it difficult to keep the project on track. The GHP team dealt with this by:
Adjusting our work schedule to accommodate changes in the project timeline. This included 10+ hour days and working on weekends for more than 75% of the job.
Adding additional mold remediation to our scope of work while already in containment. Upon discovering mold after the asbestos abatement was complete, we put it on our to-do list and eliminated it without further delays.
Scheduling quieter work, such as hauling waste to the landfill, during quiet hours at the women’s center. This kept operations at the project site running smoothly.
Contending with severe winter weather. This added an extra level of difficulty in getting team members to the job site.
Results
Breaking down the project into smaller phases made coordination and management difficult, but by combining multiple services under GHP for the asbestos abatement and demolition work, we prevented a 15% project increase in schedule. Even during the pandemic and with the additional mold remediation added to nearly every phase, GHP kept the project on track without losing any additional time.
With our efficient approach, GHP saved an estimated three days every phase between phases 4-18 from having one crew mobilize, set up containment under full abatement conditions, manage both abatement and demolition at the same time, complete air clearances, and then demobilized. This results to an estimated time savings of 45 days in total, with an estimated cost savings of $134,000 from monthly general condition costs and mobilization and demonization fees per phase.
In the end, GHP eliminated mobilization and demobilization fees, time, and effort by performing all services needed for abatement and demolition. This allowed the GC to step in immediately to begin plumbing, electrical, and rebuild work.
“When it comes to communication, attention to detail, and scheduling, GHP team is always two steps ahead. This team is second to none.”
— Mark Yarnell, AT Abatement
Conclusion
When there is a complex renovation like this, the best way to keep the project on track and on budget is to complete all demolition with a single contractor who can clean up and perform demolition involving hazardous materials. This prevents unnecessary mobilization and demobilization from switching between clean demolition teams and hazardous demolition teams, allowing you to save time and money by planning the project effectively.
Asbestos abatement is easier if you engage GHP earlier in the planning process, allowing for more effective collaboration with other subcontractors. Joining during the planning stages helps us forecast potential issues when it comes to abatement and demolition.