TAMPA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT UPDATE

Our readers were introduced to the Tampa International Airport (TIA) Curbside Expansion project with Hensel Phelps in the last March issue of Pipeline. A full year has gone by and it’s time for an update! 

The CUP (Central Utility Plant) /ESB (Electrical Service Building) portion of the project has recently made some major milestones. The concrete foundations were slow to get going, but this phase is now complete and it’s full speed ahead. The CUP switchgear was set up in just a few days, followed by pulling and terminating all utility and branch feeders. There was intense coordination for the delivery and installation of a 1.5MW diesel gas generator that was brought in after hours and set overnight. Our next major milestone for this portion of the project will be to energize the switchgear. Nash, the mechanical contractor, is currently setting and piping their equipment so that we can finalize the power connections. Reaching this milestone is critical, as it will allow the extensive commissioning process required at the utility plant to commence. Then we’ll get to do it all over again at the ESB, but this time with the addition of over 4,000 feet of bus duct!
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The Blue Side Vertical Circulation Building (VCB) is also progressing quickly. The team has nearly completed rough-in on all three levels and is now focusing on the transfer level ceiling finishes before the scaffolding comes down. Over 6,000 feet of linear light fixtures are being installed in this space, and heavy coordination between our field technicians, our BIM group, and the ceiling installer have been crucial to a seamless installation.

While these projects were under construction, Hensel Phelps awarded additional projects to APG: Supplement B —Ceiling Replacement and Supplement C—Police and Maintenance/Loading Dock/Frontier Building. We are on track to complete these two new phases before the year is up. 

The Ceiling Replacement project has us replacing all light fixtures along the Arrivals and Departures drop-off drive lanes for both the Blue and Red sides of the terminal. Like the Blue Side VCB, this project requires significant coordination between our field technicians and our BIM group to nail down the exact placement of nearly 8,000 feet of linear fixtures. Because of the busy nature of these traffic lanes, all our work is being done at night. Rough-in is now complete at all Arrivals areas and the fixture install is ongoing. The Police and Maintenance project is a new facility within the long-term parking garage adjacent to the Blue VCB project. The team recently completed the underground rough-in and is ready to start going overhead. The loading dock portion of the project will begin soon.

The airport is a big place, so manpower distribution and accurate scheduling have been especially important to keep all of these projects running smoothly. Project Superintendent Chris Gobright has done a phenomenal job of orchestrating the work and keeping our entire team on track.  He’s supported by Field Superintendents Sergey Kharchenko and Augie Manfre Jr. On-site Project Manager Josh Smith has the enormous task of coordinating shipments to the site and completing paperwork specific to the airport while Project Manager Jonathan Henley assists with the tracking and pricing of scope changes. Behind the scenes, Project Administrator Meoi Plummer is an invaluable asset in filing and distributing a dizzying array of RFIs, Submittals, and Purchase Orders. And let’s not forget our other groups, APG Security and APG Technology! Their hard work has reinforced our brand as a one-stop-shop for a client’s electrical and technology needs.

Performing all of this major work at an active airport has been an immense challenge, especially as we’re reminded that TIA is an “airport first, construction site second.” The craftsmanship and professionalism of our field team has been crucial to earning more work on site, and we’re proud that Hensel Phelps continues to trust us with such complex projects. Now at the midpoint of the job, we look forward to sharing completion photos in a future update. To everyone supporting us at TIA: thank you and keep up the great work!