The Week of September 24, 2018 (Week 123) — Hanging the Prefab Exterior Curtain Walls

A photo collage of the Loma Linda University Campus Transformation Project: May 22, 2016 – September 26, 2018:

On the grand scale of time and space since the Loma Linda University Campus Transformation Project groundbreaking ceremony took place on May 22, 2016, the steel structure of two hospital towers have risen high above the campus. The construction site occupies the space just east of the current Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital and Medical Center. The expanse of time since the groundbreaking has taken  (2) years, four (4) months, and five (5) days or 858 days, 123 weeks, and 28 months. To those looking in on the project from outside of the safety fence that surrounds the project, the process seems as if, at times, taken forever to reach this stage. For those of us who work (for me, I use the term work loosely) on the site on a daily basis, there were the times when we thought we would never quit playing in the dirt down in the pit. Once the concrete foundation was poured, we thought we would never see the day when the steel would arrive. When the steel arrived and was lowered into the pit, we wondered when the steel would breach the rim of the pit. The steel did rise above the pit. After many weeks, the steel columns, beams, and girders, came together floor by floor forming a large five-story rectangle structure, known as the podium. For a time, the crane’s booms stood down, and many wondered: is that it? Where are the towers? In the mean time, work continued down in the sub grade floors: Level “B”, and Level “A.” Laborers worked floors one through five, but all of their efforts went largely unnoticed, because their trades do not require tall cranes, and big equipment that make noise or large sweeping motions. The contractors, subcontractors, engineers, inspectors, job superintendents, safety officers, and inspectors housed in the thirty some trailers on site were hard at work.  Their labors were necessary and important to keep the project on schedule. Finally, one early morning, the low bed truck arrived with the large columns, beams, and girders. The crane operators brought up the booms and the ironworkers were back in their element setting and hanging the steel. As the week of September 24, 2018, commenced, most of the east face of the existing Children’s Hospital and the towers of the Medical Center are obscured by the towers of steel rising above grade. The steel in the Children’s Hospital has reached it structural height. I am told that the south crane (cheese) will be dismantled on Tuesday, October 2, 2018, and no replacement crane is anticipated. The company that will install the prefabricated curtain wall around the frame of the Children’s Hospital tower will bring in their own crane to hang the curtain wall. Each day now, as the steel skeleton of the Adult Hospital grows in height, the artist rendering that all of us have seem in various campus publications becomes more of a reality. Hopefully, before the year’s end, the Adult Hospital’s tower will be visible far and wide throughout the Inland Empire.

The north moat looking west from level “B.”

Just to the left of the frame in the previous photo, two electricians are installing electrical conduit.

Not Just a Steel Skeleton Anymore

Thursday Night, September 27, 2018,  the project entered into a new and momentous phase: Ironworkers began hanging the exterior prefab curtain wall on the northwest side of the Podium, near the entrance to the current Medical Center. The first panel, weighing in at approximately  6,300 pounds, was hung about 7:00 PM. The subcontractor building and hanging the curtain wall was performing a “dry run” on the installation process to determine if there were any unforeseen hanging problems, and work them out  before the big install.  From what I could tell, the operation went off without a hitch. It was an awesome moment to watch as the first panel was lifted off the truck and hoisted high over the north side of the building, and lowered into place.

While the east elevation and most of the other section of the steel structure are silhouetted in the temporary lights revealing the inner soul of two towers that will one day be teaming with patients, and healthcare professionals. To the lower right just out of the frame there is something underway that takes this project to a new level–iron workers preparing the very first prefab curtain wall panel to be off loaded, hoisted, and hung on the steel frame along the northwest side of the building.

Preparing to offload the first prefab curtain wall panel. Each of the panels weighs 6,300 pounds.

The first two-story panel hangs free while the support cables are removed.

The panel, reflecting the rays of the setting sun, hangs high above the site.

Slowly and carefully being lowered into place.

The first panel hangs in place on the northwest inset.

In the glare of the portable floodlights, the second panel is being off loaded from the flatbed.

As the second panel is lowered into place, the foreman (looking up) communicates with his team on the second floor, and the crane operator as the final alignment adjustments are made.

With the existing Medical Center in the background, the third panel is carefully inched closer into place.

The third panel is slowly lowered onto the clips.

By the next morning a total of six panels had been installed.

The northeast elevation as seen from webcam number 5 at 8:25 AM. The six panels are clearly visible as highlighted in the ellipse.

A View From the 10th Floor Decking

While waiting for the ironworkers to get ready for the first panel off load, I took the aerial lift to the 10th floor to get a look from that height. I was surprised to see a number of iron workers and welders still hard at work. I was unable to walk very far on the corrugated metal decking, but I was able to snap a few photos of the magnificent from that level. I can hardly wait to see the view from the 16th level.

From this angle, I was able to see that indeed that the 10th floor surpassed the height of the Medical Center tower. An excellent view of the cross and the field of antennas.

Looking toward the southwest: The elevator tower is to the right, and the Children’s Hospital roof and galvanized windscreen/equipment shield  on top of the decking.

The setting sun pierces through the steel frame of the elevator tower.

A view of the north campus and beyond.

We began this section with the cross on the Medical Center’s tower, and we end with the steel cross rising above the 10th floor decking, and the Loma Linda Hills in the distance.

Sunset from the 10th floor.