The Docuvision 2020 LLU Campus Transformation Project Blog

The Docuvision 2020 LLU Campus Transformation Project Blog

2017

The LLU Campus Transformation Project

The Year in Review

This section depicts the transformation that has taken place on the Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital and Adult Hospital construction site over the 12-month period of 2017. These photos represent the various stages of construction during the year. This photo album begins with a January 17, 2017, photograph of the pit with the current Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital and Medical Center towering over the site. In the foreground portions of the Medical Center towers and the Schuman Pavilion are reflected in the center elevator pit. The just recently poured 4-in. rat slab now covers the bottom of the pit. Playing in the dirt down in the pit is no longer an option. The dirt ramps are now gone. All equipment and supplies must now be lowered into the pit. With the excavation of the construction pit completed, work can now begin on the foundation, foundation walls, installing the isolator bases, the damper pedestals, the camp slabs, and bring in the steel. By the end of the year, December 29, 2017, when the last photo in this set was taken, the project is poised to push its way above the concrete walls. Within a few months, the steel frame skeleton of the new hospitals will begin to challenge the height of the existing towers: rising to a vertical height of sixteen stories making the structure the second tallest building in the Inland Empire.

January 17, 2017

No more playing in the dirt and mud. 2017 starts out with a four-inch concrete rat slab.

February 16, 2017

The ironworkers are well on their way installing the rebar which will reinforce the foundations four-feet of concrete.

March 26, 2017

The long-anticipated first concrete pour. A Saturday night to remember.

April 29, 2017

A 360 view of the second concrete pour. Pokémon, the mascot for the kids in the Children’s Hospital appears to be dizzily spinning in a vortex created by the 360 camera.

May 24, 2017

At the east end, the foundation’s last section (under the tarp) completes the foundation pour.

June 27, 2017

Two major steps are depicted in this photo. (1) The reinforcing rebar and plate for the damper pedestals are being prepared to be formed to be encased in concrete. (2) Rebar is being hung on the shoring wall in preparation for the foundation.

July 10, 2017

The damper pedestals covered with tarps have been filled with concrete.

 

 

August 16, 17

A view of the construction site where a large crane had been lowering the isolator bases in place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

August 31, 2017

A closeup of an isolator base being lowered into place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

September 12, 2017

A view overlooking the pit shows that most of the seismic system key components are in place. All of the isolator bases have been installed, most of the isolators have been placed, and the damper pedestals are clearly visible.

October 16, 2017

In this view from the foundation floor, the isolators (covered with plastic) have been bolted to their bases. The damper pedestals (the rectangle-looking concrete boxes) lineup with the isolator bases. The scaffolding next to the foundation walls support the forms
for the concrete cap slab.

November 30, 2017

With the arrival of the biggest and tallest crane, the excitement on campus builds. In a matter of days, the first spline beam will be lowered into place in the northwest corner of the pit.

Having been lowered into the pit, the first spline beam with a node at each end is being positioned on the isolators.

December 15, 2017

A careful look into the northwest corner of the pit, one can make out a section of spline beams that have been bolted in place.

December 19, 2017

The enormous size of the spline beams and nodes are clearly visible. The hospital buildings will rest on these seismic isolators, which are designed to dissipate the energy caused by an earthquake.

December 29, 2017

An excellent look at a spline beam node which is bolted to the isolator. during the process, grout will be forced between the top of the isolator and the bottom of the node. The center of the node will also be filled with concrete, which will form a concrete column in the center of the node.

November 28, 2017

Although this photo was taken in November, it is only fitting that this 2017 year in review series ends with this sunset photo. By the end of 2018, the skyline of Loma Linda and the Inland Empire will have been altered: Imperceptibly at first, but change will come. Soon, the existing towers will be dwarfed by the steel skeleton and eventually the new Adult Hospital.  The residents of Loma Linda have enjoyed for 50 plus years the sunset views such as the one above. Before the campus was known more for its citrus groves and pastoral setting than a place of healing and learning breathtaking sunsets blanketed the area as the last rays of the sun sprinkled Gods blessing over the small community. In the future, sunsets will take on a different profile. They will wrap around silhouetted towers with the scattered lights in the windows remind those who witness such heavenly masterpieces of the hope and healing that continues through the night.

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The Week of December 25, 2017 — the Last Work Week of 2017

This week was a short week with Christmas falling on Monday. There was still a lot of activity on, around, and under the spline beams. The pipe welders were sectioning the mechanical pipe bring it from the west foundation wall to the south wall. The electricians were running and hanging conduit to run electrical wires. As soon as the decking is placed on top of the spline beams, the sunlight will be blocked, which will require temporary durable lighting to allow the construction crew to continue their work. This temporary lighting is drawn up in the building plans and the placement of the overhead lighting has been calculated to provide the necessary light to maximize performance. The Patching of embeds continued along the north foundation wall. At grade on the southeast corner of the construction test site, there was a lot of hustle and bustle as samples of the exterior facade were being offloaded from a flatbed. A small crew had begun hanging the facade on the steel that would serve as a mockup.

The ironworkers along with an inspector were surveying the damper bracket that had just been tacked into place. This is the stage of the process where an adjustment can be made before the final weld. The contractor has been gracious enough to give me, for the most part, unfettered access at the construction site. However, I am not allowed to go inside the perimeter where the ironworkers are unless I am with one of the job superintendents, an inspector, and/or a safety regulator. Prior to my crossing the line, I have already identified the shot(s) I need. This shot was taken with a telephoto lens outside the perimeter. By this time, I have determined that I need a closeup of the bracket as it is being welded to the pedestal.

With the bracket tacked in place at its correct angle, the welder begins the tedious process of welding the bracket to the pedestal.

Walking out of the restricted area, I took this photo of two ironworkers tightening the bolts with spud wrenches. Because of the lighting, a black and white image seemed more appropriate for this shot.

Think of doing this 17-stories in the air. It will happen several months from now. They are tightening bolts with an impact wrench.

In the southwest corner of the pit, a large section of mechanical pipe had been hoisted up and clamped in place to the brackets along the south wall. The elbow section that fits on the brackets above is being welded on the sturdy-jack supports (see photo below).

Looking east along the south wall, the upper section rests on the sturdy-jack supports. During this time of year, this side of the pit is always in the shadows.

 

Making my way to the scaffolding stairs, I noticed that the electricians were hanging all-thread rods from the internally threaded blue banger hanger inserts that are exposed from the ceiling of the northeast vault. The blue banger hangers were shot into plywood forming the bottom of the cap slab. When the form is removed, the internally threaded insert opening is exposed allowing for the threaded wires to be attached.

The threaded blue banger hanger anchor points are strategically placed: notice the pattern.

As I made my way up the northeast scaffolding stairs, There was Rudy and a co-worker on a snorkel lift patching holes in the concrete left by the cap slab forms. As usual, Rudy kept up his humorous chatter as I climbed the stairs.

 

On Grade (12.27.17)

On my way to the southeast side of the pit, at grade, I noticed a mockup of a form that might be used (if the form passes inspection) to grout between the isolator and the bottom of the node. This form is more difficult to build than the form fabricated for the grout between the isolator base and the isolator.

Across the lot from where the grout form was being fabricated, I noticed some of the metal decking sections had been delivered. This decking will eventually be used to support the concrete flooring of the building.

On grade on the southeast section of the site, where the steel framed testing facility has been erected a few exterior panels had been anchored to the steel frame. Note the various sized holes in the facade: These holes will be used for testing the sealing and waterproofing capabilities of various materials used for exterior lighting fixtures and exterior outlets, etc. There is also a window opening where a window will be fitted for testing purposes. All the materials and parts as drawn by the architects now must be proven to meld together. This testing process saves time and money.

My last stop for the day was at the southeast corner of the pit where the last section of the cap slab had been poured six days prior. The tarp is kept on the slab to keep the concrete damp as it cures.

On Thursday, I made my last stop for the year at the construction site. I was happy to see as I peered over the north railing, I noticed that a large spline beam nodes had been placed on two isolators just north of the center elevator pit. From this vantage point, the spline beam dwarfed the damper pedestals and the isolator bases in its shadow. Although the lighting is not the best, this photo of a single spline beam with nodes at each end is a single example of the gargantuan size of this project. Even the State of California must place its stamp of approval on this understructure seismic system.

Imagine the engineering that goes into designing this spline beam. All the measurements and tolerances must be faultless. All the spline beams and girders must line up perfectly. For all these parts to mesh perfectly, the manufacturing must be spot on!

Another view of the spline beam, which for the most part obstructs the view of the first tier section being erected in the northwest quadrant.

Even at a distance, the spline beam that was stretched out before me (see yellow arrow) didn’t look right. It didn’t appear to be bolted to any isolators, but yet it was taller than any spline beam I’d seen. I asked Bill who was walking toward me if he could stand next to the beam so that I could get a perspective of the size.

Standing on the 6 in. X 6 in. piece of timber on which the spline beam rests, Bill, also standing on the timber, stretches to touch the bottom of the top plate. The approximate height of the beam is eight feet, which is taller than the other spline beams that have been installed. It then dawned on me that this beam with its two nodes will be mounted on two of the isolators down in the southwest elevator pit. The elevator pit is lower than the main foundation floor, thus the nodes on the spline beam must be taller to meet grade with the other beams.

Like two Halloween candy buckets, these buckets are filled with barrel draft pins. These pins match the diameter of the bolt to be inserted into the hole(s). These heat-treated pins are not only used to align the holes on the beams with the plates, they can also be used to punch out bolts if necessary.

Not far from the buckets of barrel draft pins, the welding continued.  The upper section of the mechanical piping had been hoisted on top of the brackets and is being positioned to weld the two pieces together.

The two yellow lines delineate the slope of the dampers when they are connected to the bracket on damper pedestal (left) and the bracket on the spline beam (right).

 

A Closeup of the Two Damper Brackets

 

 

 

Left: The spline beam node damper bracket.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Right: The damper pedestal bracket.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In two days the electricians had attached the brackets to the all-thread rods and affixed the conduits to the brackets.

This wide angle shot, provides a different perspective on how the electrician attach the conduit to brackets that are anchored on to the foundation. After the conduit is bent it is attached to the brackets, which have been fixed to the all-threads which hang from the blue banger hangers that were anchored into the cap slab.

Under the northeast vault and below where the electrical conduit is hung, Frankie takes pause to smile at the camera. He is using a Dewalt electric jackhammer with a bushing tool attachment used for roughing, chipping and chiseling concrete. He working around the electrical ducting so that when the concrete is poured into the form it will adhere better to the existing concrete.

Lifting heavy material requires heavy equipment and attachments. This cable block runs up and down the crane’s cable as the steel is picked up and lowered. This cable block with counterweights weighs 6,615 lbs.

 

That was Then and This is Now

What a Difference a Year Makes!

 

 

December 29, 2016

Beginning to pour, by sections, the 4 in. thick rat slab.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

December 29, 2017

Beginning to mount the first tier of steel on the isolators.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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2018     2018     2018     2018     2018

I am anxious to post the December 29, 2018, photo with the two photos above.

 

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The Week of December 18, 2017 — BIG Iron, Mechanical Pipes, Damper Brackets, and Rebar

When I arrived on the floor of the pit on December 19, I noticed a few girders had been placed between the spline beams, the ongoing task of bolting the beams and girders together continued. Additional steel had been lowered and was stacked between the isolator bases. It appeared to me that the steel was begetting steel. On the southwest corner, the welders had hoisted a large section of mechanical pipe onto Sturdy – Jack stands for the welders to begin cutting and welding elbows so that the pipe can make required turns. A three-man fabrication team was fabricating a flexible form to be inserted between the isolator and the steel node. Several flexible materials will be tested before a form is selected to hold the grout as it is injected between the node isolator.  The strength of the grout, when dry, must support at least 95 percent of the bearing weight. The scaffolding had been cleared from the southwest vault and the tunnel entrance in which the mechanical pipes will run is clearly visible. Initially, this tunnel bisected the construction site and the mechanical pipes inside had to be rerouted around the west end of the site in order to demolish the existing concrete tunnel ( revised.docuvision2020.com/index.php/2016/11/02/the-rerouting-of-high-voltage-lines/ ) so that the dirt could be excavated from the remainder of the pit. As the ironworkers were continuing to bolt the sections together other ironworkers were checking out the newly arrived damper brackets. Southeast of the pit a small construction team was working on a small test site where various interior and exterior mockups could be tested. Along the southeast section of the pit, the last of the cap slab was being prepared for an upcoming concrete pour. By Thursday, the 21st of December, a couple of the damper brackets had been welded onto the damper pedestals and the dampers (horizontal shock absorbers) pinned to the brackets. With this step completed, the isolator base seismic system is nearing completion. Only the verticle isolator base pins remain to be installed. Under a spline beam, I could hear the industrial impact wrench as an ironworker was torquing the bolts to a predetermined tension.

Girders stacked between the isolator bases.

Mechanical pipe stretched out on the sturdy-jack stands with elbows tacked and ready for inspection before the seams are welded.

Fabricators trimming and sizing sheet metal to go around the top of the isolator and the bottom of the node to test a forming method to inject grout. Several mockups maybe tried before a forming method is approved.

The southwest vault, now cleared of scaffolding, where the tunnel opening is located. The mechanical pipes will run through the tunnel and services the Faculty Medical Office buildings.

Ironworkers are inserting the bolts through the steel plates holes tying two spline beams together. Notice the open cans on the scaffold. Each can hold the washers, bolts, and hex nuts for each section.

The node end of a spline beam, which will be spliced to another node spline beam. The spline beams on either side of the node in the center weigh in excess of 100,000 lbs. each.

Two ironworkers check the recently delivered damper brackets, which are to be welded onto the damper pedestals.

The onsite mockup testing area/testing lab where functional testing of various materials and better ways of installation of products can be carried out. Such testing sites are beneficial to the contractor, subcontractors, architects, engineers, and inspectors as different materials (exterior and interior) transition into each other.

On the southeast corner of the pit, the final cap slab section is being prepared for the concrete pour

Just after photographing the construction crew at the cap slab, I heard a helicopter in the distance. I turned around and captured a helicopter coming in for a landing on the LLU Children’s Hospital helipad.

The cap slab crew gets an excellent view of the northwest corner of the pit and the first tier of steel from their vantage point up on the southeast corner. Note the dampers wrapped in blue plastic at the west end of the site.

Putting the first tier in perspective.

These ironworkers are contemplating their next big steel placement.

 

Behind the Fence — How Do They Do that? 

Torquing the Bolts to a Specified Tension

Before the structural steel rises above the pit at grade, the 100,000-pound spline beam nodes that rest on the isolators and the attached cross girders and the column splices will be connected together with approximately 40,000 bolts. For anyone who has tightened bolts on any home project, there is a proper tension that must be achieved. Often time the instructions read (if you bother to read the instruction) tighten snuggly, don’t over tighten, hand tightened, do not tighten with pliers, and over tightening may snap the bolt. With high rise buildings, a predetermined tension is essential–specific configurations of washers and bolts are required per the Research Council on Structural Connections. The following photos illustrate the important world of fastener assembly: AKA bolt tightening that reaches the specified load tension.

Required: properly graded bolts, hex nuts, standard washers, DTI (Direct Tension Indicator) washers; all of which must be to code and tested at the factory as well as selective lot testing on site.  The bolts, standard washers, DTI washers, and nuts are sequentially assembled in the joints with gloved hands, followed by hand tightening with a Spud Wrench. Finally, an industrial impact wrench is used to torque the bolts to the required tension specifications. This is where the DTI washers come in handy.

Like wooden soldiers, these bolts, hex nuts and DTI washers parade along the lip of one of the spline beams. The length of these bolts will be used to connect tw0 spline beam nodes with two steel plates (upper and lower).

An ironworker uses a spud wrench to tighten the hex nuts. Another ironworker on the other side holds the bolt head with a spud wrench.

The TDI Washer — A Closeup Look At the Configuration

Under the pocket protrusions that surround the bolt thread is a measure of silicone. As the hex nut is tightened on a standard washer(s), the pressure flattens the pockets pushing the silicone out the channels. The center hole at the end has no functionality.

The reverse or channel side of the DTI washer: Note the silicone packed into each pocket. As the torque on the pockets are increased the silicone squirts out of the channels indicating that the required tension has been reached.

The three top bolts have been properly torqued. The silicone has exited the channels.

 

This video demonstrates that as the bolts are torqued by the impact wrench, the ironworker can tell when the proper tension has been achieved as the silicone squirts out of the channels as the pockets of silicone are flattened. Note the string of silicone at the bottom of the impact wrench as it squirts out the channel.

 

Open cans of U-Bolts:  When walking around on the floor of the pit one never knows what they might find. This time it was two cans with different types of U-Bolts. To the left is a can of U bolts, which are used for clamping cables. Below is a can of Bow Screw Shackle Pins. This type of U-Bolt is used is for attaching to cables for lifting purposes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By the 21st of December, the welders had welded a couple of damper brackets to their pedestals and pinned the pedestal ends to the brackets.

 

A damper bracket placed on a pedestal. Each bracket (weighing approximately 1,447 lbs.) is manufactured for a specific pedestal.

 

The Week of December 11, 2017 — Nodes, Dampers, Spline Beams, and The Moon

There was new activity in the northwest vault. As I got closer to the noise, I noticed a white steel frame rising from the foundation floor to the opening in the cap slap above. Ah yes, the frame was for the permanent stairs. Soon we would graduate from the scaffold stairs, which

A node loaded on a lobed pulled up to the

One side of a jig that is used to lift a connection plate to be placed alongside two spline beams. How the positioning jigs work is illustrated in the two videos and photograph below. Each jig has a 33-ton capacity.

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This video is about lifting and placing the horizontal steel connection plates on a spline beam using a steel jig. Both sides must be placed in tandem with the holes matching the holes in the spline beams.

The jig with the connection plates is nearing the top of the lip where the ironworkers will begin to align the holes of the plates with the spline beam.

When installed and bolted, the ten connecting plates as shown in this photo include 210 bolts and hex nuts along with 420 washers. An ironworker will use an impact wrench to tighten the bolts to specs.

 

Friday afternoon when the construction crew was beginning to thin out, I took out my 360FLY camera and set it up at various spots on the foundation floor.  For this photo, the camera was placed under a 100,000 lb. spline beam which resulted in a view of the Medical Center and Children’s Hospital nicely framed between the beams.

At the northeast corner of the pit, there were the two remaining dampers. The blue plastic had been pulled back exposing the wooden pallets. I was amazed at their size.

 

 

On the west side of the construction site, the 30-foot dampers weighing six thousand pounds each lie against the west, at grade, waiting to be lowered and pinned to the spline beams and the pedestal brackets.

The week was capped off with a photo taken from the top floor of the newly completed patient parking structure. Just imagine that when the project is completed, the roof of the new adult hospital will reach nearly to top of this photo frame.

That was Then and This is Now

 

The Week of December 4, 2017 — The BIG Iron Begins to Arrives On Site

Around 7:00 AM, the crane operators,

 

 

 

 

The Week of November 26, 2017 — The Invasion of the BIG Crawler Cranes

While Work Continues in the Pit

 

The Rigging and Configuration of the Two Liebherr LR 1750 Crawler Cranes, Which Will Tower High Above the Existing
Medical Center and Children’s Hospitals 

 

The long-anticipated phase of the project finally became a reality this week. Early Monday morning, November 27, 2011, heavy transport trucks arrived on site loaded with parts for the first of two Liebherr Hydraulic Crawler Cranes (LR1750). The first crane–the tallest–would be assembled on the north side of the construction pit. Upon completion, the lifting height of the crane’s main boom when fully extended would reach approximately 425ft. or 39.26 stories some 30 stories above the existing Medical Center. According to one of the crane inspectors on site, the crane when completed would be the tallest crane currently operating in the state of California. Because of the two (2) heliports: one on top of the Children’s Hospital and the other north of the clover-leaf towers FAA variances were required to operate the cranes in the helicopter flight paths. Upon arriving in Loma Linda, I first made my way to the top of the six-story Faculty Medical Offices parking structure south of Barton Road. From this vantage point, I surveyed the construction site and determined that both of the tracks (each 39′ 11″ long, 4′ 11″ wide, 7′ tall, and weighing 92,500 lbs) had been installed onto the superstructure/center section.

 

The crane illustrated above (top right) was assembled on the north side of the pit and is the taller of the two cranes. The lifting height of the main boom is approximately 436-feet. The main boom of the crane illustrated (lower left) was constructed on the south side of the pit and has a lifting height of
approximately 276-feet.
(Source: Bigge Equipment Co., LR 1750 Technical Data Brochure: [PDF]LR 1750 US.indd – Bigge Crane and Rigging

 

Looking north across Barton Road a portion of the Medical Center’s east tower, which rises some nine (9) stories above the construction pit.

 

A closeup of the LR Liebherr 1750 assembly site. It takes a crane–sometimes two (2) as seen in this photo–to build a crane. By the time I arrived the tracks had been hydraulicly connected to the main cross frame, which also supports the turntable base on which the superstructure rotates. The reader may wonder how the tracks are connected….well, the following photo and video show the process. The photo and video were taken on the south of the pit where the crane assembly crew began putting the second of the two cranes together.

 

The cross frame or center section to which the tracks and superstructure are connected. Notice the “outriggers” (hydraulic jacks), which are used for lifting the cross frame onto and off of the heavy transport truck. These jacks are essential for pinning the trackpads to the cross frame.

 

This fast-track video demonstrates how a 92,500-pound trackpad is connected to the cross frame/center section of a Liebherr LR 1750 crawler crane.

 

The length (39′.11″) and height (seven (7′) of the crawler track is illustrated by one of the inspectors standing in the center.

The width (4′ 11″) of the crawler track is illustrated in this photo. When the trackpads begin to move, the ground shakes beneath one’s feet. The crawler will win no land speed records. The maximum speed is 1-mph.

 

A big crane takes a big cab. Paul, the foreman/operator, is troubleshooting a voltage problem while two of his operators run through checklists in hopes of resolving the issue.

 

On the exterior of the crane, one of the computerized control panels was opened for inspection and testing. Soon the voltage issue was resolved and the waterproof panel door was lowered and latched.

 

A view of the two-seater cab, which is airconditioned and crammed full of electronic gadgets and computer screens. Some of the smaller screens are positioned just out of the frame on each side of the windshield. The crane operator apologized for not having the time to clean the cab and invited me to come back after the crane had been erected and the cab was cleaned.

 

To improve visibility during operation, the crane operator has the ability, via hydraulics, to tilt and/or swivel the cab.

The superstructure of the LR Liebherr 1750 Hydraulic

Crawler Crane

1. Tracks (2)

2. Ring Gear/Turntable on top of the cross frame

3. Machine Deck

 

This Video shows the Liebherr LR 1750 crawler crane’s superstructure rotating as the operator aligns the machine for the next step of assembly.

 

During the crane assembly process, I took a break to check out the activity down in the pit. Although most of the attention was directed to the flurry of activity at grade on the north side of the pit, the work in the pit, 30-feet below, continued.

 

Down in the pit, a crew was dismantling the scaffolding supporting the cap slab in the northeast corner.

 

I found that even down in the pit one could not ignore the activity above.

 

At the southwest corner in the elevator pit, an isolator had been hoisted above the base and blocked so that the grout between
the base and isolator could be checked for large air pockets. If any are found they need to be scraped, cleaned, and regrouted.
The spec requires if I remember correctly, that the grout must be able to support 95 percent of the bearing weight. Core sample
tests are conducted on selected dried pours to determine if the grout holds to specs. If the core sample passes the hole is refilled
with grout.

 


This photo captures a worker filling one of the core sample holes. The grout will set up and dry in about 30-minutes. Once the grout
has dried, the isolator will be lowered on and bolted to (see bolts in the foreground) the grout platform.

 

Finally, I was able to capture an isolator being hoisted above the isolator pad.

 

This photo illustrates how the air pocket appears once the isolator is lifted off the grout. Notice how the isolator is blocked.

 

This video illustrates how the grout is repaired. Once the patches are dry, isolator will be placed back on the pad.

 


A welder is welding a bracket to a support arm, which will be bolted to the west wall on which mechanical pipes will be attached.
One one the support arms is standing at the lower right. Support arms that have been installed can be seen on the wall behind the welder.

 

Brackets yet to be welded to an H-beam support arm.

 

A view of the support arms which have been anchored to the west wall.

 

First of the mechanical pipes placed on the support arms. A long bed truck loaded with the mechanical pipes is parked, at grade,
above the west wall waiting for the pipes to be offloaded.

 

This video shows a mechanical pipe being lowered to a forklift which will carefully slide the pipe onto the support arms.

 


As I prepared to leave the pit, I looked up and saw a crate being lowered not far from where I was standing. Upon inquiring, I learned that a tension bolt calibrator machine was being lowered so that a sampling of the various sized bolts to be used on each isolator base could be tested by lot number. If any of the bolts fail the stress test, the lot will have to be returned to the manufacturer.

 

By the sound of the activity up around the crane pad, I decided it was time to make my way up the four flights of stairs to observe what the crane assembly team was up to.

 


The following day (11.28.17) day, I descended the stairs to the pit to observe a stress test on a few of the bolts. When I arrived,
I found the machine set up and a few tests had already been conducted.

 

This video illustrates how the tension bolt calibration test is performed on the site. The tension test is based on the size of the bolt. In this case, the bolt size required that the bolt tension must exceed 54,000 pounds of force.

 

To be Continued . . . . This section is under construction (NO PUN INTENDED)!!!

 

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Dennis E. Park, MA
After graduate school Dennis accepted a position at Loma Linda University. He worked there for 42 years in the areas of administration and financial management, also teaching accounting and management to dietetic students at the School of Public Health. Through the years Dennis has chronicled the growth of the campus, including the construction of the Drayson Center and the Centennial Complex and the razing of Gentry Gym. He is the author of "The Mound City Chronicles: A Pictorial History of Loma Linda University, A Health Sciences Institution 1905 - 2005." dEp 09.30.2016 🔨
2 Comments
    • Clouzet

    That crane! Very neat to see the inside of the cab. It looks like a mini–command center for some space operation. Imagining the operators’ skill, I picture it being like a surgeon but on a macro scale.

      • Dennis E. Park, MA

      Thanks!