Quick Mobilization on Interior Demolition Project

Late last spring, construction was about to get underway on a large new warehouse in upstate New York when the construction management firm called R. Baker & Son with an urgent request. The project was behind schedule getting started, and the CM wanted to know if Baker could report to the worksite the very next day. The project team wanted to get the demolition portion of the project rolling while design was being completed to prep the existing 120,000 square-foot, two-story rectangular building for new construction, and there was much to be done in a short time. The building, which included 20,000 square feet of interior offices, had high bay lighting, large unit heaters, exhaust fans, electrical panels and hot water lines that had to be removed as soon as possible, while existing sprinkler lines were to be left intact. 

As requested, R. Baker met the client at the worksite the next morning and helped to immediately obtain the demolition permit, and demolition workers and various equipment arrived on site the next morning to begin work. With a safety review and plan in place, power was shut down and locked out. Two crews using two electric 85 HP Bobcat S750s and a 34-foot articulating boom lift began demolishing the two-story offices. Six 40-foot articulating boom lifts were used by multiple crews to remove high bay lighting, unit heaters, electrical conduit, and ventilation equipment that penetrated the roof in fourteen areas. All demolition debris was separated and carted offsite for appropriate recycling or disposal. 

An R. Baker & Son rigging team used an 80-ton hydraulic crane with extended jib to remove mechanical equipment from the building’s roof. Another Baker team removed electric switchboards, distribution panels, lighting panels, and old telephone systems and fiber optic back to where they entered the building. 

The new facility was to include numerous washdown areas and would require new underground plumbing for both sanitary and process, requiring Baker to mark out large concrete floor sections that would need to be removed as soon as interior demolition had been completed in that area. This would enable plumbers to begin excavation right away when they arrived on site. 

R. Baker & Son brought in a roofing contractor to temporarily patch all roof penetrations where equipment had been removed to make the building weathertight until a new roof could be installed as part of the project. The client asked Baker to repair or replace twelve loading dock doors to be used during construction and, eventually, for future facility use. We also helped the client mobilize on site by bringing in three 12’ x 60’ trailers, and we excavated the parking lot to provide power water and fiber optic to get the new construction office going. The Baker Team left the site broom-swept clean and ready for construction. 

The long-time client was very pleased with R. Baker & Son’s quick response and tackling many projects quickly, efficiently and safely to support their aggressive schedule. 

About R. Baker & Son All Industrial Services

R. Baker & Son All Industrial Services, a  Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business (SDVOB)  in business since 1935, is a premier specialized contractor operating in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, with over one hundred employees and an exemplary safety record (we have been directly involved in four sites that received VPP OSHA Safety Awards). R. Baker & Son is financially strong, with bonding capabilities over $10 million. Capabilities include industrial and commercial demolition, rigging, machinery- and plant-moving, dismantling, decommissioning, plant and equipment relocation, interior demolition, selective demolition, warehousing, wrecking and razing, millwright, plant reconfigurations, heavy rigging, salvage, environmental services, remediation, decontamination, abatement, and investment and asset recovery.

R. Baker & Son - All Industrial Services
190 Boundary Road
Marlboro, NJ 07746
732-222-3553

https://rbaker.com