Laying the groundwork for a small town often takes decades. Walbridge and its partners did it in less than three years.
The small city can be found inside Fort Stewart, Ga., where Walbridge took on its largest military project to date. More than 500 acres of land was readied for approximately half-a-million square feet of new construction.
As part of this $150 million design-build project, Walbridge was responsible for bringing all utilities and infrastructure support. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ new Infantry Brigade Combat Team complex includes 1.5 million square-feet of hard-surfaced parking area for heavy vehicles – the equivalent of 25 football fields.
After intense clearing and grading came the utilities: 14 miles of electrical duct banks, 10 miles of water mains, nine miles of sewer services and eight miles of natural gas piping. Then concrete and asphalt were laid for roadways, parking, tank trails, walks, curbs and drains. Security lighting, signage and information systems had to be installed, in addition to landscaping, fencing and gates. All of this came before the 525,000 square feet of new facility construction, consisting of six tactical equipment maintenance facilities (TEMFs) and six adjacent company operations facilities (COFs). The new complex was erected across the street from the Infantry Brigade living quarters.
Adding to the complexity of the project, Walbridge also installed nearly two miles of box culverts into two onsite basins – home to a few alligators – on the northeastern edge of the compound, and put in an entirely new drainage system to accommodate the region’s climate characteristics.
The new combat team complex at Fort Stewart is made up of three small and three medium TEMFs, totaling about 160,000 square feet. They contain maintenance bays with intricate exhaust systems, storages areas and administrative modules. Adjacent to each TEMF is a 60,000-square-foot company operations facility (COF), each containing administrative modules and general office space, supply modules and various storage space, individual equipment lockers, and covered hardstand. In addition to the TEMFs and COFs, Walbridge also built storage facilities and a distribution building.
Building information modeling (BIM) was utilized by all mechanical and electrical subcontractors, who coordinated with the architect and engineer during the design phase. Fast-track design involved 36 total buildings and more than 2,000 drawing sheets – all completed within 270 days.
Walbridge conducted safety huddles with all team members and subcontractors three times a day. The huddles covered specific safety topics and possible hazards associated with the day’s operations.
The complex was specifically designed to meet U.S. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Silver certification standards.