the Legend
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UNIVERSITY OF LETHBRIDGE
Arrival of snow just one challenge for Facilities BY JAMIE WOODFORD Where exactly did October go? The month flew by incredibly fast, meaning most of the major construction and renovation projects are coming to a close. I want to offer a big congratulation to Parking Manager Richard Lutwick and his team for making the City of Lethbridge’s 2012 Green List for their efforts on the Parking Redevelopment Project. This is just one example of many sustainability efforts the Department of Facilities incorporates into its projects. Last year, the University received kudos for its compost-
ing initiative, and recently, the U of L was recognized by the City of Lethbridge and placed on the 2012 Green List, thanks to the long term strategy of its parking lot re-development. Winter came to the University a little early this year. The Grounds department was ready and waiting when it heard about the snowfall warning, but even the workers were caught off guard by the huge amounts of snow that fell. To top it off, it was wet snow which meant it took more time than normal to clear it away from sidewalks and roadways (its first priority) and thwarted the department’s plan to clear the parking lot before
people arrived on campus. Grounds would like to thank everyone for their patience while it dealt with the challenging conditions. Some exciting work is happening within the campus planning and architecture department as the University Campus Master Plan is nearing completion. Look for announcements regarding the release of the final plan in December. You can also read more about the initiative in the fall issue of SAM Magazine. Those walking through the PE building might have noticed it’s a little brighter inside. That renovation project – updating the 40-year-old facade – features
REFINISHING ADDS SHEEN BY JAMIE WOODFORD A treasure has been unearthed at the University of Lethbridge, and it’s been under our feet the whole time. Some may have noticed the “new” floors throughout the PE Building and Max Bell Regional Aquatic Centre. Speckled with small, colourful stones, the gemlike floors aren’t new at all, says Judy Jaeger, Caretaking Services manager, rather they’ve just been buried under 40 years of built up floor sealer finish. As part of the renovations of the PE Building this past summer, a floor refinishing project was initiated and supervised by the Facilities Project Management Office (PMO). It proved to be quite extensive. “The caretaking department had put down sealer finish month after month, year after year, and over time, so many layers built up that it became
Caretaking worker Derek Vincent puts in many hours to make the 40-yearold concrete aggregate floors in the PE building sparkle like new.
impossible for us to strip off those coats chemically,” says Jaeger, adding a chemical stripper only takes six coats of finish off per application. “It would take a very long time to get all the finish down to where the aggregate was first exposed and then we would still have to grind it down,” adds Jaeger. “We decided it made more sense to spend extra money up front on diamond discs and grind the surface down, rather than strip it with a chemical that’s not very environmentally
friendly.” With caretaking performing a more comprehensive floor refinishing with a new grinder and polish machine, it saved the PMO thousands of dollars it would have had to spend on an external contractor. Refinishing the floors is quite an undertaking. It begins with resurfacing the area, using four different grades of diamond disc pads, followed by the application of a densifier to seal, harden and dustproof the exposed concrete. Finally, the floors are auto
gorgeous solar light tubes that let in natural daylight and really enhance the area. Borehole drilling to gather geotechnical data wrapped up last month. Large, portable drilling rigs were set up across campus in order to install monitoring equipment to track coulee slopes and underground water levels. The data will be used to plan future building locations. Soil samples were also obtained and sent for laboratory testing. Other projects, such as the ventilation upgrades in the University Centre for the Arts, fire compartmentalization work in University Hall and the new Sports Medicine Clinic are un-
scrubbed and rebuffed once more before applying a stain resistant top coat, then polished with a heat pad. The process takes approximately 16 hours for every 1,000 to 1,200 square-feet. The hallway along the Max Bell Pool spectator gallery took more than three weeks to complete. “It’s a very long process,” says Jaeger. “You have to do four passes horizontally and four passes vertically, like a crisscross. It’s quite labour intensive.” In the end, the project was well worth the time and money spent, as the floors will not have to be refinished again for many years. “It’s also a green initiative because it’s a much more environmentally friendly process; it will actually give us LEED points for future buildings,” says Jaeger. “In the past we were scrubbing the floor at least four to five times a year, and refinishing it with a zinc-oxide type finish. It wasn’t as environmentally friendly as we wanted, but it was what we had to put down to hold the floor together.”
dergoing minor deficiency work, which basically means addressing any loose ends or imperfections. Facilities is already mapping out the next round of projects for the summer 2013 construction season. Look for details of those projects in the coming months. Check out www.uleth.ca/ facilities for more information about our department. Jamie Woodford is the project assistant, communications for the Department of Facilities
Now, caretakers use an eco-friendly top coat sealant that reduces the amount of potentially harmful particulate concrete dust that can be kicked up from foot traffic. “In the high traffic places like the 1st Choice Savings Centre, we won’t have to redo this for another five years, and in places with less traffic, like the Alberta Water and Environmental Sciences Building, it could be up to 20 years. That compares to us currently having to refinish floors five times per year,” says Jaeger. Most of the PE Building has been refinished, with just a few spots remaining in Turcotte Hall. Next year, caretaking will start in other areas of campus such as the University Centre for the Arts, which is almost all aggregate concrete, as well as the Students’ Union Building.
Alberta Premier Alison Redford was on campus in October, where she toured a number of facilities and spoke to faculty, staff and students alike. Here she discusses a topic with Faculty of Management Dean, Dr. Bob Ellis. Redford was given a demonstration of the capabilities of the Centre for Financial Market Research and Teaching, located in Markin Hall.
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