3Q | 2020
QUARTERLY
A Letter from Joe Rettman NEI President Joe Rettman reflects on the challenging last six months.
COVID-19 Mobilization With the investment of thermal imaging cameras, NEI has been able to significantly expedite the check-in process on job sites.
Residents of Valencia Way See a Brighter Future After years of neglect, Valencia Way receives $26 Million in life safety and quality of life improvements.
Collaboration for a
SUSTAINABLE FUTURE NEI recently collaborated with developer Homeowner’s Rehab Inc. (HRI) and architect ICON Architecture to blaze the path for the very first Passive Housecertified affordable housing development in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
A letter from
TO ALL:
oe J
I think perhaps most of us can agree that we have all experienced some of the
most challenging months of American History that anyone has seen in quite some time. Between the Pandemic’s arrival on our shores in late February, coupled with the social injustice and continued unrest taking place across the country, it has been an extremely difficult time for our fellow citizens. We at NEI believe that it is our responsibility to help foster fairness and equality for all, and we strive to embody this effort. Please use these current circumstances to really broaden your perspective of race, religion, culture, ethnicity, and gender, as the more we open our minds in an attempt at understanding perceived differences, the more we realize our inherent sameness, as human beings with dreams and goals, with families and friends we care about, and we further appreciate the cultural tapestries that enrich us all.
In the midst of these historic moments, NEI has been extremely busy and working hard to make sure that we are effectively managing our Pandemic Response and working diligently to keep our employees and subcontractors safe on our job sites. We worked as a team to create an extremely detailed and comprehensive COVID-19 operational plan and I am happy to report we are effectively implementing our policies and procedures. We have equipped all jobs with temperature scanners at the entry points to screen all people coming on and off the job sites for elevated temperatures and pre-warning effectiveness. We have multiple washing stations and extra available PPE for any and all parties coming on our job sites, coupled with social distancing and added supervision and our own COVID-19 response team, responsible for ensuring daily that all of our sites comply with our program. We have received numerous accolades from city officials, union representatives, state elected officials, and most importantly, all of our workers, subcontractors, and clients whereas not a day passes that someone affiliated with our sites doesn’t compliment the effort we have made to keep the projects and participants safe. NEI staff has managed to keep many of our (your) projects moving along despite the dangers and difficulties of this environment and to that end, I would like to thank our entire staff for their tireless and continued dedication to our customers, subcontractors, fellow workers, and friends. PAGE 2
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As a result of the entire company’s tireless effort and ability to rise to the occasion, we are in a solid position with regards to delivery and performance that without such efforts, most definitely would have been in shambles. I want to sincerely thank you all for your continued support, effort, understanding, flexibility, and most of all your open-mindedness because the last six months have certainly shown that if one doesn’t possess an open mind, we will not be able to navigate through difficulties and together, be part of the solution. Please continue to show kindness and acceptance to each other, as we ourselves are responsible for creating a more evolved and harmonious society, in which we live together.
Residents of Valencia Way See a Brighter Future Photography by David Haynes
The extensive two-year renovation to Valencia Way, a 400-unit apartment complex located in Jacksonville, FL, has posed many unexpected obstacles for client The Millennia Companies, the project team, and residents. Gas service for residents was shut off in late 2019 due to leaks identified in the underground gas main piping. Overnight, this left 337 families without hot water and the ability to cook within their apartments. The entire decades-old gas distribution system had to be replaced. The team worked tirelessly day and night to accomplish a seemingly unachievable goal of restoring gas to all 37 apartment buildings within an estimated six-week duration. Due to the persistence and focus of the team, the task was completed two weeks ahead of schedule and just in time for Thanksgiving! The Millennia Companies bought the former Eureka Garden apartments in 2018 and quickly began renovations with NEI and architect Dimit Architects, LLC. The previous owner failed to maintain the property for years, exposing residents to serious health hazards. Now owned and managed by Millennia, residents are seeing brighter days.
The $26 Million project involves life safety and quality of life improvements including new flooring, walls, appliances, ceiling fans, and central air. Once complete this fall, Valencia Way will provide Jacksonville locals with safe, affordable, and dignified housing.
Thank You to the Team OWNER: The Millennia Companies ARCHITECTS: Dimit Architects, LLC NEI PROJECT TEAM: PX: Mike Myers, APM: Ashley George, Supt: Jack Baird, Asst Supt: Brian Nelson, Admin: Loraine Rodriguez Hernandez, Risk: Patti Roche ENGINEERING: Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, Fire Protection: WHS Engineers, Civil: Florida Engineering Group, Structural: Craig S. Cohen, P.E. WITH FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM: The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A., R4 JPFL Acquisition LLC and/or its successors, R4 Capital Funding, LLC, Jacksonville Housing Finance Authority
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COVER STORY
Collaboration for a Sustainable Future Photography by Robert Umenhofer
NEI recently collaborated with nonprofit affordable housing developer Homeowner’s Rehab Inc. (HRI) and architect ICON Architecture to blaze the path for the very first Passive Housecertified affordable housing development in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The six-story Finch Cambridge development—the largest affordable new construction effort in the area in 40 years—will bring 98 new units, along with a community room, a rooftop terrace and outdoor recreational areas, to a 100,000 SF parcel directly across from the Fresh Pond Reservoir in the Cambridge Highlands. Utilizing Passive House principles to eliminate air leakage, improve air quality, and balance heat and moisture circulation through the use of an Energy Recovery Ventilator, each sustainably designed affordable unit will enjoy reduced energy usage of up to 40%. However, Passive House design presents unique challenges during construction. A primary function of Passive House is providing continuous air & thermal boundaries and minimizing thermal bridging. NEI modified its typical internal QA/QC inspection process and added steps to accommodate the 3rd
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party inspections required as part of the Passive House certification process. This additional process requires more visual inspections and photo documentation. NEI had to install an air barrier on interior partitions that wouldn’t normally apply on a traditional construction project to provide a tight building envelope at the Passive House boundaries identified by ICON Architecture. In addition, the sequence of subcontractors had to be adjusted, often bringing in a trade earlier than normal to meet certain Passive House requirements and inspection milestones. NEI received rigorous training and worked diligently to understand the intent of the Passive House elements, working closely with the architect to maintain constructability while meeting the intent. Together, the team successfully delivered the high-performance Finch Cambridge development to Passive House energy efficiency requirements and pioneered the new building design and its performance standards on the East Coast.
Thank You to the Team OWNER: Homeowner’s Rehab, Inc. ARCHITECTS: ICON Architecture, Landscape Architect: Klopfer Martin Design Group NEI PROJECT TEAM: PX: Marc Marcelli, SPM: Matt Smyka, PM: Bill Novick, APM: Nikhil Kathed, Gen Supt: Chris Burke, Sr. Supt: Jay Fiola, Admin: Mariana Zapata, Compliance: Jordan Pomare, Risk: Patti Roche ENGINEERING: Mechanical/Plumbing Engineer: Petersen Engineering, Electrical Engineer: Engineered Building Systems, Civil: Nitsch Engineering, Inc., Structural: Lim Consultants, Geotechnical Engineer: McPhail Associates CONSULTANTS: Energy Consultant: New Ecology, Sustainable Design Consultant: Linnean Solutions, Envelope Consultant: Building Enclosure Assoc. PASSIVE HOUSE VERIFIER: JSR Adaptive Energy Solutions WITH FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM: MassHousing, Department of Housing and Community Development, The City of Cambridge
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COVID-19 Mobilization Photography by Robert Umenhofer
Deemed as providing an essential service in every city with ongoing projects except Boston, NEI was able to find a way forward despite the COVID-19 pandemic that slowed construction around the country for several months. With operations in three states and fifteen different municipalities, however, NEI has had to navigate varying regulations and confounding timelines that have been updated almost daily. In response to the changing face of operations in a new and uncharted construction environment, NEI formulated a 15-point risk mitigation plan to instruct workers on the best way to do their jobs safely. “We developed a 15-point pandemic response plan, which lays out what type of PPE you need, when you need to wear PPE, how to deal with certain parts of your jobs while wearing PPE, and what the importance of hand washing and social distancing are,” says NEI President Joe Rettman. “We’re still learning new things every day, but the majority of the municipalities have come up with guidelines now, and we’ve incorporated most of those guidelines into our pandemic plan. I think what separates what we’re doing is our heavy investment in thermal imaging cameras. We have a one-point-of-entry gate for our construction sites, and this thermal imaging camera measures temperatures of everyone walking to the gate from six feet away and tells you what their temperature is. There’s an alarm on the camera if anyone’s temperature is over 100.3° F.” With this investment, NEI has been able to significantly expedite the check-in process on job sites, allowing the team to get over 100 workers through the check-in process and to work safely within 15 minutes of opening the gate.
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I think what separates what we’re doing is our heavy investment in thermal imaging cameras that measures temperatures of everyone walking to the gate from six feet away and tells you what their temperature is. There’s an alarm on the camera if anyone’s temperature is over 100.3°F.” PAGE 7
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