Government Case Studies
NASA LUT-1, Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida
LVI was contracted to remove lead-based paint contaminated with PCBs and asbestos-containing materials from the LUT-1 launch tower and then demolish the structure. The tower had been decommissioned by NASA and placed in a yard where it sat for many years. Lead and PCB-contaminated metals were decontaminated using a water blasting unit operating at 40,000 pounds per square inch. The LVI team erected a decontamination unit where the metal was reduced to manageable pieces, cleaned and then recycled at a nearby scrap yard.
Pentagon Renovations, Washington, DC
LVI performed complete asbestos and lead-based paint abatement and demolition of all mechanical, electrical, communication, plumbing systems and interior architectural and structural finishes throughout 1 million square feet of Wedge 2 of the Pentagon, completing the work one and a half months ahead of schedule. LVI is currently performing work on Wedge 3, utilizing both mechanical and manual demolition and abatement methods while managing more than 200 laborers. Work on Wedge 4 is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2006, and Wedges 3, 4 and 5 are scheduled to be completed by 2012 or sooner.
Hurricane Katrina Cleanup
Gulf Coast region (New Orleans, LA; Gulfport, MS)
During the initial cleanup along the Gulf Coast after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, LVI had approximately 2,150 workers on the ground in the Gulf Coast region working on cleanup and restoration projects.
LVI’s work included large-scale cleanup projects at hospitals, hotels, resorts, retail outlets, municipal buildings and businesses in Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida and Texas. Projects were coordinated out of the company’s Houston regional office, and from office and warehouse facilities and mobile Emergency Command Centers located throughout the affected areas, including a new 27,000-square-foot office and warehouse facility in Saint Rose, La., in support of the activities in New Orleans, and Gulfport and Biloxi, Miss. An 8,000-square-foot office/warehouse facility in Port Arthur, Texas, supported the company’s response efforts in Port Arthur and Beaumont, Texas, and Lake Charles, La., as well as surrounding areas.
The mobile centers in the field featured computers, satellite phone uplinks, bathroom facilities and biometric time keeping systems, which helped facilitate the personnel and payroll requirements of a mobile work force. The company also deployed its own diesel fuel tanker truck to keep its equipment operating. To accommodate its work force, the company used 20 mobile sleepers, located just outside New Orleans, to house 840 workers. The sleepers are equipped with their own power sources, air conditioning and heating.
Aside from the incredible amount of structural damage the areas sustained, of paramount concern to LVI was mold growth due to moisture from the rain, flooding and storm surge, a humid climate, and lack of air conditioning. LVI worked with its clients to assess the damage to their properties and devise action plans to address the problems in the order that made the most sense to prevent further property damage.
Among the projects that LVI was involved with in New Orleans was demolition and cleanup at the Superdome, including air scrubbing and restoring indoor air quality to acceptable levels. Interior demolition, cleanup and mold remediation was completed for Orleans Parish Independent School District. The company also completed demolition and removal of asbestos-containing materials from properties in St. Bernard and Plaquemines Parishes for the Erath Housing Authority. Mold remediation work was completed at Harrah’s Grand Casino’s Gulf Breeze Tower in Gulfport, Mississippi.