Portsmouth NH Gov. Buildings Proactive Facilities Planning Weathered Snow Storm

As you may be well aware, a massive snowstorm hit the north east recently. The storm began on Friday, February 8, 2013 and lasted until around 7pm that Saturday, dumping 24 inches of snow in the process. However, it was the wind that was the real factor. Reaching upwards of 70 miles per hour, the high winds resulted in snowdrifts as high as 16 feet on the sides of buildings.

1. Massachusetts declared a state of emergency on Friday, February 8 at 5pm
2. New Hampshire declared a state of emergency on Friday, February 8 at 7pm

As a result of the storm, countless companies and organizations were forced to close for several days. The United States Department of State in Portsmouth, New Hampshire was not one of them. The Department’s three buildings were only closed (for normal hours) on Friday during the start of the storm.

Crockett Facilities Services, Inc. (CFSI) has a complete building services contract, including mechanical and HVAC services, for the U.S. Department of State’s three buildings, which include:

1. National Passport Center: 4-story, 100,000 sq. ft.; 1,000 employees
2. National Visa Center: Single story building
3. Consular Affairs Building: About 800 employees between this building and National Visa building

With CFSI’s 3 employees and their subcontractors working around the clock, the U.S. Department of State’s three buildings were open for business on Monday, February 11 – way ahead of other buildings.

Pre-Storm Preparation

1. Purchased large tie-down straps and wrapped these around 10 rooftops units (RTUs) to ensure the high winds didn’t damage the older units.
2. CFSI also tied down the lids of all large concrete trash receptacles.
3. Ensured the salt buckets were full.
4. Spent hours inspecting three snow blowers to ensure they were in proper working order.
5. Re-installed snow stakes to help identify sidewalks and curbs for the snow removal equipment.
6. Put 700 gallons of diesel fuel into a generator to top it off.
7. CFSI held a pre-storm call the snow removal contractor to ensure they understood the potential severity of the storm and that they had enough help to meet the demands.

After the Storm

1. Snow blowers and shovels were used to remove the snow from walkways.
2. CFSI’s contractor hired a front end loader and operator, a huge $1 million piece of equipment, to remove the stockpile of snow. It took 4 dump truck loads of snow to clear off just one patio alone!
3. CFSI employees manually removed an 8 foot high, 40 feet deep, and 60 foot wide snowdrift off of just one of the roofs. It took these three employees five hours to remove the snow!
4. And so much more.

The three CFSI employees responsible for the U.S. Department of State worked day and night, putting in 30 hours of overtime in three days, to ensure the three buildings were free of snow and ready for business.

Crockett Facilities Services:

Our MSCA GreenSTAR qualified technicians can optimize your mechanical equipment and lower your utility costs with our annual preventive heating and cooling maintenance agreements. Since 2000, our customers have trusted us to run their high profile government and commercial buildings and mission critical data centers, giving them peace of mind. Contact us to receive our eNewsletter and to receive a free building assessment by calling 301.262.2771 or emailing sales@crockett-facilities.com. We’re in this Building Together!

Like us on Facebook; follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Google+.

This entry was posted on Friday, February 22nd, 2013 at . Both comments and pings are currently closed.