To accomplish that, you need two main things: concrete and steel. Lots of steel (much of it custom bent). And lots of concrete (also customized). The building’s foundation is almost seven stories high. “The foundation was key,” said Marty Swain, an executive at Parker Marine, which specializes in founda- tional and marine contracting and did the pile driving for this project.. Swain said because the project in- volved creating test cells within an ex- isting building – and those cells had to withstand extraordinary vibration plus be physically separate within that build- ing – Parker Marine had to adapt its procedures as well as its cranes. Per- sonnel had to measure from the floor to the roof girders to ensure they had maximum space to work. Basically, Swain said, a section of pile would be put in place, then another section welded atop it, over and over again. Two cranes and up to 18 people la- bored for this because, he said, the project was “monolithic.” Glenn Sherrill, head of SteelFab in Charlotte said his company provided about 1,100 tons of structural steel for the frame, and about 87 tons for other purposes, such as special rings and an- chors. SteelFab Charlotte worked in conjunction with their sister company, SteelFab of SC which is located in Charleston and Florence. “Our Florence plant helped fabricate the job and our Charleston office cov- ered the site project management,” said Sherrill. “Our South Carolina par- ticipation was critical to the Clemson project.” SteelFab has about 500 employees and operates six fabrication plants across the Southeastern U.S. with a combined capacity of over 100,000 tons annually. To ensure all the steel for the Clemson site was flawless, SteelFab’s Mark Coleman worked closely with drafting professionals from Hutchins & Associates in Clem- mons. The Hutchins firm is no stranger to big projects, having worked on numer- ous hospitals and airports, convention centers, university buildings and even the NASCAR Hall of Fame. However, “This was the first time we’ve ever drawn within 1/32 nd of an inch in this shop. Usually we draw to 1/16 th . But this was a very different story,” said CEO Larry Hutchins, who is certified as a Senior Detailer Class One by the Na- tional Institute of Steel Detailing. Several factors required excruciating accuracy of the steel parts. For exam- ple, the plans that originated in Spain had been prepared in metric system units; SteelFab and Hutchins had to convert to the U.S. system. Allowance had to be made for deflection and The South Carolina Construction News — October/November 2013 – 3