struction. “We’re working 60 and 70 hour schedules where we can to make up for lost time,” says McGarr. “Everyone understands we have a time-line to meet so the owner can get in and install their own equipment and we’re committed to meeting that.” YPS’s experience as general contractor with two similar Carolinas manufacturing facilities has proven valuable to the complex construction project. The contractors’ team – including qualified subcontractors – has worked other mas- sive projects in Abbeville, SC and Huntersville, NC. “We partnered on these projects with Walker & White- side, Jennings-Dill, Palmetto Automatic Sprinkler and Bor- ton,” said McGarr. “It has been a major asset to the client to have subtrades experienced with the design and processes involved. For us, the relationships that exist - with everyone knowing the expectations and understand- ing the deliverables - have been very beneficial.” YPS project superintendent Steve Terrell says the con- tractor knew from experience to use a tower crane over a conventional model. “The tower crane is a bit more costly but it can operate more safely in high winds and eliminates that weather element as an extra delay.” Other subcontractors added their own areas of expert- ise, including locally-sourced Parker Marine Contracting, who coordinated the tower’s specialized pile driving. “Cooper River marl (lime-rich mud containing variable amounts of clays and silt) is a very different type of soil. The soil report had identified it and locals expected it but it’s not easy to work with, isn’t good for loads and could have been a problem with what we needed to do,” says McGarr. “Parker Marine’s expertise here was invaluable.” Parker’s project manager and estimator Marty Swain says misconceptions about the soil could have cost the project additional time and money his company was able to avoid. “The original soil report suggested either con- crete or pipe piles as options. The final report though made a strong recommendation for pipe as the only option.” Bleger says soil conditions were a concern and a great deal relied on the stability of the foundation, which had to be very stable and support the tower loads. “The soil is liq- uefiable under certain conditions so we had to be ab- solutely certain of the foundation stability.” Pipe piles have to be milled in Birmingham, take weeks to schedule and then would have to be transported to the site. Concrete piles are manufactured locally and installed by Parker. “We knew the concrete piles would do the job so we went in with 12 in. and 14 in, 100 ft. piles to test the site and validate that concrete would work. The results were confirmed by a geotechnical expert and we estimate this saved the project about two months and $400,000,” says Swain. In business since 1952, Parker Marine has a reputation for getting the impossible done. In this case the impossible was punching piles down to an elevation of 30 feet below ground for the installation of the tower’s basement. Swain says: “It’s normal in this business to use punches or fol- lowers to get piles to the right depth. What isn’t normal is getting them this far down. Four to five feet is what you might normally expect.” Fifty-five-foot-long 14 in. square piles set were set on cap heads and cushioned by six to nine-inch plywood and then driven to the proper depth with a 40 ft. long follower. Parker also installed a circular coffer dam on the site. The plant also required a unique electrical substation. “A lot of large electrical loads are needed to manufacture these cables and they are all tested using high voltage transformers,” says McGarr. “To supply this draw South Carolina Electric and Gas (SCE&G) had to build a substation on site. Walker & Whiteside were very involved with this The South Carolina Construction News — July/August 2013 – 5