The Punchlist Process

Projects (and the associated relationships) can be enhanced (or they can deteriorate) during the execution of the work associated with the punchlist.

To start, the punchlist is the list of either incomplete or defective work that is attached to the certificate of substantial completion which list is issued by the architect. A project is substantially complete essentially when a project can be used for its intended results. It is finally complete...and a certificate of Final Completion is issued...when all of the items attached to the certificate are complete.

Other items that reveal themselves that are in need or improvement, generally are repaired but are seen as warranty items.

There were a handful of items at 209 that were substantial and were not complete because Pray Construction did not have the material available to complete the work.

Last night, a substantial uncompleted piece was (almost) completed which involved the lobby ceiling....see the above photos.

And Life Goes On....

All of us have a lot of incoming stimulus that we are involved with on a day to day basis. For the most part, it’s hard to see the whole picture of a co-worker, vendor, or associate. And that’s understandable yes? I guess some of the power of a blog or a social network is that one has the opportunity to paint a more complete picture and/or use the medium as a canvas of sorts for self expression.

I have had a lot to do with my Mother over the past years including moving her to Charleston from her home in Florida, helping her adjust to her new community, coaching her out of driving her car, encouraging her on her weekly trips to Innovative Fitness, taking her to the Doctor, listening to her stories, moving her to Edgewood Summit, keeping her walking and socializing, dealing with her insurance company, managing her money, hiring caregivers, taking her to the Emergency room, listening, engaging Hospice, and ultimately helping her transition to another, better place.

My Mom passed away last Tuesday afternoon.

Here is the obituary: (i.e. Charleston Gazette, Sunday, Gertrude Malasky).

And the point of all of this is to (1) Create a more intimate environment….i.e. in..to..me..see and (2) Reflect out loud about all the things we just don’t know about our family and friends that might be having an impact on them. Very sick children or other family members, personal health matters that are really big deals ( cancer, heart disease, fill in the blank), family members that are the victims of or even the perpetrators of serious crimes….we’ve heard it all and it is all happening around us every day). Mind you I come form the old school…stiff upper lip and so forth, but it is worthy to reflect upon the old Covey matter of paradigms. We sometimes just don't see the whole deal and if we did, we might see the young woman not the old woman.

Anyway…..my Mom was an elegant, charming, loving person and she will be missed.

But as the saying goes, life goes on and so does life at 209 Capitol Street. I’ll be back with more tidbits relative to this project in the not to distant future.

Thanks for reading.

Phones and Computers (aka Voice and Data)

Employees of Advantage Technology and Black Box worked most of the night and all day to get the phones and computers completed...up and operating....and they are! This BLOG is being written from the new space over a very fast Internet connection.

Move Day

Man..What a week! More on that to follow, but the project is now substantially complete and the move is in progress! See the above photos of signage for the movers.

Great job!

Front Entry Door in Progress

Pray Construction received their certificate of occupancy today from The City. Substantial completion will be achieved in the next few days as long as the woodworkers do their job.

Signage at Capitol Street Elevation

All constructed projects are a combination of a multitude of details designed and executed by various team members (Architect/Interior Designer/Superintendent/Engineer/Vendor/Subcontractor. These are truly collaborative adventures....and I like that. Door hardware, stain colors, tile colors, space planning, workmanship...really...the list goes on...are the sort of details I'm referring to. We spent time and attention on the internal and external signage on this project. The above is an applied sign that really accurately mimics the impression of etched glass...or maybe even better.

This work was manufactured and installed by Plastigraphics, a company I became familiar with from my Soaring Eagle Lodge project. They do good work!

The Basement...I mean Lower Level

Marketing types are appropriately concerned with/about language. So, I've been attempting to refer to the basement as the lower level for months/years. Let's face it, the lower level always felt like a basement, or maybe more appropriately a dungeon. I mean, the lowest level in the building was downright scary....a real mess.

And now look at it!!!!! Man.....sweet.

Furniture Hits the Streets

The furniture began arriving next week. Luckily, no rain!

By Wednesday of this week, all of the furniture for the offices and open office areas will be in place.

Bringing 'Er In

Pictured above (L to R) is Mark Nary with M&L Electric, Bob Settle and Erich Reggi with Pray. The picture above ilustrates the cooperation that has been present under a fair amount of pressure.

The team now projects substantial completion will be obtained on this Friday, September 26th.

Lounge--Before

On the first floor there is a lounge where employees can eat lunch and informally collaborate.

Front of the House

These images are a bit difficult to make sense out of context, but they are progress photos of the lobby and front of the house conference areas. The glass walls (borrowed lites in trade vernacular) are used between several spaces.

Lower Level (aka basement) take shape

The lower level is being utilized for paper processing, storage, a large war room, is the location for IT, storage of supplies as well as an exercise studio.

Second Floor Carpet Being Installed

The second floor carpet install began today. The second floor carpet will be complete by the end of the day Tuesday.

Lobby Emerges

This photo has the building lobby in the foreground, B&G's lobby in mid ground, and a large conference room in background.

Second Floor Taking Shape

Actually, the whole project is moving so quickly, the visual change is dramatic every day. I'll try and keep posting daily and focus more on photos which I hope will be self explanatory.

Acoustic Control

Ever been to a physician's office and clearly heard the conversation taking place in the exam room next door? Right...me too. Great opportunities for litigators.

Anyway...the attorney to attorney office acoustic control is really not analogous to the adjacent patient room example. Virtually all clients are seen in conference rooms. However...if one lawyer is by nature loud...well this is just a distraction that the lawyer next door to that loud attorney will grow to potentially resent over the years.

The photos above illustrate the detail at the floor. Because of the DuraCap, the gypsum on the walls needed to be separated from the liquid DuraCap. If the gypsum was allowed to come into contract with the liquid DuraCap, then moisture would likely be absorbed into the the gypsum and then our friend "mold and mildew" might be welcomed into the firm.

So.....this leaves us with a gap between the DuraCap and the gypsum. The floor was tested yesterday by a testing agency and we are ready for floor finishes. So, recently, acoustic caulk is introduced in the gap between the DuraCap and the gypsum. This plugs up a short circuit in the wall and will help maintain good acoustic control office to office.

Bring on the Carpet

OK...it might appear to be a bit early for carpet. The date of substantial completion is yet three weeks away, so there is a lot of work to perform before the carpet is installed...right? Well, that is correct. One of those tasks is to install the last window on the second floor, so to facilitate the installation of carpet beginning the week after next, it's appropriate to get the goods at least in the building in the simplest fashion possible. That's what's going on in this photo.

Material handling on some projects can be much more troublesome. I recall building a restaurant in Jersey City in a regional shopping center. We had to take delivery of some paneling for the facility and, to do so, we were obliged to schedule our time at the loading dock which was restricted to one hour per day. So, the panelling shows up at the appropriate time and the superintendent goes down to unload it from the truck. The teamster (this was a hard line union project), looks at the superintendent when he arrives and the back door is still closed on his truck. He says he'll be leaving in 30 minutes. "Well....how do I get this truck door open?". Answer..."$100 will do the job."

Ahhhh...life in the northeast.

This should be a Weekend Post

OK.....in response to my friend Karen Farmer (far right), I take the liberty of adding this photo to BLOG.

I'm surrounded by attorneys (Farmer/Long) which is dangerous I know, but the more I know about lawyers, the more likely I am to help make their facility great. Anyhow...that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

DuraCap Poured

Beginning with preparation on Thursday and then pouring proceeding on Friday and Saturday, the DuraCap installation began and was completed. I'd say this was the most dramatic visual improvement to the building yet.

This work was done on Pray's schedule, so we are still looking at September 19th as the day the project will be substantially complete.

It's Crunch Time!!

I can always tell when a job is coming to the end because I feel like I need a body guard to accompany me on the job tour. Managed creative conflict.

In one week, the overlay of the existing floor (Dura-Cap) will take place...so the Pray team has been pushing the gypsum installation (which wants to be completed before dura-cap) and they have gotten permanent power in place in order to operate the air conditioning on a temporary basis for humidification control.

To top things off, the basement is experiencing some leaks, so now that source needs to be discovered and corrected.

The September 19th date stands per Pray Construction management.