As a business that has been serving Florida for four generations, the team at WB Williamson Bros. Marine Construction Inc., Fort Myers, Fla., has worked on a lot of difficult projects and solved a lot of challenging assignments.
Hurricane damage college to move quickly
One of its most recent occurred at Pensacola State College (PSC) in Pensacola, Fla. Hurricane Sally left a path of destruction on the college campus when it stormed through the state’s Panhandle region in September 2020. The storm caused an estimated $7.3 billion in damage, with Pensacola receiving more than 24 inches of rain.
Just months after the pandemic upended campus life, PSC faced another crisis with flooded buildings, fallen trees and downed power lines. The hurricane also forced the college to replace roofs at several campus buildings. While most of the replacements were routine, workers found an unusual challenge at PSC’s Ashmore Auditorium, which is home to the college’s fine arts center and its performing arts department. The 338-seat auditorium hosts concerts, plays and other events throughout the year.
The college’s Ashmore Auditorium was significantly impacted by the hurricane, and required a total roof replacement.
The issue WB Williamson Bros. faced centered on removal and installation of smoke vents. “We weren’t aware the size of the existing smoke vents was no longer built,” says Chris Nicholas, senior project manager for WB Williamson Bros. “The existing vents were so old they didn’t make them anymore. We had to custom build them and reconfigure the roof design to make it work.”
Smoke vents protect property and support firefighters in bringing a fire under control by removing smoke, heat and gases from a burning building. Vents are ideal for venues such as auditoriums, factories, warehouses and retail facilities. Mechanical smoke vents are activated by the melting of a fusible link.
The original plan called for two vents, each 16 feet by 8 feet. When workers realized the vents would not fit in the openings, WB Williamson Bros. went back to BILCO, a manufacturer of specialty access products in New Haven, Conn., and ordered three, 4-foot by 8-foot by 8-inch smoke vents. The vents were spliced where hinges meet between the three units.
The project included the installation of three smoke vents manufactured by BILCO. The specially-made vents were spliced together where the hinges meet in one of the most challenging aspects of the roof replacement.
“It took quite a considerable amount of time and planning to make sure everything went well,’’ Nicholas says. “We thought, ‘okay, we’ll put up a couple of hatches, no big deal.’ But that wasn’t the case at all.”
Further issues arose with removal and installation. Workers brought in a crane, but the old vents wouldn’t budge. Led by business owner Joe Williamson, a three-man crew cut apart the vents and removed them by hand.
Wires, ropes and pulleys inside the auditorium for theatrical performances prevented workers from installing scaffolding to help support the process of splicing and installing the vents. “There is a level of gadgetry with all the wires, ropes and lighting in the attic space of the auditorium that made it a difficult project,’’ Nicholas says. “There was a limited amount of attic space above the stage where we could work.”
The project posed its share of challenges, but a team effort helped PSC recover from the devastating hurricane.
“Sometimes when we get a special order, as we did in this case, it’s very difficult to get something right,’’ Nicholas says. “Just about anything can go wrong. We worked with a great distributor in Waldo Brothers, [South Windsor, Conn.,] and we were pleased with their service. They delivered when they said they were going to deliver, and it worked out extremely well.”
Thomas Renner writes on building, construction, architecture and other trade industry topics for publications throughout the United States.
