RIDC Mill 19 is the adaptive renovation of Mill 19 at the former LTV Steel fabrication site into a multi-tenant facility that will be anchored by Carnegie Mellon University’s Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing Institute.  This thesis program will focus on Phase A of the project, which is a three story, approximately 102,000 gross square feet high bay building constructed under the existing steel shell of the old mill building (building within a building).  Technical Reports 1, 2, and 3 focus on information about the various implemented systems, site logistics, and multiple interviews from onsite members of the project team.  The analyses in this proposal are comprised of an in-depth investigation into Mill 19’s mechanical and structural system, treatment of severely rusted areas of the existing structural skeleton, and the effectiveness of team building.

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Analysis #1: Geothermal Well Mechanical System

           

Geothermal wells generally provide better life-cycle costs compared to typical electric boiler and cooling tower mechanical systems.  Mill 19 is intended to be a landmark in the greater Pittsburgh area for the foreseeable future, so it would be beneficial to invest in a mechanical system that can achieve this goal.  The area immediately surrounding the existing mill structure is relatively spacious and could easily provide a large enough area to house the geothermal well field necessary to implement the system into the project

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Analysis #2: Alternative Foundation System

 

The site had to over-excavated by roughly 20 feet due to the results of the geotechnical report showing that the below-grade soil did not meet the bearing capacity requirements for the foundation system.  Additionally, this soil was identified as hazardous, so a complicated and costly process of locating a depot that would accept it was carried out by the project team.  This analysis will compare another foundation type, possibly a deep system instead of the shallow footer and grade beam system in place to take advantage of the over-excavation.

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Analysis #3: Treatment of Existing Steel

           

The remaining structural skeleton of Mill 19 has show advanced rust on the steel column and beam members.  This has caused several problems for the project as small flakes of severely rusted steel have eroded from the structure and have fallen into the construction area.  An effort was made to sandblast the effected areas early in process but failed, so this analysis will identify two epoxy or sealants that could effectively combat and prevent any future rusting issues.

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Analysis #4: The Effectiveness of Team Building

 

Managing a project team effectively is a significant factor in whether the project finishes on time and under budget. Team building contains various approaches, but usually consists of the project manager or other member of the project team organizing events social gatherings and events outside of the work place to help people become more comfortable with one another.  The goal of this research will be to identify a link between team building and increased project management efficiency.