A construction worker carries
a beam for use on the solarium addition to Plemmons Student
Union. The project is currently behind schedule.
The solarium addition to Plemmons
Student Union is 60 days behind schedule, said Dr. Clyde D. Robbins,
director of design and construction.
The delay is due to an initial deferment in construction.
“The project started out behind schedule,” said W. Kelley
Ingram, project coordinator for the solarium.
“The general contractor did not man the project early on,”
Ingram said.
There was a “dispute” over whether or not the contractor
should be on the site initially, he said.
The general contractor is Crossley Construction from Knoxville,
Tenn., Ingram said.
Since the solarium is a multi-prime project, it is more involved
and has more contractors, Robbins said.
In addition to Crossley
Construction, Ingram said three other contractors have been hired
to handle plumbing, electric and mechanical concerns.
Cajah Mountain in Lenior will handle plumbing; Besco Electric in
Huntersville will preside over electrical work; and Holcombe Brothers
in Elkin will handle mechanical work.
Ingram would not provide names of individuals from the contractors
who are involved in the solarium project.
Crossley Construction deals with over 60 percent of the work done
on the solarium, Ingram said.
“A lot of the [other contractors] can’t work when the
general contractor isn’t finished,” Ingram said.
Ingram said 35 percent of the work is currently completed and contractors
are looking at a late January date for completion.
“A lot depends on what happens in a month to three weeks,”
Ingram said. “It’s a roll of the dice, to be honest.”
Ingram said contractors are putting together a recovery schedule
to deal with time lost due to project delays and inclement weather.
Once the walls and roof are up, then contractors can work on the
interior. If the walls and roof do not go up on time, then there
may be a delay for winter weather before interior work can begin,
Ingram said.
“If we have several weeks of good weather, there will be no
problems,” Ingram said.
Ingram said he is not aware of any more internal problems at this
point, and weather is the only setback anticipated.
