Loading...As electrical professionals, the NECA/IBEW Powering America Team is constantly asking a million dollar question – How do we optimize speed to meet or exceed a site’s demanding schedule? What needs to be done to move quicker and more efficiently, without compromising the final product? For us, the answer comes down to moving onsite construction offsite – prefabrication.
By bringing a portion of the work into a controlled environment, where hands-on work can be completed without the constraints of weather, coordination with other trades, waste, and safety hazards, we’re able to save the client time, and most importantly, money. Project Manager, Matt Hudson, with Turner Construction Company backs this ideology up wholeheartedly, “Anytime you can take work out of the field and put it in the shop where it’s a more controlled environment, we’re all going to be better off.” We see this in action in Downtown Seattle, at The Waverly Apartment Complex that’s nearing completion.
The repetitive nature of apartment complexes allows NECA Contractor Sequoyah Electric to streamline its efforts in prefabrication. As the same object is created over and over again, the electrical train continues to move smoothly. With 84 units in just the first 3 floors of The Waverly, getting started early was imperative for the success of the project. With a solid prefabrication process, and things like conduit bends, welding racks, and one-line panels being constructed at their offsite warehouse, the IBEW members working on this project are able to bring a positive meaning to “time is money”.
By removing uncertain variables like weather, safety risks, noise, and distractions, The Waverly project moved swiftly, and is now on track to be completed by February 2022, without compromising the attention to detail and perfect touch that the Powering America team provides.