Charlotte-based Adams Electric Company was recognized by the ABC of the Carolinas as the 2010 Specialty Contractor of the Year for several innovative processes and their design-assist and value engineering efforts. Adams helped the East Cooper Regional Medical Center in Mt. Pleasant SC to be completed two weeks early and under budget. The replacement hospital more than doubled the size of the old facility. “We brought Adams in early to meet with the owners and engineers to understand the systems and help manage the design process and to control costs,” says David Skipper, project manager for Robins & Morton, the project’s general contractor. “Their quality was excellent.”
As a start, Adams completely color-coded the conduit system. For example, the alarm system wires are red, while those for nurse calls are blue. “With easy-to-identify conduits, it makes it easier to troubleshoot and manage the facility,” Skipper says.
The Charlotte-based company also used a bar code scanning system instead of a punch clock to track workers’ hours. With more than 100 people on the job putting in 176,000 hours over a 22-month period, it was a big time and money saver. The crews performed some 250,000 square feet of electrical and systems installation that included fire alarm, nurse call, infant tracking, security and CCTV. Complex back-up systems for power generation were also installed.
The company ordered items such as light fixtures prepackaged in bulk to reduce the amount of cardboard used and purchased prefab components when possible to minimize labor costs.
The $10.9-million contract was a cost-plus-fee with a guaranteed maximum price, a new arrangement for Adams. “This style of contract makes you become a team member with the owner and general contractor,” observes Adams Vice President Phillip Parrish. “The owner was very precise and didn’t sit on making decisions.”
The hospital, a Level III trauma certified facility, has highly sophisticated power needs. It has an emergency helicopter landing pad, 130 patient rooms, eight operating rooms, 16 delivery rooms and a stroke care center. Click Here to view other project of the year finalists.