Project: Harris County Joint Processing Center
>>> In an effort to expand its capacity for inmate processing and its associated administrative space requirements, Harris County built the new three-story Processing Center on a compact site that is adjacent to its other jail facilities in the downtown Houston area.
The new building is predominantly masonry construction both inside and out. Our scope of work included the exterior masonry veneer, consisting of 270,000 king-size brick and 12,000 12” x 24” x 4” thick burnished block, and, the interior CMU walls, consisting of 770,000 lightweight CMU.
The aggressive construction schedule required that we continually man the job at full capacity. The constrained site offered little storage area for material, so careful planning of material deliveries was required in order to keep pace with the construction schedule and to ensure that our work crews always had the necessary materials available. Getting materials into, and distributed throughout, the building’s interior required careful consideration in order to keep the materials stocked as needed and not to impede the progress of the work of other trades. Unforeseen problems encountered by other subcontractors affected our plan throughout the duration of the project, causing us to relocate and remobilize our work force numerous times.
Our goal was to meet the challenges of the project site and provide a first-class masonry installation that would be completed on time and within budget while remaining cognizant of the security standards required for this type of facility.