In a unique two-for-one deal, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, representatives joined Fort Detrick and Frederick officials to cut the ribbon on two recently completed, key projects.
Rainy weather moved the May 21 celebration inside the Consolidated Logistics Facility (CONLOG) as garrison and local dignitaries also highlighted completion of the Nallin Gate project.
Both projects are designed to support the increased traffic, and mission and logistical requirements on the garrison by the completion of the National Interagency Biodefense Campus (NIBC).
Both projects are also the result of multi-year cooperation and communication between the Engineering Division Military Design Branch, the Fort Detrick garrison, the Programs and Project Management Division-Military, Construction Division, and state of Maryland agencies including the Department of the Environment and, in this case, the State Highways Administration.
Rob Williams, Programs and Project Management Division-Military, was the project manager for both projects and kept all of the stakeholders informed on issues and progress.
The $23 million two-warehouse Consolidated Logistics Facility will improve the distribution efficiency for packages on post, as well as house the U.S. Army garrison safety office, motor pool, and the Directorate of Public Works maintenance facility.
The $12 million Nallin Gate project included a new garrison access point with an inspection facility for cars and trucks, and a visitor's center. This required extensive coordination with city of Frederick and Maryland transportation officials to install traffic control upgrades and a new intersection from Opossumtown Pike onto Fort Detrick. The overall project construction began in early 2011. Pat Welker, Construction Resident Engineer, took part in the day-to-day activities, especially the complex utility relocation along Opossiumtown Pike. The new Nallin Gate is approximately 150 yards north of the current gate.
"The purpose of the new access control point is to replace a non-compliant and capacity-limited Opossumtown Gate with improved access that can process trucks and privately owned vehicles," said Rob Williams, Corps project manager. "This will be a state-of-the art military installation entry point. It will meet current Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection standards, establish an east-west route for the northern part of the installation, and provide a long-term avenue for trucks to access in National Interagency Biodefense Campus now under construction."
The visitor control center can accommodate pedestrians and bicycle access. At the new gate, over 200 vehicles could be in line, thus removing a roadway safety issue. In addition, there will be a large and modern truck vehicle inspection point, another key component of the project. Trucks entering at the new gate will have easier access to Consolidated Logistics warehouses and the NIBC campus.
The district's Engineering Division military design branch played an important role for both projects. Utilizing multiple engineering disciplines, Christy Pispitsos led the in-house design team to create the 10-15 percent design criteria package as a design-build project that accompanied the request for proposal for both projects. This conceptual level of design information is essential so that bidders can make an effective bid on what we require.
In addition, military installation access control points must meet exacting requirements from both Department of Defense and Army anti-terrorism/force protection (AT/FP) criteria. Civil Engineer Ben Wible was the lead designer and worked to orient the layout for the project, performed an engineering study and provided the conceptual level technical drawings. He also coordinated with the USACE Protective Design Center in Omaha District, the Center of Expertise for the Corps, to ensure that all design elements met AT/FP standards.
Designed in 2009 and awarded in January 2011, the CONLOG project combined several garrison warehouses with a more efficient design and a smaller square footage footprint on the installation. The district's design oriented the structure on the site and met the garrison's specific requirements for underground utility siting. "Alison Kerr was the lead architect for the development of the design-build request for proposal for the CONLOG facility," noted Kathleen O'Neill, chief, Military Design Branch. "Alison worked very hard to ensure that the design-build request for proposal and the final design met all functional and aesthetic criteria, including ensuring that the final design for the facility was consistent with the requirements of the RFP."
Both design and construction project managers were in frequent coordination with Fort Detrick officials and senior DoD medical officials who funded the work. Williams noted that Corps and garrison officials also briefed the local Neighborhood Advisory Councils to keep them apprised.
Both of the facilities are Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certified Silver, making them another addition to Fort Detrick's environmental efforts. The CONLOG facility also contains an area to plug in several electric vehicles and has lights that are motion detected. "This is a great day. It's been a long day in coming. The city views this as a partnership, and we are proud of the partnership with Fort Detrick," said Frederick City Mayor Randy McClement.