The Airside 3 is one of the rehabilitation and restoration efforts at the Orlando International Airport.

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In 2006, the same year as the 25th anniversary of the opening of Airside 3 terminal at Orlando International Airport, Hensel Phelps Construction Co. was awarded the terminal’s rehabilitation and hurricane restoration project. The scope of the project involves upgrading the mechanical and electrical infrastructure, upgrading the wings and expanding the hub in all four quadrants to allow for expanded concessions and retail shops.

Hensel Phelps Vice President and Southeast District Manager Mike Choutka says the project is a reaction to the 2004 hurricane season. “Three hurricanes that came through central Florida that year, and they did significant damage to the airside,” he explains. “Shortly after that occurred, the airport put out a pre-qualification package for contractors that were interested in participating in the design/build renovation program for Airside 1 and Airside 3.”

Choutka says Hensel Phelps submitted its qualification and was short-listed with three other firms to bid on both airside projects. During the next 18 months, the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) performed preliminary design work while trying to identify additional sources of funding.

In that time, “the project morphed into something different,” Choutka says. “But, each time the airport gave us an update on the changes, we told them we were interested in the project regardless of what process they chose.”

The project was eventually put out as a fixed-price competitive bid. Hensel Phelps was competing against one other firm, and Hensel Phelps had the lower price.

The project broke ground in November 2006 and is scheduled for completion in March 2009.

Southeast Leader
Founded in 1937, Hensel Phelps builds a diverse range of projects, across the United States, including new construction and renovations of commercial, airport, hospitality, entertainment, correctional, healthcare, federal and defense-related, and higher education projects.

The company completes jobs across the country with offices in Colorado, California, Arizona, Texas, Virginia and Florida. From its Orlando location – the office that is overseeing the Airside 3 project – Hensel Phelps services its Southeast District.

Hensel Phelps’ Southeast District opened in 1998. Already the company had a reputation for being “a significant airport builder,” Choutka notes. “One of the first projects we got in Florida was constructing a new control tower for the FAA.”

Hensel Phelps came into the Airside 3 project with solid experience. However, Project Manager Andrew Masters says the project was still challenging. For example, Hensel Phelps needed to build and erect temporary walls around the occupied areas and perform work in enclosed areas to keep out of travelers’ way. “We perform a majority of the work at night to minimize any passenger or employee inconvenience, and our subcontractors were on board with us, so it went smoothly,” he says.

Additionally, Choutka says, the project involved retrofitting several skylights above passenger loading areas. Again, the company relied on structures to shield the public from its work and minimize disturbances. “We used temporary, portable, reusable hurricane-rated tent structures over the skylight work area,” he explains. “These tents are a faster, lower-cost approach than building temporary roofing structures.”

Operations Manager Charlie Barnard notes the company took an innovative approach to the skylight in the airport’s central hub. Rather than remove the skylight and install the new one – leaving a hole in the roof – the company plans to install the new skylight about a foot from the original, with the roof still in place. “This way, we won’t interrupt the building’s envelope or exposed the interiors to the weather,” he explains.

In addition to the Airside 3 project, Hensel Phelps worked on the airport’s Airside 1 project, as well as inline baggage screening projects. “We’ve developed some good relationships through both our previous and current projects,” Barnard states. “We’ve teamed with some very capable subs, such as our mechanical contractor S.I. Goldman and our electrical contractor B&S Diversified.” He also points to Met-Con Inc., Castle Contractors Co., Environmental Interiors and Architectural Aluminum Techniques as key partners.

“And of course, the people at GOAA are great partners,” Choutka says. “The reason we keep bidding projects there is that we really enjoy our working relationship. They do a good job of running projects smoothly, without bogging everyone down with too much red tape.

“A lot of that is to the credit of Steve Gardner, executive director,” he continues. “GOAA really takes a no-nonsense approach to get the job done. They make decisions based on what’s best for the project, and we enjoy that and hope to keep working with them. Our goal is to be their contractor of choice.”