INTERSTATE ELECTRICAL
SERVICES MEETS MANCHESTER AIRPORT BAGGAGE SCREENING
PROJECT DEADLINE
Manchester, NH - Interstate Electrical
Services Corp. recently completed the deadline-driven
installation of new baggage screening equipment and
systems at Manchester Airport. The federal government
mandated the new automated explosives detection equipment
for all US airports, in response to post 9-11 passenger
safety concerns, and Manchester Airport officials publicly
stated that they would be the first in the nation to
meet the January 2003 deadline.
“I can’t speak highly enough
of Interstate Electrical. They were the key sub for
us on the job. Their people were so dedicated, and their
coordination efforts were instrumental in making this
project happen,” said Rob King, the Project Manager
with Harvey Construction, Construction Managers for
the project. “Without Interstate’s involvement,
this project would not have gone off as well as it did
and we would not have met the Airport’s commitment
of having a fully automated, in line baggage screening
system by December 31st.”
This deadline was met by an impressive
team effort. To complete the phased installations and
keep the busy terminals in full operation, electricians,
communications technicians and engineers from Interstate
worked with Harvey Construction to relocate six individual
airline ticketing and baggage counters, one airline
at a time. Six new Explosive Detection Systems (EDS)
were installed to work seamlessly with the new airport
baggage handling and conveyor systems.
The installation of these systems is
consistent with the Airport Director Kevin Dillon’s
vision to have a baggage screening system that is invisible
to the Airport’s passengers. Manchester Airport,
one of the only airports in the country experiencing
dramatic passenger growth, determined that the new equipment
should be kept out of lobby and gate areas of the terminals.
Interstate Electrical held three different
contracts for the project, one with Harvey Construction,
one with G&T Conveyor Company, Inc. for the conveyor
systems construction, and a third contract with the
Transportation Safety Administration (TSA), supplier
for the EDS machines. In addition to Interstate being
responsible for the control wiring for the conveyor
systems and the power for the EDS machines, they were
also responsible for all the typical office wiring for
the airline’s operations.
When the project commenced in mid August
of 2002, no plans and only partial drawings were available.
Besides a very tight schedule, very tight physical working
areas in the terminal further complicated the project.
“I was amazed to see all trades working in such
tight quarters without any problems,” said Joe
Ray, Project Manager from Interstate Electrical Services
Corp. “Everything went off so well. Everyone worked
around the clock. This was the best team effort that
I have ever experienced on a project.”
To make this project happen within
the January 2003 schedule, Ray said, “All parties,
including the Airport Authority, the airlines, the subcontractors,
vendors, and the design team, needed to cooperate as
a team.” |