Fall/Winter 2013 Featured Projects

Spotlight on a Few Stark Projects

CH 6/Bridge Replacement
Stark Excavating did the County Highway 6/7th street bridge replacement over Indian Creek in Fairbury, IL. This project began in August 2012 consisting of removal of the existing three span bridge structure and construction of a five span, continuously reinforced, concrete slab bridge, along with asphalt surfacing and other incidental work required to complete the section. Even though the project start was delayed three weeks due to utility conflicts, we were still able to complete the bridge, paving, and open the road by the December 15th deadline. Coordinating subcontractors to conform to our tight schedule and meeting deadlines was a significant challenge to overcome.

I-474 Bridge over Illinois River
Stark was contracted to perform work on the Shade Lohman bridge. This project began in the fall of 2011, and consisted of building two crossovers on the east and west ends of the bridge, allowing traffic to move back and forth from the eastbound bridge to the westbound bridge to accommodate staging. The crossover work included earthwork, drainage pipe, and aggregate base. In July 2012 Stark poured the latex overlay on the westbound bridge. The latex overlay for the eastbound bridge was completed in October 2012. Stark poured over 29,500 square yards of latex overlay on the two bridges. Over 13,900 LF of bidwell rail was set which translates to 6,950 brackets that also had to be set. One major challenge to overcome was the schedule that dictated we pour every four days requiring Stark to strip and set over 1,150 LF of bidwell rail in two days. In July on the westbound bridge Stark had to pour at night due to daytime heat, sun, and high winds. Stark poured the eastbound deck in October, scheduling pours around cold temperatures and rain while maintaining the schedule of pouring every four days. Stark had to closely estimate the latex quantity so there would be enough rock, sand, cement, and latex delivered since pouring took place at night and material sources would not be available. Throughout the project, estimating material needs was very difficult due to inconsistent deck thicknesses and limited room to stockpile material at the ends of the bridges. Due to pouring the deck the full width, all of the access was from one end of the deck. Stark had to bring latex in on one end and all of the curing materials and water source from the other end. Having no overhang brackets or walkways outside the deck required the finishing and wet curing to be done from three motorized work bridges.

Demo @ Parkway Cinemas
Stark began work in February at the site for the first downstate LA Fitness facility. This 45,000 square foot building is located at the previous Parkway Cinemas site on Veterans Parkway. Work completed to date on this project included the separation of the existing building from the adjacent buildings, demolition work, and foundation removal. One interesting challenge on this project was the partial demolition of an existing structure adjacent to operating businesses. This required extensive planning and preparation during the estimating process, and careful execution. Stark was able to salvage approximately 90% of the building by careful site planning, and meticulous sorting of materials onsite.

G-Block/College Avenue Apartments

When the College Avenue Apartment Deck was constructed in uptown Normal, an area was left un-touched for a future building to be constructed. Stark was awarded this contract to perform key work including sheet pile retention, undercut due to unstable soils, foundation work, storm, sanitary and water service installation, slab, structural steel and slab on metal deck. This project faced several challenges over the course of construction. The jobsite was very constricted as this was the last building to be erected and the footprint was confined to the remaining land available in that space. It was surrounded by streets which in turn, made it necessary for Stark to implement daily lane closures. Another challenge was that this project had a tight time schedule to get the foundations poured during a period in late December/early January when the holidays and weather conditions were a factor. Stark was given 5 – 1/2 weeks to complete this work. As soon as the contract was in hand, Stark immediately began foundation work. Footings began on December 7th 2012, and despite challenges, all foundations were completed ahead of schedule by January 7th. The slab-on-grade was poured on January 11th. The underground crew did a great job managing changes in the field due to unforeseen foundation issues. Stark also completed the structural steel for this project, which was the first time we had done the structural steel for a larger building. By February 2012, concrete slabs were ready and Stark was complete with the G-Block Apartment project. Several issues affected this project including differing site conditions and adjacent building foundations not being shown on the initial design drawings which affected proposed foundations. A lot of time was spent closely working with the architect, structural, and civil engineers to make changes as quickly as possible with no impact to the schedule.

CVS Pharmacy – Savoy

The project began in July 2012 and consisted of moving dirt, installing all of the site utilities, placing the building foundation, pouring the building slab and pouring all other site concrete. Along with the CVS site, Stark also performed work at the adjacent Reliable Mechanical property and the storage facility to the south of the work site. Stark crews constructed a new median in the center of Route 45. The work was completed by November 2012. One of the greatest reasons for success on this project was teamwork. All projects at Stark require teamwork, but this one in particular saw great attitudes, work effort and teamwork. The project was a complete success from the footings, floors, parking lot to curb. Our crews took exceptional pride in this project as it is located in the intersection of Route 45 and Curtis Road – the gateway to Savoy and Champaign. This project was located just East of the Curtis road project that Stark Excavating was proud to work on and complete in 2010. As commuters exit the new route onto Curtis Road from I-57 and head into Champaign, they are greeted by the exceptional work done by Stark all the way to Neil Street/Route 45. All brought to the people of Champaign and Savoy by Stark Excavating’s Team Champaign.

Case New Holland – Paint System Addition

Case New Holland (CNH), located in Goodfield, IL, is a manufacturer of agricultural tilling equipment. To improve efficiency, milled parts will be delivered to CNH and assembled, blasted, and painted at their new facility. Stark Excavating was subcontracted to begin work in August 2012 to install approximately 168,000 SF of pre-engineered building foundations, a 9″ concrete slab-on-grade, 4,600 SF by 13′ deep concrete pit, and two loading dock areas. Over the duration of this project, Stark’s crews had been comprised of both Peoria and Bloomington area employees due to the centralized location of the Goodfield facility. All subcontractors on this project had to work closely together to maintain the construction schedule. The plant remained operational during the construction of the addition and this created challenges with storing of materials and access to the new addition. Stark had a great team of workers who came together to make this project a success.