• 1,000,000 square-foot warehouse facility with an additional 50,000 square-foot office space and 255,000 square-foot mezzanine.

• The project duration was ten (10) months from breaking ground to temporary certificate of occupancy / substantial completion.

• The project averaged over 175 construction workers on site for the duration of the project.

• There were over ten (10) phased early access dates for the tenant of the building.

Project Tarpon is a large 1,000,000 square-foot industrial warehouse with a 50,000 square-foot office space and an additional 255,000 square-foot structural mezzanine for an eCommerce client. The project broke ground in October 2019, began ten phased turnovers to the client in March 2020, and was substantially complete on July 30, 2020. Safety was emphasized from project commencement, creating a culture that workers were able to safely complete their work on schedule. This safety culture continued as the COVID-19 pandemic began, bringing implementation of new requirements to allow, on average, 175 construction workers daily to stay safe and healthy while continuing their work. Project Tarpon underwent over forty design revisions from its inception that our team was able to integrate into the project while maintaining the original project schedule. In a short ten months, the facility has brought over 1,000 new jobs to the local community.

The project utilized a multitude of different quality assurance / quality control methods in the construction of Project Tarpon. Prior to the commencement of work, Clayco held pre-meetings with the subcontractors, manufacturers, and design team to resolve any potential issues upfront. Then, site inspections and testing were completed as necessary by third party agents, manufacturers, technical reps, owners, and consultants throughout construction. In addition to these inspections, Clayco utilized its Technical Assurance Group (TAG) to review submittals and shop drawings along with conducting pre-testing activities for critical infrastructure for systems including mechanical units, electrical systems, fire protection systems, glazing systems, and all life-safety systems to execute the project.

The project provided many full-time construction jobs throughout the duration of construction, which led to job security for workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of the additional traffic in a previously rural area, road improvements were necessary for workers to safely travel to and from the job site daily. The roads were both widened and extended to add additional roads and lighting. Once fully operational, the Project Tarpon facility will provide the local community with an additional 1,000+ jobs and opportunity for the surrounding communities to grow.

Safety as a whole on Project Tarpon was a huge win. There were many high-risk activities that, due to extensive pre-planning conducted by the project team, were completed safely without issue. This resulted in 180 days of injury-free work on site. With 40 foot clear heights and a 255,000 square-foot structural mezzanine, steel erection was a major component of this project. The team was able to complete steel erection on schedule and safely using over 6,000 tons of material in 15,000 onsite ironwork manhours. Another safety milestone was the achievement of 100 rooftop units being lifted via helicopter over two (2) phases of work without incident. Project Tarpon recognized the safety success of this project by creating a safety recognition program for on site workers, which included weekend getaways at the Great Wolf Lodge and a Cardinals vs. Cubs baseball weekend trip to St. Louis.

• Abt Electronics is the largest independently owned, single-location retailer of electronics, appliances and home goods in the United States. The company contracted McShane to add 429,524 square feet to their existing warehouse and showroom facility in Glenview, Illinois. The addition incorporates two three-story office blocks totaling 22,230 square feet and 407,294 square feet of warehouse space.

• The expansion more than doubled Abt’s warehouse space, enabling the company to improve their efficiency by having less stock-outs. The additional space also allows them to expand product lines with new items.

• Abt’s existing facility and showroom remained fully operational throughout construction, so McShane took extra steps and precautionary methods to ensure that construction did not interfere with operations.

• It is estimated that the expansion will create 100 new jobs for the community.

• Construction was completed safely and efficiently. The project ended with a perfect safety record: ZERO OSHA recordables, ZERO restricted duty cases and ZERO lost-time days.

Abt Electronics contracted McShane Construction Company to add 430,000 square feet to their existing warehouse and showroom facility in Glenview, Illinois. The addition incorporates two three-story office blocks along with 407,000 square feet of warehouse space. The single-story warehouse offers a 32′ clear height, 39 semi-truck docks and 144 box truck positions. The expansion more than doubled Abt’s warehouse space, enabling the company to improve their efficiency by having less stock-outs. The additional space also allows them to expand product lines with new items. It is estimated that the expansion will create 100 new jobs for the community.

Abt’s existing facility and showroom remained fully operational throughout construction, so McShane took extra steps and precautionary methods to ensure that construction did not interfere with operations. In the end, the project with a perfect safety record.

Abt Electronics contracted McShane to add 429,524 square feet to their existing warehouse and showroom facility in Glenview, Illinois. The facility is a source of pride for Abt, so it was important for them to engage a general contractor who could meet their quality expectations. The addition incorporates two three-story office blocks totaling 22,230 square feet and 407,294 square feet of warehouse space. The office buildouts include trucking offices, security offices, a break room and open office space for future buildouts. The single-story warehouse offers a 32′ clear height, 39 semi-truck docks and 144 box truck positions. Additionally, the precast facility has pre-engineered metal canopies and EIFS screen walls for box truck loading. The semi-truck docks have full control panels with dock locks, and all dock positions have power-operated doors and hydraulic dock equipment. McShane also demolished Abt’s old recycling building and connected the new one to Abt’s existing warehouse.

Abt’s existing facility remained fully operational throughout construction, which posed some challenges for the McShane team. To ensure that construction did not interfere with operations, all construction traffic was required to follow a very specific traffic pattern. Additionally, a number of systems within the addition were connected to Abt’s existing systems and necessitated shutdowns during installation. The McShane team coordinated these shutdowns to occur at times that would not interfere with Abt’s store hours.

Another challenge that McShane faced was that the new building was constructed over existing storm lines that had to be maintained during construction. McShane carefully coordinated their construction activities so that the lines would not be damaged.

To monitor progress and quality throughout construction, the McShane team used weekly drone photos. Additionally, PlanGrid, a project management software, was used to communicate any changes and updates to all subcontractors.

Abt is a household name in the Chicago area, and the addition to their facility allows them to expand their business as they work to meet the changing needs of consumers. The expansion more than doubled Abt’s warehouse space, allowing the company to improve their efficiency by having less stock-outs. With worldwide supply chain disruptions, it is more important than ever for a retailer like Abt to keep inventory on hand. Given that Abt sells large items such as kitchen appliances, fitness equipment and televisions, warehouse space is very valuable. With more space, the company is also able to expand their product lines with new items. With 144 new box truck positions, Abt is also able to make more deliveries to customers in the surrounding area. This, in turn, benefits the surrounding community, as consumers will be able to get their products when they need them without having to wait months for backorders.

Additionally, the expansion will create an estimated 100 new jobs for community members.

McShane Construction Company instituted its comprehensive Safety and Quality Assurance program throughout the project, led by the firm’s dedicated Vice President of Safety and Risk Management. McShane’s priority on safety and its high standards of training, implementation and on-site supervisory governance provided a superior degree of awareness and safe practices throughout the construction process. As a result, the project team was able to minimize safety incidents through the duration of construction. In the end, after more than 80,000 project man-hours, Abt Electronics had a perfect safety record with zero OSHA recordables, restricted duty case and lost-time days.

• 298,839-square-foot, single story spec industrial building built on 23.21 acres of Commerce Park Chicago on the far Southeast Side.

• Commerce Park Chicago is being developed by NorthPoint Development at the former site of the Republic Steel plant on South Avenue O. Vacant for over 20 years.

• Eight acres of land required remediation, and a large existing detention pond to capture full park runoff required soil densification before start of work.

• Includes 28 dock positions at the start of occupancy and space for 33 future locations

• The project is one of the first in NorthPoint Development’s 200-acre Avenue O Industrial Park, a new 2.3 million-square-foot, master-planned development. The site, previously home to the Republic Steel mill, will be one of the largest new industrial developments in the city of Chicago in 15 years.

Building A on NorthPoint Development’s Commerce Park is the second build-to-suit building constructed on the site. Nearly 300,000-square-feet, the industrial spec building contains 199 parking spaces, 72 spaces for trailer parking, and is comprised of precast concrete. It clears 36’ height and contains two drive-in doors. The surrounding industrial park includes nearly 200 acres and 2.3 million-square feet of light manufacturing, assembly and logistics space that will support 500 annual construction jobs and up to 1,400 permanent jobs when it’s fully built.

The project was a redevelopment of the old Republic Steel factory site. It required remediation and repurposing of a dilapidated site into new industrial business park. The project consists of a structural steel diaphragm with loading bearing precast and ballasted roof. Aluminum storefront entrances allow for subdivision of the building into a maximum of five tenants. Precast was set from interior with lattice boom crawler crane over an eight-day period (256 panels) following PCI standards. Structural steel columns, girders, joists and decking (spot weld fastening, not Hilti pins) totaling 834 tons total were safely erected over a five-week period following AISC standards.

The surrounding industrial park includes nearly 200 acres and 2.3 million-square feet of light manufacturing, assembly and logistics space that will support 500 annual construction jobs and up to 1,400 permanent jobs when it’s fully built.

Community involvement metrics include:

19 MBE/WBE firms totaling $6,987,867 involved
91% State of Illinois Spend (local spend)
40.4% onsite diverse workforce
29% of hours worked by City of Chicago Residents

The project went the entire duration injury and incident free from the first onsite day on June 15, 2020 to the Certificate of Occupancy day on October 18th, 2021. A total of 491 days. Clayco also stationed a full-time registered nurse at the jobsite to ensure employee safety during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.