Posted on 07/14/2006 5:57:26 AM PDT by PajamaTruthMafia
Problems ignored in rush to wrap it up: Defects noted in ‘01
Big Dig officials discovered defects in a crucial metal support as they were pushing to wrap up construction of I-90 tunnel ceilings in 2001, but did not make substantial design changes amid a growing concern about the project’s escalating costs, secret documents obtained by the Herald reveal.
The supports used for the concrete ceiling panels that collapsed this week and killed 38-year-old Milena Del Valle were not fully weather-protected or fabricated to contract standards - a deficiency reported to the lead contractor, project manager Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff and the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority during construction, the bombshell documents show.
In September 2001, a Big Dig “deficiency report” indicated that a key part of the ceiling hanger known as the clevis was not “fabricated and galvanized” to contract specifications. The report also stated the clevises, which connect to metal rods supporting 3-ton slabs that collapsed, were found to be plagued by “significant rust.”
The revelations were uncovered yesterday as Big Dig inspectors reported the number of flawed ceiling hangers discovered in the Interstate 90 tunnel has exploded to about 250. The flawed hangers were found in east and westbound lanes, along with the HOV lanes and ramps connecting motorists to Interstate 93 north and south.
Criminal investigators with Attorney General Tom Reilly’s Office are focusing on problems with a combination of anchor bolts and epoxy that appeared to be in various stages of failure throughout the tunnel.
Gov. Mitt Romney said the extent of deficiencies reported to him by engineers is “appalling” and that design and construction decisions made on the Interstate 90 connector appeared to be driven by a desire to “save money.”
The cost of the contract to install ceilings and other finishes in the Interstate 90 connector skyrocketed to $91.8 million in 2003 from $64.1 million when work began in 1999.
Romney’s allegation of corner cutting is supported by a 1998 letter from ex-Big Dig project director Peter Zuk in which he stated that alterations to ceiling support methods used in the Ted Williams Tunnel were “the most economical solution” that did not “compromise the design or the schedule.”
In the same letter, Zuk states that problems with drilling into steel in the Ted Williams Tunnel caused project officials to devise a new system for subsequent construction in the I-90 connector.
“We have identified a better way to make connections into the roof concrete, a special insert that is embedded in the concrete into which anchors can be placed without the need to locate or drill through (steel) rebar,” Zuk stated in the letter.
Former Inspector General Robert Cerasoli, who compiled the report that contained Zuk’s letter, said yesterday, “They take responsibility for it right (in the letter).”
Massachusetts Turnpike Authority officials declined to comment yesterday on specific problems with ceiling hangers referenced in the report obtained by the Herald.
The existence of the deficiency report indicates that contractors and project managers were aware of the problem with the ceiling hangers and flagged the deficiency. But the documents reviewed by the Herald did not indicate when and if the deficiency was corrected.
A spokesman for Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, which was responsible for ensuring deficiencies were correct, declined to comment yesterday, saying the matter is part of a criminal investigation. Lead contractor Modern Continental said it “complied with the plans and specifications” and that its “work was inspected and approved by the Central Artery Tunnel Project.”
It's obvious this is FEMA's fault. They need to start passing out $2,000 credit cards to the citizens using the tunnel. The city did nothing wrong, nor did the representatives and senators who procured federal dollars to build the pork tunnel.
2001? When Bush became president. Coincidence? I think not!
I joke about this, but how many people are going to blame Bush for real?
SAVE MONEY?!! Where in the world was money saved on this? Money was surely stolen but not saved.
This management style seems to be all too common in our culture.
As a loss prevention consultant for 14 years, I and my colleagues would repeatedly recommend specific cost effective improvements. Low and mid-level employees of the company would also make cost effective recommendations. We accurately predicted what would happen if the improvements were not made. Then, when the loss occurred, we would say "see I told you so". And the management which had ignored the advice claimed that it was unknown and could not be foreseen.
Then I switched to IT where the same thing happens. Repeatedly in design meetings my co-workers or I will describe a better cost effective way to design a software application. Repeatedly management ignores good advice. Then, when the project fails, or the application fails to deliver the hoped for competitive advantage, management pretends that the early and good advice they had been given had never been given.
In both non-IT and IT, the person who can out-negotitate the other side in assessing blame and paying for the damage AFTER THE LOSS is always paid much more than the person who can design a good system that will not have the loss in the first place.
I heard about some of the totally unrelated things Big Dig money paid for years ago, but I forget the specifics. It seemed like anyone with the right political connections could just get in line and walk off with fistfuls of cash. Sort of like the New Orleans levee situation. No wonder they had to economize on the project itself.
You are so right on this! Cut the designer cost, which has a piddling effect on total project cost, but restricts the designer from doing quality work. Now the other side: Unscrupulous designers negotiate and get maximum fees and due to greed, minimize work effort to maximize their profits.
What's the solution? Hang those that are unscrupulous.
Sounds to me like you are still a cynic ... and honest about reality.
As a loss prevention consultant on behalf of insurance companies, I consulted to a large trucking company, and to a large sheetmetal factory. In each case they were paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in insurance premium and the insurance company was paying millions of dollars in claims. Claims for workers comp, fender benders, mysterious disappearance of truckloads of candy and cigarettes, etc. The people settling the big claims made hundreds of dollars per hour.
I successfully put in "safety programs" that changed the entire workflow of the companies. The claims went from millions of dollars per year to under $50,000 per year.
Even more significantly, the trucking company had high deductibles and was eating a lot of fender benders out of pocket. Plus, the driver wasted hours of time filling out accident reports while the candy was melting in his truck.
At the sheet metal factory the work flow from raw material to finished stainless steel sink for restaurant had previously criss-crossed the factory floor, causing the material to be moved more often, and longer distances, and conflicting with other material movement, which was the environment of most workers comp claims.
My redesign increased productive use of employee's time and increased the ability of the companies to increase output and sales with no increase in overhead.
But for saving the insurance company many millions of dollars and each company at least a million dollars per year, I was paid about $1,000.
Now I'm still consulting to insurance companies and making six figures. But my value to the insurance companies is not as much now as it was when I was doing loss prevention.
Now I'm consulting on "computer application performance". Most of my advice is not taken. Applications run inefficiently. If my advice were taken more often, response time of thousands of users would improve and the companies I consult to could have more productive (and happier) employees.
I receive emails from recruiters offering me more money to do "fire fighting" answering phone calls at 3 AM to fix things that go wrong. But that "more money" is not offered to designers to deisign it right in the first place.
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