Air handlers, chillers ready for 4850 Level

The Davis Campus at the 4850 Level will need a constant and reliable supply of cool, clean air, and the equipment to deliver it has arrived at the Yates Shaft yard. It includes five large air handlers, which have been delivered in 20 pieces, shrink-wrapped in blue plastic. Two 50-ton chiller plants also have been delivered.

Harlan Olson, a foreman for Tessier?s Inc., the mechanical subcontractor for Ainsworth Benning Construction, has helped install similar systems for clean rooms in hospitals throughout the region. Aside from the logistics of working 4,850 feet underground, Olson said, this project is like any other job. His crew of six has been working nights to avoid conflicts with other contractors. ?We?re used to it,? he says.

Last week Tessier?s focused on installing large duct work in the mechanical room of the Transition Area on the 4850 Level, where three of the air handlers will be installed. The other two will go in the chiller cutout.

Project Engineer Rick Labahn said Sanford Lab crews will start moving the air handlers down to the Yates Shaft to the 4850 Level this week. Olson said some of the units will have to be further disassembled to make the trip.