Ample equipment.
The complexities of structural drying Partnering with the facility team Educational facilities are subject to any number of common perils; water, sewer, fire, smoke, mould, trauma, vehicle impact, vandalism, contamination, asbestos, and lead. You know your facility best, and are the best judge of when you need to call in another professional for their expertise. Your critical considerations include the apparent magnitude and complexities of the damage, and the potential strain on your resources. You must consider the availability of facility staff for ongoing needs and projects, and depending on the time in the school calendar, how to best control the disruption or displacement of staff and students. With all these critical considerations, you want to feel confident that you have a pre-qualified and trusted restoration contractor on speed dial. Your restoration contractor should have certified project managers and technicians. Having a team of decision makers means quicker, more effective remediation and better end results. Knowing the restoration company adheres to the Best Practices for Water Remediation – ANSI/IICRC S500 and Environmental & Infection Control Procedures (CSA Z317.13-12) means reduced liability from subsequent issues. Your chosen restoration contractor must demonstrate adequate capacity and availability. Timely emergency response by a qualified crew with the right equipment can stop a Fresh Water Category 1 flood from progressing to a Category 3 Black Water flood. During 42
Ops Talk • Fall 2016
the prequalification phase, confirm what magnitude of damage remediation the contractor is able to effectively manage with in-house staff and equipment. In addition, confirm what additional resources are available should the need arise. Once on site, look for consistent implementation of safety controls and planning. Set up and demobilization of containment equipment should be a matter of routine efficiency, including setting up controlled access for equipment installation and removal of repair-related debris. The game changer for the facility team is knowing who to call when you find yourselves in that ‘grey area’; when you need a true partner to bring time and expertise to the situation, and to stand beside you to provide reliable information that is genuinely in the best interest of your facility. You call your prequalified restoration contractor to inspect, and depending on the findings, together you form a customized approach to stabilization, mitigation, and reconstruction. Let’s look at a case study where 60,000 gallons of water escaped from a failed four-inch supply line. The facility staff knew that keeping the facility healthy required prompt extraction and stabilization of the affected areas. Facility staff did a phenomenal job of prompt extraction, yet they suspected water had migrated into the building materials; how much was yet to be determined. What they needed next was a professional assessment of how much moisture remained in the varied structural materials and how to best dry them. Canstar was called to provide that expertise.
Case Study: 60,000-gallon fresh-water flood Day 1 – Inspection & detailed moisture mapping • 95 per cent of facility affected • Three-to-four inches of standing water, which facility staff extracted • One-and-a-half to two-foot saturation up walls • Double drywall in many areas • Firewalls affected • Insulation saturated • Plywood wet • Steel-studding holding water pockets • Wooden built-in cabinets, cubbies, lockers affected
