Marine Science Lab

Diving deep into marine science

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Warwick Academy has recently meetings and passed them on to Jonathan completed its new marine Gaugain, owner at JAG Construction, science facility, built on and Gary McCullough, Warwick’s campus property along Harbour Road in facilities manager to help with the Warwick. blueprint of the project.

Jessica Young, who teaches The building required a plumbing environmental systems and is department system similar to the ones at BIOS and head at Warwick Academy, says, “The BAMZ, and this was one of the major harbour is a diverse ecosystem, and this focuses of the design and construction. facility provides many opportunities for Ms. Young says they had to get creative study. The lab is not just exclusively for as this wasn’t a “regular house design with use by our students: We are also in talks regular plumbing. These basic designs with Bermuda College who are interested don’t work. It has to be specific, to in offering a degree in marine science; provide for the tanks and lab facilities the BIOS (Bermuda Institute of Ocean students use.” Sciences) has said there are some things Mr. Gaugain says of the plumbing it would like to do at our dock; and we system: the saltwater gets picked up are also inviting government schools that and sent to the first of two 1,000-gallon can’t get all the way down to BIOS to tanks with baffles. The system requires use our facility. We want it to benefit the industrial and higher-pressure water flow whole community and to be inclusive.” Schedule 80 PVC pipes to make the

Ms. Young says two ongoing activities transfer. would be storm surge monitoring and a “We had to go with a bigger pipe coral storage holding facility, which will because of marine growth,” Mr. Gaugain be used for artificial reef-building. says. “If we went with a smaller one, it

Prior to construction, BIOS and the would get growth, which would starve Bermuda Aquarium, Museum, and the system and strain the pumps. We Zoo (BAMZ) volunteered their time to used Schedule 80 pipes for durability and discuss their facilities so that Warwick longevity.” could learn from their experience. Roz There are blank flange ends on the Wingate, Warwick Academy’s science pipes to make cleaning easy. He adds: technician, and marine center coordinator, “The system is designed so all the ends attended and took notes from those come off. You stick a bottle cleaner down the pipe and push the growth out at the other end. That will have to happen every six months to a year.”

Mr. Gaugain says union joints on the pipes make it easy to disassemble part of the system.

The system also uses two 2-hp pool pumps. One is the main, and the second functions as a backup in case of breakdown or maintenance.

The water flows to a pipe sticking up through the middle of the first tank to allow the water to spill in it. Once the water reaches a certain height, it flows through another pipe to the second tank. This allows for sediment to remain in the first tank.

The water from the second tank then flows underneath decking, then up to the lab’s eight workstations in the pagoda. This system allows the water to be clear rather than cloudy.

Each of the workstations has 1-footdeep plastic bins, in which the students will conduct their experiments.

The pagoda has 12 cement-filled fiberglass columns to hold it in place against hurricanes. Because the lab sits at the water’s edge, there were hurricane protection considerations that needed to be met. “When it was originally designed, it was 4 or 5 feet closer to the water’s edge,” Mr. McCullough says. “We had to pull it back and up to make

sure we weren’t going to be hit by waves. We also had to recap the face of the dock with reinforced concrete, so we don’t have anything breaking away.”

The new wall is 18 inches thick and 8 inches taller than the previous one. “The whole process of building along the waterfront was quite restrictive from planning as to what we could build, and how much we could build,” Mr. McCullough says.

Underneath the loading bay, excavation helped create enough space to build a science equipment storage unit and a bathroom. The storage room also holds a storage tank for sewage. Mr. McCullough says, “Because of the caves under the ground, the sewage has to go into a storage tank and then is pumped out by truck. That was one of the problems we faced, as we didn’t want to put pollutants back into the harbour.”

He adds that one of the most challenging parts of the project was having to map out where the caves were before construction began. That involved close cooperation with the government to gain approval for the marine centre.

“The plumbing was the biggest challenge,” Mr. Gaugain continues. “I’ve been a contractor for 22 years. After a while, it is just work, so it is nice to do something different, interesting, and to have a new challenge. It’s not

just throwing up block and mortar, as we can do that in our sleep, so it was enjoyable to do this. The design was done well.” Q

Marine science lab on Harbour Road

KEY CONTRACTORS

• JAG Construction Ltd

New chapter for 1960’s bank building

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Around the world, impractical one of the most unusual uses – a new life of Bermuda safes have been extensively bank buildings with grand as office bathrooms. repurposed as part of the work to turn the banking halls have lost their An integral part of the original building into 80,000 sq.ft. of prime office purpose due to ATM’s and digital construction and therefore prohibitively space, with retail and leisure units on the payments. The former Bank of Bermuda expensive to remove, the four huge Bank ground floor. building at Albuoy’s Point was no exception. It was put up for sale and bought by the Green family in 2019.

Point House, as it is now named, is the latest commercial complex to be built by the Green’s. They also built the stateof-the-art Waterloo House, completely renovated The Hamilton Princess and Beach Club, and also purchased Dorchester House and adjacent Hemisphere House on Church Street. Hemisphere House was subsequently demolished to create car parking for tenants of Dorchester House.

One of the challenges in redesigning such a building, is what to do with the old bank safes.

And surely Bermuda has come up with

It was not a simple conversion. As the name suggests, a safe has to be safe and in this case that meant the safes were encased in 18-inch walls and ceilings. To enlarge the space and put in the pipework meant drilling and cutting through the concrete. It was a huge project.

Given its location, it is a high-profile site and passers-by will have seen the different stages – from stripping the building bare to exterior cladding and glass being added.

Those passers-by, however, would probably not have seen how all the vertical columns were stripped and then completely recast to give clean lines and how the old arched windows were also remodeled and recast. As the windows are added, any resemblance to what the building used to look like completely disappears.

Where once there was a gym, underground parking is now taking shape. But perhaps the biggest change people will see when the hoardings are taken away is the entrance. When the bank occupied the building there was only one entrance. Now there are two – one for the office users and one for the public which will lead them into a vast space on the ground floor.

Originally it had been hoped that the mezzanine floor – the one above the main

banking hall where you spent your lunch hour queuing to cash your pay check – would stay, but the designs changed and instead a new ceiling was added, increasing office space by 4,000 square feet.

The impressive new entrance is oneand-a-half stories high and will have floor to ceiling windows, adding to the natural light that will flow through the area from

KEY CONTRACTORS

• Atlantic Construction Ltd • BAC • BUE • D&J Construction Co Ltd • D&J Excavation &

Landscaping Ltd • Island Glass • Horsfield Landscape & Design

Ltd • R-Co Steel Fabricators Ltd

The original building

the windows overlooking Albuoy’s Point. It will also be covered by a balcony, where artwork will be installed.

Like most projects, it has been affected by Covid-19, but Jason Mackertich, a partner at architect firm Botelho Wood which is overseeing the project, says “we will be fitting out later this year,

Under construction

the ceiling will be going up and some common spaces will be created.

“There is a trend towards smaller office spaces and remote working now and, if need be, the office space can be easily partitioned.”

He adds “It’s been a great project to work on. It’s not been without its challenges, such as the safes, but it is going to be a stunning looking building. It has breathed new life into a tired looking 1960’s building and provides Hamilton with a focus.” Q

St. Regis leads tourism renaissance

Bermuda newest hotel and resort residences readies to debut in April 2021

It’s been a strange sight for some time – the bright green and yellow cladding on the walls of the new St. Regis hotel. It stands out from its surroundings and is thought to be a first for Bermuda.

The cladding is an exterior board called Secure Rock. It is waterproof and once fitted, it is covered by a very hard type of foam. Once that is done, a finish is applied. It is impossible to tell that it is not concrete and plaster.

Juan Pablo Cordova, the Project Manager for Hotelco Bermuda Holding Ltd. which is building the hotel, says: “The Secure Rock is a US design and will stand up to a hurricane. It helps to speed up the building process as well as saving

St. Regis construction from the air

money, as the foam acts as a form of insulation. It is the only hotel to be built like this in Bermuda and we are building one using the same technique in the Turks and Caicos Islands.”

Despite an enforced break for Covid-19, 100 of the 120 rooms are ready to be fitted out. Some are tiled and painted, and the rooms will be finished by December ready to receive all the fittings, which are scheduled to arrive in November.

“All the rooms will be finished by February,” adds Mr. Cordova. “Then staff will be trained, and work will be done to get everything perfect before we open in April 2021.”

When it is open, those arriving will drive up to the entrance and be able to see straight through the hotel to the sea beyond. The lobby area will be huge with high Bermuda tray ceilings and beams, as the hotel keeps to a Bermudian theme. “We want to maintain a Bermuda style,” says Mr. Cordova.

Walking through, there is a large balcony area that looks down on what will

have a children’s pool and an adult’s pool, as well plentiful space for loungers. Next to the hotel — and in a separate building with a yellow cladding rather than green – are the residences, which come with their own pools, even if they are three stories up.

The view from both is breathtaking.

As part of the hotel development, the St. George’s golf course is also undergoing a renovation and redesign. The old 18th hole will become the new

Interior of the residences

Golf course under renovation

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St. Regis is right on beach

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first hole with the new 18th now being down near the hotel. The 10th hole, which will follow the coastline will be the course signature hole.

It will be a relatively short course of about 3,600 yards with 12 par three holes and six par fours, with a total par of 60.

Mr. Cordova adds: “We are close to finalising the course. The irrigation system is in and we are working on the shape of the greens.”

The course is expected to open for play in April 2021 at the same time as the resort opening. Q

KEY CONTRACTORS

• Atlantic Water

Development Ltd • BAC • BCM McAlpine • BELCO • BUE • D&J Construction Co Ltd • Fast Forward Freight • SISL • DTS Services • StrikeForce General

Construction & Maintenance

Proud to be a part of the St. Regis Hotel project.