Masonry Magazine August 2002 Page. 40
Pentagon SERIES
Pentagon Renovation
# PENREN-1
MAKING
THE
BIGGEST
BETTER
BY TOM INGLESBY
The Pentagon Renovation Program- PenRen-is designed to make the building up-to-date in every way. Masonry Arts had the responsibility of adding security measures to make it better able to withstand blasts. September 11 proved the process worked.
IN 1993, THE PENTAGON BEGAN UNDERGOING A renovation project that would modernize the largest office building in the nation. The first phase, in Wedge 1, was five days from completion sign off and turnover to the government when Flight 77 hit. MCAA member Masonry Arts, Bessemer, Ala, was the contractor installing the blast wall system reinforcement and blast resistant window in Wedge 1. The Pentagon is divided into five "wedges" centered on each of its five corners. Each wedge encompasses approximately one million square feet of office, storage and corridor space. Wedge 1's structural demolition (interior) and abatement of hazardous material began in 1998. This was a major undertaking, not the least because the Pentagon workforce in this area was relocated so that operations would not be negatively impacted, requiring temporary office space, called "swing space," in scattered areas of Washington and Virginia.
According to the PenRen program office, "In order to begin demolition and abatement work, it was necessary to isolate Wedge 1 from the rest of the building. To accomplish this task, mechanical, electrical, plumbing and communications systems had to be disconnected in Wedge 1 while ensuring that the rest of the building remained operational. Two sound attenuating barrier walls were constructed to separate Wedge 1 from the two adjacent wedges [2 & 5). The barrier walls were mostly built in occupied spaces at night."
Demolition and abatement of asbestos and lead was a massive effort. Work began as soon as the various tenants vacated Wedge 1. Once the areas were cleared of nontoxic rubbish, they were enclosed to prevent the escape of asbestos fibers and abatement was carried out under strict safety precautions. In all, 2,000 tons of asbestos and 600,000 pounds of lead-contaminated debris was removed from the wedge. Items with salvage value were sold, with the proceeds reducing contract costs. Approximately 70 percent of the items demolished were recycled.
Then, before construction could begin, the entire wedge was brought down to its "barebones," as the PenRen office calls it. What remained were the concrete columns that support the building and concrete floor and ceiling slabs. Every wall, conduit and utility line was removed. In total, 83 million pounds of debris was removed from Wedge 1.
Masonry Arts came on the scene in 2000 to renovate the wall system in "E" ring, the outer section, and replace the 1942 windows with more modern, blast resistant units in "E" and "A"-the innermost rings. The windows were specially constructed and had to match exactly the exterior look of the originals because the building is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Wedge 1 was the first to get a majority of the Pentagon's security upgrade attention. The PenRen office says, "The new windows on the "A" and "E"-rings are blast-resistant and permanently closed and fixed. This will not only increase the ener