Matco signs up with Welliver McGuire
Over the years working with Lockheed Martin, Matco Electric has learned that getting a project off the ground takes organization, determination, and communication. Matco has worked at Lockheed Martin Systems Integration in Owego, NY since IBM owned this
facility in the late 1960s; Matco also completed the first helicopter integration facility at that site in 1978. In March of 1994 Loral Corporation acquired IBM Owego, and Matco Electric helped to fill its needs for electrical work. In 1996 Matco was still a fixture after the complex became known as Lockheed Martin Federal Systems, Owego.
In 1998 when the site became the headquarters for Lockheed Martin Systems Integration-Owego, UK Integrated Systems, and Lockheed Martin Canada, Matco was still at work. In January 2005, Systems Integration–Owego won the contract to design and build the replacement Marine One helicopter fleet. In April 2005 Welliver McGuire, Inc., joined the team when Lockheed Martin completed its national search for the right construction management partner for its Marine One Presidential Helicopter Intergration facility.
“Welliver McGuire was selected based on past performance, experience with similarly sized construction projects, and project management experience in our region,” says Stephen D. Ramsey, executive vice president for Helicopter Systems at Lockheed Martin Systems Integration-Owego, the prime contractor and systems integrator for the U.S. Navy’s Presidential Helicopter Replacement (VH-71) program. “Overall, Welliver McGuire’s selection represents a best-value decision with tremendous benefit to the Presidential
Helicopter program.”
Project Basics
The construction of this 176,000-square-foot facility, just east of the town of Owego, is Welliver McGuire’s first project for Lockheed Martin. The facility houses the program’s administrative offices, systems integration laboratories, paint facilities, and aircraft integration hangars. “Working with Lockheed Martin on this facility was an honor,” says Steve Campbell, project executive for Welliver
McGuire. “Lockheed’s success in landing this project for our area has created a positive attitude. We have a wonderful team environment here — everyone who is a part of this project, including our subcontractors, were committed to doing whatever it took to get the job done well and on time,” he says.
“Matco played a vital role on the team of trade contractors that met the many challenges of successfully delivering the VH-71 Facility to Lockheed Martin,” Campbell says.
Greg Smyder, Matco superintendent, who has worked on three other projects with Welliver McGuire, notes, “because of our long-standing relationship with Welliver McGuire, I understood the policies and procedures of their management format.”
Smyder’s job as on-site superintendent included sharing information from Welliver McGuire with his foremen. Because of the size and schedule of the project, five foremen became integral to the team — Bill O’Brien, electrical distribution and power; Paul Miller,
lighting and security; Frank Broderick, telecommunications and fiber optic cables; Bob Pelton, site lighting and power; and Tom Burns, fire alarm system. “These foremen did a phenomenal job,” says Smyder.
According to Bob Vargo, project manager for Welliver McGuire, site preparation for the facility began in the spring of 2005, and structural steel went up in September 2005. By Christmas the facility was enclosed so that interior work could continue at full speed during the cold winter months. Approximately 250 to 300 people worked at the site over the course of the project’s peak.
Challenges
“We compressed our schedule as much as possible to make this fast-track project go even faster in order to accommodate the aggressive schedule that Lockheed Martin faces for its contract,” says Vargo. He notes that master schedules are set up at the start of a project, and maintained and reviewed throughout its life cycle. “The schedules are very detailed in nature and are a comprehensive list of all project tasks required to design, construct, and commission a building,” he says. Tasks that track design progress, procurement activities, and subcontractor delivery dates for construction of building systems are included in these schedules. “The schedules are most realistic and effective when a team effort is used, and all key stakeholders buy in to the delivery dates and tasks listed on the schedule,” says Vargo.
A major challenge on the helicopter integration project was delivering a completed building ahead of schedule. “By utilizing a team approach and constantly reviewing and reacting to the scheduled tasks, we were able to complete the building three months ahead of schedule,” says Vargo.
Welliver McGuire maintains an excellent reputation for delivering projects on time with high levels of customer service while maintaining cost commitments. The Marine One Presidential Helicopter facility is another example of expertise in action. “‘Expertise in action’ is an excellent description of what occurred on a daily basis at the Lockheed Martin job site,” says Vargo. “We had as many
as 200 plus personnel on site on a daily basis doing all of the things necessary to complete the building. Without their expertise and commitment, we could not have completed the work.”
“On a fast-track project, our expenditures occur in a short period of time, and we must make responsible choices,” says Vargo. “We develop a level of trust with the owner and customer by placing their needs in the forefront, being thorough in our work, and resolving any issues that arise right away so that we meet their expectations at or below the agreed-upon budget. This is true for every project on which we work. Welliver McGuire is very grateful to have been given the opportunity to work with Lockheed Martin-Owego and a high quality group of subcontractors on this project,” says Vargo.
Teamwork
Team members from Lockheed Martin, Welliver McGuire, and Matco kept an eye on the future to solve glitches before they became issues. “As a team, we all offered ideas and answers about how to keep things cost effective,” says Smyder. “The ability to identify
conflicts and pinch points, offer solutions, and document them made the change process a lot smoother. What is impressive was Matco’s supervision team’s ability to offer acceptable solutions when we ran into the conflicts.”
Communication was key between all of the groups on the construction site. “Weekly meetings were required with Welliver McGuire to review schedules, be informed of engineering changes, and get them to the field as soon as possible to maintain our schedule,” says
Smyder. The process worked, resulting in the three-month schedule gain.
Smyder also commended Jan Winner, Matco’s purchasing agent, for “doing a great job in purchasing materials, organizing them, and getting them to the site in a timely fashion.” Project Manager Marty Lewis was instrumental in the equipment “buy-out,” submittal
process, managing the change orders, getting pricing to Welliver McGuire, and scheduling. “I also can’t say enough about the labor IBEW Local Union 325 provided,” says Smyder.
“With Welliver McGuire overseeing construction of this state-of-the-art complex, we are sure to have a worldclass facility worthy of the Presidential Helicopter program,” says Ramsey.
Smyder notes that this facility has a state-of-the-art security system, and a very unique fire suppression system. “During this project we installed 225 miles of electrical wire and telecommunications cable. That’s enough to stretch from Owego, New York, to the Naval Air Station in Patuxent River, Maryland, from where the U.S. Navy oversees the program. Every Matco employee on this
project is a quality player. They all have the ability to adapt and make changes on the run,” says Smyder. All of the contractors
and subcontractors on the site contributed in producing a quality product. “After all, they will be performing final assembly
and integration of the president’s helicopter at this place,” he says.