Construction Site Visit #1

The following pictures are of construction and work being performed on New Residence Hall West on the campus of Virginia Tech, located between Cochrane Hall, Harper Hall, and Student Services. It will be opened to students living on campus at the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year.

On this day, the majority of the work being performed involved cutting and shaping Hokie Stone, caulking gaps between windows and the exterior walls, and filling the gaps between the Hokie Stone with mortar.

Picture 1

Picture 1 shows the side of the building where the mortar is being filled in. It can be seen on the second level of scaffolding from the top. Buckets of mortar are lifted up by a crane (not pictured) and placed on the scaffolding for workers to use.

Picture 2

Picture 2 shows a man on a Genie telescopic boom lift caulking a gap between a window and the exterior wall. Since the man is at an elevated position, he must wear a safety harness, which is connected to the lift, to protect himself from a fall.

Picture 3

Picture 4

Pictures 3 and 4 above are of two men working with Hokie Stone. It can be seen in the Picture 3 that the man moving the stone is not wearing a hard hat or safety glasses, but has at least remembered his ear protection. The other man is measuring the stone to make sure he chips it to an acceptable size. In Picture 4, Hokie Stone being cut with a stone cutting table saw and then being chipped to size with a chisel and hammer.