FINALLY!!!
It looks perfectly FINISHED but unfortunately it's not TOTALLY done. On November 22th, we visited the site to perform a punchlist inspection. Some of the outstanding work and fixes are listed and shown below.
Chipped-out surface at front entrance step (Building 2)
Excess paint marks in areas of floor slab
Excess varnish leaks on walls and overhead screens
unused nails to be taken out and gusset plates properly cleaned at top of wooden columns
Some screws are missing off the hurricane clips and some are not well put in.
no proper bedpan washer for water flow
excess paint marks on tanks
Remove gutter from north end of bldg1 and install in east end of bldg. 2. Install missing 9ml gutter in south end of bldg. 1
First coat of green paint differs from second coat and texture.
The punchlist visit report was sent to the contractor. Also sent to him was the the Certificat d'Achevement Subtantiel which he must fill out, sign and return to AfH. Details on the new toilet facility will be sent to him shortly and we'll confirm schedule and scope of work to be completed.
Project is coming to an end. The 3 buildings have been painted. Doors and windows have been installed and varnished, grade leveled, courtyard covered with round gravel, gutters and straps in place, tanks properly installed. All work should be done this monday november 19th. Over the week end, the corner screens and entrance door should be installed and site cleaned thoroughly. Glad we're FINALLY at the last bit.
Whoa…is that Madame Joa!?! Yes, it is! Over the past three weeks there has been a substantial amount of work completed at Madame Joa! After a consolidated execution plan was enacted by AfH and G4 about 3 weeks ago(see previous update for more details), work started to resume more swiftly on site. To walk you through the construction process, here is what has been happening on site:
First to be completed was the pouring of the ringbeam on building 3.
Concrete being poured into the ringbeam of building 3. The man on the left is agitating the concrete mixture with a piece of rebar in order to reduce air pockets in the beam.
While the ringbeam was being poured on building 3, buildings 1 and 2 were being crepissaged and enduissaged.
A fresh layer of crepissage is being added to building 3.
After the crepissage layer, a finishing layer called enduissage is added.
The cast-in-place concrete sills for all of the windows were also completed during this time.
After the finishing layers of plaster were complete, the process of securing the trusses began...
After the trusses were sealed, plywood gusset plates were added to the wood trusses before their installation.
The process of lifting the trusses into place.
The trusses were then secured into their truss plates.
The installation of the purlins came next.
The roof was closed off with the nailing of the roofing sheets into place.
Finishing layers of screed were also added to all of the floors.
Screed being applied to the interior of building 1.
Screed being applied to the porch of building 2.
Preparation work for the gutter placement began during the truss installation.
The gutter clips are installed on the fascia board and are awaiting the main gutter component.
The main gutter component is being stored in the depot.
The paint for the interior and exterior of the buildings arrived on site and will be applied within the upcoming days.
And the paint color is…a lovely shade of teal!
While a significant amount of work has been completed over the past 3 weeks there still exists a list of work that remains to be done.
This list includes:
1. For the roof assembly, the ridge cap and gutters need to be installed on all of the buildings.
2. All of the buildings to be primed and painted.
3. Windows and doors are currently being fabricated and should be installed in the upcoming week.
4. The earth around the buildings has been re-graded in order to facilitate easier access between the differing floor levels of the buildings. A ramp will be constructed only by the main entry.
5. A perimeter wall made out of cactus will be planted along the extents of the courtyard space and along the main access road.
We are looking at a remaining time frame of 2 weeks on Madame Joa! We are anticipating a finished project on our next site visit!
With a three week goal to complete the Madame Joa construction project, work on-site resumes at a faster pace.
View of Building 1 being crepissaged.
G4 and AfH recently agreed on a consolidated execution plan of how to finish the project. After project changing meetings on Monday and Tuesday of this week, G4 returned back on site Wednesday. We visited the site on Thursday to see the progress on-site and to drop off field Ing. Pierre. There exists a lot of work to be completed in this small timeframe.
View upon entering the site.
View from the courtyard, notice the slow activity occurring on-site during our visit.
When asked why so few workers on-site, the contractor responded that Hurricane Isaac is threatening to hit in the next day or two. And they didn’t want to have to pay for a crew of 20 men sitting and waiting the storm out…is that a good enough excuse?
The list of work to be completed is as follows (not necessarily in this order):
1. Finish crepissaging and enduissaging (finish) all three buildings.
2. Pour the ringbeam for Building 3.
3. Pour the window sills for all three buildings.
4. Put trusses into place and finish roof assembly with purlins, roofing sheets, and ridge cap.
5. Install gutters and downspouts to connect to water cisterns.
6. Construct the bases for the 1000 gal water cisterns on grade and the 500 gal cistern on the concrete walks of Buildings 1 and 3 as per the revised water distribution plan.
7. Fabricate and install the bamboo & steel windows, doors and perimeter screens…we expect these to be the only real long-lead items.
8. Fabrication and installation of base clips for the ornamental columns.
9. Construction of an entry ramp to Building 2, as well as the leveling out of the soil in the courtyard to facilitate easier access between buildings.
10. Interior and Exterior painting of the walls and all metalwork.
11. Construct perimeter wall (living fence).
We noticed the contractor working on removal of the formwork from the cured ring beam on Building 2 and the crepissaging the beam at Buildings 1.
Crepisagging the beam between the toilet rooms at Building 1.
Crepisagging the beam over the far Staff Room at Building 1.
Concurrently, workers were also preparing the rebar and formwork for the ring beam pour at Building 3. Work on the steel and the prep for the ring beam should be done on Friday with the final pouring completed over the weekend, weather permitting.
A worker prepping the formwork for the ring beam pour on Building 3.
AfH team visually inspecting the prep work for the ring beam pour.
We were told the roof trusses were being varnished by the depot. Once dried, they will be put into place in the truss clips on Buildings 1 and 2.
Unfortunately we had to flee the construction site early, do to signs of a storm emanating. We have to cross about seven large and small rivers each way to get to the site, and when it started drizzling, we were urged to leave.
By our next post, we expect a significant amount of work completed and Madame Joa construction to be near complete!
Finally the roof clips arrived on-site.
We reviewed the two roof clip sizes and their metal shims. One is 65mm and the other 160mm wide. They looked pretty good for being manually fabricated.
Below are site progress photos site from the end of July/early August from Ing. Pierre who is on-site daily.
Within the ringbeam formwork, plumb lines were set to locate the truss clips in their proper position.
Concrete being poured into the ringbeam formwork with truss clips in place.
In foreground, notice freshly poured ringbeam. In background, notice concrete being poured into the formwork while another worker is agitating it with a rebar. This agitation is necessary to help remove air pockets and make sure the concrete mix gets into all the hard to reach places. Someone else should be tapping the formwork oh so often to also help with alleviating the air pockets.
A closeup view of a truss clip cast in the ring beam.
An overall view of Building 1 after it’s ringbeam was poured. During our site visit on August 9, we noticed a few clips at varying heights in the ringbeam. It is more crucial now that metal shims are used during placing and leveling the truss. The truss also should be elevated to prevent/delay the wood from rotting due its contact with the concrete ringbeam and its moisture.
During our August 9th site visit, we surveyed with field Ing. Pierre how much progress was achieved since our last visit.
Overall panoramic view from entrance.
Overall panoramic view from courtyard.
To our disappointment, there has been very little progress during the past two weeks. Over the course of four weeks, the contractor has only accomplished pouring the ringbeam for Buildings 1 & 2. During our site visit, we noticed Building 3 still did not have any formwork up for its ringbeam. We all expected to be close to completion at this point, especially considering the foundations and walls were all constructed in about four weeks during an earlier construction push…see previous updates below.
Besides the slow progress on the ringbeam, the following is a list of items still to be completed on the project:
1. The ringbeam for building 3 must be poured.
2. Holes for the slip-joint must be made in the trusses, and the trusses need to placed and secured within the truss clips.
3. Gutters and downpipes connecting to a watertank sitting on a raised platform…four of them.
4. The roofing sheets will then need to be placed and fastened secure to each building.
5. Windows, doors, and screens have to be fabricated and installed.
6. The rear perimeter wall must be constructed to close off the courtyard and secure the building.
7. Site cleanup and regarding to minimize the need for ramps and stairs.
6. Installing the sinks and connecting their associated pipes.
The contractor gave us a six week schedule to complete this work…that was four weeks ago. AfH is looking at alternative courses of action to finish the construction of this clinic for the community.
Overall panoramic views of the cleared site
The AFH team traveled up to Maissade yesterday to survey the progress on site. As the last update informed you, the community banned together to clear the vegetation off the site so that the contractor could start sooner. While the vegetation was cleared, much construction debris such as concrete mix and stone remain in piles on site and will have to be cleared. While on site we also visually inspected the materials that were brought up to the site by the contractor in order to make sure they were correct and appropriate according to the construction documents.
Two kinds of screws for the roofing constrution.
Sand that will need to be sifted in order to use in the concrete mix.
Hurricane clips for attachment of purlins to trusses.
Bags of cement arrive for the concrete ring beam pour.
Aggregate to be used in the ringbeam pour.
The truss clips have been fabricated and are ready to be placed in the ringbeam.
In the following two pictures, it is evident work on site has slowly begun again. The contractor has started to put up scaffolding around building 1 in order to prepare the ringbeam(which will include scratching rust off the ringbeam.) The existing rebar cages for the ringbeam are also being prepared and bent into place by the contractor.
Last week some community members from around Madame Joa banned together and cleaned-up the construction site. From the stall in construction, vegetation significantly took over the site. The community started clearing the site in order to allow for the contractor to start back to work sooner. This level of ownership and dedication to the project says a lot about the community. Down here in Haiti, the success of a project is often connected to how involved the community is in the process.
Members of the community clear the overgrown vegetation from the site.
View of the site after all the overgrown brush was cleared. Now we are ready for construction!
Current state of the site: view from the courtyard
Current state of the site: view from the road
It has been awhile since the last update for Madame Joa Clinic was posted. (5 long months in fact) Work on site stopped in early February due to contract negotiations for additional work with the contractor. With recent verification that work is going to resume on site, the AFH team headed north to Maissade to assess current site conditions, the state of materials, and to get outreach Ing. Pierre set-up on site once again! The contractor has estimated that there are about 6 weeks left of work to complete.
After arriving on site, we first checked the depot of materials, specifically the wood trusses. We wanted to make sure all the trusses were accounted for and were still in a proper condition to be installed. All 14 trusses were still in the depot, and will be put into place once the ring beam has been poured and properly cured.
Materials for the aluminum roof were stored in a neighbor’s house nearby.
We also noticed two of the four specified water cisterns were still on-site.
After the visual inspection of materials, the team made their way over to the construction site. Since the construction crew hasn’t been on site for a few months, piles of construction debris were scattered all over the site and vegetation has taken over.
Looking to the outpatient wing, a portrait of the project’s current state of construction can be drawn. The CMU walls were crepissaged, and the rebar cages for the ringbeam were left exposed.
Ing. Pierre visually inspects the current state of the rebar cages for the ringbeam. Before the ringbeam can be poured, the rust on the rebar will have to be removed, most likely by scraping it off.
Old scaffolding from the ring beam preparation still in place on the Over-night Patient Wing (Building 3).
Now that construction is going to resume considerations are being made for how the site will operate with respect to the road and vehicular/pedestrian traffic.
Yesterday Ing. Pierre verified that the site clearing/cleaning up began. Today we received confirmation from the contractor that the construction crew has mobilized steel workers and sand toward the site. An update on more recent activity will follow shortly!
Work has still not resumed on-site.
AfH is in the process of negotiating prices with the contractor for additional work requested, and setting up a mtg with StC for early next week.
We spoke with the contractor earlier this week. They relocated most of their equipment to other jobsites they're currently working on. For a fear of theft, they also mentioned going on-site this week and removing the bags of cement while securing the site...we are entering the rainy season.
After mtg with StC, we will meet with the contractor and hopefully get them working back on-site by the following week. We estimate about 4 weeks of work remaining.
Since the last site visit update, there has been a lot going on with this project.
The stockpile lumber on-site,
were used to construct the wood truss.
Now all 14 are built and stockpiled at the storage depot area.
The crepisagge (a two layer plaster type mix) was added to the block walls.
About 15mm thick.
When building the block walls, we have the contractor build about three courses of block, then fill in the cells with continuous mortar. This helps tie the blocks in the wall together vertically like a bunch of little columns, working in tangent with the horizontal rebar...a solid reinforced wall.
These are views into the block cells before filling with mortar.
A ringbeam sits on top of these walls.
View of the rebar and wood formwork for the ringbeam at Building 2.
Installing the ringbeam rebar at Building 3.
Notice they applied the crepisagge up to the last course of block before the ringbeam...they will have to come back and crepisagge that course and ringbeam after its poured.
A view from Building 1, facing North, looking at Building 2 on the right and Building 3 in the background.
Notice they crepisagged all the walls up to the last course, and all the ringbeam cages seem to be up in place.
To receive the roof truss, a clip was designed to be embeded into the ringbeam. The one specified in the drawings had several issues that effected its proper placement in the ringbeams. The clip was revised as per the sketch below.
The photo to the right is what was submitted by the contractor as a sample. It was approved pending adjustments like: better welding of the two rebars at the bottom of the bent plate, the bent plate be one piece with a more rounded turn, thicker metal shims and seven staggered holes on each side spaced per the sketch to receive 1/4" diameter hexhead screws. The contractor is currently fabricating the clips.
But with all this great progress on-site, and as close as we are to completion, it's sad to report that work on-site has been on-hold for the past two weeks. The contractor has stopped work pending approval of an additional $72,000 worth of change orders. These were issued to AfH mainly for work they already performed.
AfH's stance is that these should've been discussed prior to performing the additional work, not after. The proposals are currently being sifted through for relevance. We have unsuccessfully been trying to schedule meetings with StC to discuss these additions and who actually generated them.
The major work left to be completed on-site (not in any particular order):
1. Pour the ringbeam on all three buildings casting the clips in place.
2. Finish the crepisagge at last block course and ringbeam.
3. Paint
4. Install the roof truss and corrugated metal sheets.
5. Fabricate and install windows and doors.
6. Ramps with handrails as required.
7. Selected toilet system type installation.
8. Perimeter wall to secure courtyard at rear of site.
9. Possible low perimeter wall at front of site.
10. Rough and final grading of site.
Substaintial completion of this project was scheduled for February 24, 2012. We were so close to hitting the finishline on time that we could taste it, instead we are digesting through change orders of unauthorized work.
We all look forward to getting through this and work resuming on-site shortly.
With alittle over a month of work left to do, this is the view from the Courtyard.
From this view here, we see all the progress from this past week and half. On the right, the gradebeam, slab and walls for Building 1 were constructed. In the center, notice the walls for Building 2 built up to ringbeam height and waiting for further instruction of the "hurricane clips" for the roof truss. On the left, they were in the midst of erecting the walls for Building 3 while pouring it's concrete walk.
But before they got to this point,
they had to lay the blocks at Building 1. Notice the horizontal rebar resting in a groove in the blocks. This is to not increase the horizontal joint size when adding mortar and laying the next block course.
More progress on Building 1.
Notice its freshly poured concrete walk in the photo on the left and progress on the walls in the photo on the right. Also the four post baseplates embeded in the concrete walk are facing the right direction.
This is how it's positioned in the slab before the pour. A solution is still being worked out for the eight already cast in the wrong direction at Building 2...we may just have them to cut off the top then drill and epoxy another baseplate a few mm's outside it.
The rebar cage being built for the gradebeam and slab for Building 3.
Prep work for the gradebeam and slab for Building 3. They had to manually break the agregate down to the right size for the concrete mix.
A pan view looking South. Notice the formwork still up for the gradebeam and slab at Building 3 with three courses of block already laid. By weekend, they expect to be done with the blocks to ringbeam height.
Next on deck is the roof truss.
This is the stockpile of wood to be used to construct the truss.
Progress continued on-site.
As you enter the site scanning left (West) to right (North).
Front and center you can see the walls for Building 2 being constructed. On the left they are putting together the rebar cage for the grade beam and floor slab of Building 1.
A closer look at that cage. The string lines are guides to help set heights and level them consistantly.
This is a view of the site from behind Building 1. Notice the block formwork is complete, rebar cage almost complete and they are filling the area within with gravel...by the beginning of next week, they should be ready to pour the concrete.
Foundation for Building 3 in place and waiting for its grade beam and slab. The contractor expects to be formed out by the end of next week.
Closer view of Building 2 from interior concrete walk. Notice the column base plates embedded in the conrete walk. At the time we didn't realize, but they are pointed the wrong direction. They should have been installed turned 90 degrees, so the double column post can accept the roof truss above. In the drawing set, see sheet A5.0 "Foundation Floor Types" for details.
The debate is whether or not to have them rip it out and embed it in the correctly, but it won't have the same strength as the original embed...a decision will be made shortly on how the Contractor will proceed.
These are the remainding plates to be installed for Buildings 1 & 3, which will be installed properly...Ulrick Pierre (AfH Rep on-site) will make sure of that.
View of Building 1 being preped from Building 2's interior concrete walk.
This is the rebar staging area where they are being formed and shaped before installation.
The contractor works at night sometimes,
these are the lights and wires they connect to their generator on-site to illuminate the whole site.
Two water tanks currently on-site...we need four in total for this project. See sheet A4.0 "Services" for their locations, which we will revise slightly to be installed within the perimeter walls.
1000 gallon tag on tanks.
Digging to the proper depths for the footings and grade beams.
Formwork for the pier footings.
The construction has progressed on Building 2.
First course of block layed for the Consultation Room.
Third course of block for the Clinic's Reception/Administration Room.
Contractor filling the cells in shear block wall. "...coulis nan murs cisaillement."
View of the walls being constructed from the covered walkway platform slab.
This past week, the grade beam's reinforcing steel was being layed out...
along with more block formwork and fill.
A close up of the steel being layed out in the grade beam.
More block formwork for the floor slab grade beam.
Compacting the fill.
Compacted fill and sand in place.
Freshly poured slab for Building 2.
Column base plates embedded in floor slab.
A shot from the site today...
100mm block used as formwork to create legs for Building 2's floor slab and grade beam. This formwork will be left in place.
This is what its supposed to look like when done.
This morning the discussion of the pier heights and grade beam depth continued.
This is a revised sketch of the buildings sitting properly on-site. The site slopes down from top-left to bottom-right.
Sketch of a typical section through the grade beam and piers...notice the drastic slope in grade.
The contractor poured all the footings at the same height for Building 2 regardless of grade.
Instead of having them rip it out and delay the project, we came up with another idea to structually satisfy the situation...but we will need alot more fill, some topsoil and maybe some fresh sod. (ok, joking about the sod)
Building 1 should be straightforward, the slope isn't as great there.
A view of the piers freshly poured for Building 1 today. Notice the grade slope down from right to left.
But at Building 3, grade slopes the most.
This is what the grade beam and piers will look like. This is all four sides of the grade beam at Building 3. The rebar cage will be the same height all around the grade beam at this building: 4 across @ 218mm o.c.
We have a small window and tight construction schedule, we are doing all we can to keep things moving forward. Last week on-site there was talk about changing the toilet system around to a septic type. AfH hasn't been given anything in writing or heard further about this change.
PROJECT: Mme Joa Clinic
DATE: 12-9-2011
WEATHER: Sunny 31C
CONSTRUCTION: 8 % complete
________________________________________________________________________
PRESENT AT SITE:
- Burtland Granvil (AFH)
- Natalie Desrosiers (AFH)
- Dot Miller (AFH)
- Ulrick Pierre (AFH)
- Alince Similien (G4 construction)
- Samuel Jerome (Save the Children)
- Theo (WASH consultant - Save the Children)
- Masons
_________________________________________________________________________
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- concrete pouring in pier (bldg 2)
_________________________________________________________________________
MATERIAL ON SITE:
- Cement
- Stone for lean mix
- Sand/gravel
- Vibrator
- Mixer
- 200mm blocs
- plywood ¾”
- roofing sheets
- #3, #4, #5, #6 rebars
_________________________________________________________________________
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS:
- Concrete pouring in pier (bldg 2) - 15% complete
- Client and their WASH consultant were on site, expecting and giving out suggestions particularly for the toilets and the water system
- Drawings weren't made according to actual slope of site - height from grade to ground slab changed for each building
__________________________________________________________________________
INFORMATION OR ACTION REQUIRED:
- AFH to submit new detailed drawings to GC
- AFH to meet with client to make final decision as to how the toilets will be built and the water system that will be used.
__________________________________________________________________________
REPORT BY: Natalie Desrosiers
PROJECT: Mme Joa Clinic
DATE: 11-29-2011
WEATHER: Sunny 31C
CONSTRUCTION: 8 % complete
________________________________________________________________________
PRESENT AT SITE:
- Burtland Granvil (AFH)
- Natalie Desrosiers (AFH)
- Ulrick Pierre (AFH)
- Alince Similien (G4 construction)
- Masons
_________________________________________________________________________
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- excavation for foundation footing
_________________________________________________________________________
MATERIAL ON SITE:
- Cement
- Stone for lean mix
- Sand/gravel
- Vibrator
- 200mm blocs
- plywood ¾”
- roofing sheets
- #3, #4, #5, #6(smooth)rebars
_________________________________________________________________________
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS:
- Corrections to building layout completed
- Trenches being dug - 80% complete
- Enough Materials on site
- stirrups and ties for steelwork foundation completed
- G4 Field engineer seems a little lost with the reading of drawings
- GC explained he couldn’t find deformed #6 rebars
__________________________________________________________________________
INFORMATION OR ACTION REQUIRED:
GENERAL:
- GC to provide AFH with pricing for additional work and significant items missing in BOQ
- GC to submit weekly construction schedule to AFH
- GC to purchase over the week end the deformed #6 steel as he had bought the wrong type
__________________________________________________________________________
REPORT BY: Natalie Desrosiers
We arrived on site around noon and work seemed to be going on pretty well. Building has been relayed out CORRECTLY, trenches were being dug CORRECTLY, there were enough workers on site , forman and G4 field engineer present as well overlooking the excavation.
building relayed out correctly
Trenches being dug
steel for foundation on site - Stirrups and ties for foundation cage footing ready to be put in place.
Correct measurements for column and strip footing.
GC had purchased smooth #6 bars because he couldnt find the deformed type. He assured us he'd have the proper ones on site this week.
The contractor was directed by AfH to fill-in their previously excavated footings for their "Z" shaped building and stake out the building properly on-site per the Drawings. AfH personnel Pierre Ulrick is on-site with them making sure they do it properly. Hopefully the project runs smoothly from here on out.
This project is expected to be completed within 90 days...the calendar started about two and half weeks ago.
After about two weeks of mobilization, the contractor mentioned having some difficulty laying out the building because the Patient's Wing kept enroaching the neighbor's property. We discussed them not digging for the foundation until AfH was on-site to clarify the confusion.
Well when we arrived on-site Wednesday, this is what we saw...
...the foundation already dug for all 24 pier footings, but something seemed odd?
The excavated holes looked pretty good, and they were neatly done...eventhough they agreed to wait for AfH before excavating.
But as we looked closer, we realized the footings were dug as if the building was rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise???
And the Patient's Wing was pulled back to align with the Center Triage Wing???
This is the contractor trying to explain why the building was laid out different from the Contract Drawings.
He claimed the client's engineer and community told him to turn the building and make it fit this way.
We then explained that without going through AfH first, that these changes now could lead to increases in both time and money...and if he knew who would pay for them? The contractor was asked to not continue working on the foundations until they were given clear direction from AfH on how to proceed.
The Contract was signed by G4 Construction (the Contractor) this past weekend and they began mobilization this week. The road to Maissade is not the easiet to travel (worst than many roads in Port-au-Prince) so G4 claimed to do a few road repairs to allow ease of tranport of their materials to the site. Mobilization and staging may take about two weeks.
We have been reviewing the toilet/latrine system at the clinic. This involved speaking with the representatives from Save the Children and describing our recent investigations into viable systems in Haiti.
We also had to resolve some questions/ concerns Save had about the foundations. This was resolved in a meeting at AFH offices with EC, BG, RE and DM from AFH and AP with Sam from Save the Children. We agreed to add drainage to the foundations and this was altered on the drawings. Also a handrail detail.
We described the changes we would like to make to move towards a Give Love system and they requested to see this system in use. LS of AFH took them to see the bucket composting system. After some time we received confirmation this week that we are to continue with the design as is to keep the project moving forwards.
Construction Documents were sent out to the contractor this week also.
DM
Sam met with Stacey at the RBC to discuss some concerns he had with the plans.
1. He felt the foundation should be changed
Sam was satisfied with this.
2. Sam would like to add handrails
3. Sam would like to add a septic system remote from the building
The site boundary document was provided by SAVE during the bidding process after the design documents were finished.
The site is less deep and the building will need to be moved to the steeper part of the site. This may be problematic in terms of additional foundation height and other required changes when the budget is very tight and the building designed for a flatter site.
END of MEETING
Mme Joa Clinic Bid Opening July 18, 2011
Location:
The Rebuilding Center, Petionville, Port-au-Prince
Present:
ENAMEX S.A.(Contractor)
G4 - CONSTRUCTION (Contractor)
PISACO (Contractor)
BECEI (Contractor)
YCF GROUP (Contractor)
GENIE CONSTRUCTION (Contractor)
CIVIL DESIGN ET CONST.(Contractor)
ETEC(Contractor)
ECES (Contractor)
PJS(Contractor)
PHENIX S.A (Contractor)
Stephane Cherduville (DG) / Architecture for Humanity (AfH)
Jean Rene Lafontant / Architecture for Humanity (AfH)
Introduction:
Bid Opening Procedures:
Bid openning ceremony:
Mme Joa clinic Bid Conference
On Monday, July 11th, 2011, the Architecture for humanity team went up to Maissade at Mme Joa Clinic located in the Central Plateau about 1hr30minutes from Hinche. We were accompanied by 10 other contractors that were interested in bidding on the project.
The contractors present:
The offers are due on July 18th and construction is schedule to start on August 15th 2011.
Mme Joa clinic demolished
On Monday, May 9th, 2011, the Architecture for humanity team went up to Maissade at Mme Joa Clinic located in the Central Plateau about 1hr30minutes from Hinche. We negotaited with the local community to have them demo the existing structure.
Our team consisted of :
Before Demo
After Demo.
Now that Demo is completed we can go ahead with Contract documents and Bid Process in the next couple of weeks.
Those present:
Dr. Yvon Labissiere (YL)
Stacey McMahan, AfH (SM)
Eric Cesal, AfH (EC)
Eric and Stacey met with Dr. Labissiere to come to a conclusion regarding scope. The original concept plan was reviewed with the following changes:
The plan was noted and signed; budget for this plan/scope is under the contract amount of $129,000 USD for the total project.
Those present:
Dr. Yvon Labissiere (YL)
Gary Philoctete (GL)
Faimi Moscova (FM)
Elizabeth Richard (ER)
Stacey McMahan, AfH (SM)
Dorothy Miller, AfH (DM)
The plan was reviewed showing the reductions in scope as discussed, the changes made were satisfactory.
The budget was reviewed. Plan adjustments had been made to bring the budgeted construction cost down to $120,000. FM commented that total cost needs to be $120,000 instead of only construction costs.
To bring the project to this level of budget would necessitate a redesign and another increase in the schedule.
Demolition was discussed, SM asked who on the Save side would be the contact/coordination person. Joy Saha is not returning and Save does not have any prospects as of yet despite advertising. (GP asked if AfH could check their database for someone to fill this position, he will send a position description. They will live at the Guesthouse, salary to be negotiated.)
SM proposed by email to all after the meeting that the project be phased, cutting the staff housing wing from current construction making it Ph 2 to be constructed in 2012. Construction documents could be completed on the current schedule (April 18) for the entire facility should this course of action be pursued as long as the decision is made immediately.
The budget for construction was confirmed by Gary P. to be $120,000 via email sent to AfH on 3-23.
Note that the signed contract amount is $129,322.
Mme Joa Clinic Schematic Design Review
Location:
Save the Children Offices, Petionville, Port-au-Prince
Present:
Dr. Yvon Labissiere (YL) / Save the Children (Save)
Gary Philoctete (GP) / Save the Children (Save)
Douglas Oliver (DO) / BAR Architects (BAR)
Stacey McMahan (SM) / Architecture for Humanity (AfH)
1. Design Review:
2. Comments:
3. Next steps
End of Meeting Record, please let me know of any inaccuracies.
Stacey McMahan
Haiti Design Fellow
Meeting with Save the Children Feb 4
Personnel:
Stacey McMahan / Architecture for Humanity (AfH)
Gary Philoctete / Save the Children (Save)
Dr. Yvon Labissiere / Save the Children (Save)
Program Review and changes based on discussions with Gary and Dr. Labissiere etc.
Modifications include:
Adds to the scheme as presented:
Next Steps:
Site Visit / Meeting With Nurse Widelise January 26, 2011
Personnel:
Darren Gill (DG) / Architecture for Humanity (AfH)
Gerry Reilly (GR) / Architecture for Humanity (AfH)
Nurse Widelise (NW) / Save the Children (Save)
[Nurse Widelise is one of the two staff (both nurses) that work at the clinic]
At the tail end of last year, a preliminary punchlist report was issued to the contractor and most of those items were carried out in the first weeks of January. Some minor fixes are still need to be made but feuds over payments and work arrangement have not allowed any sort of progress. We do have certified substantial completion and are waiting on the contractor to countersign it. However, the facility is operational and has been for at least a month at this stage.
In terms of the toilet, which has been an ongoing question, we have instructed the contractor to proceed with the construction of a separate toilet structure on site, adjacent to the clinic. Since we began construction of the clinic, we've received multiple contradictory instructions in relation to the toilet. The latest instruction was to proceed with the toilet as originally conceived. However, a previous instruction to modify the toilet construction was previously adhered to and built. As such, in order to install the toilet as originally drawn we would be required to demolish part of the new construction and rebuild from the foundations up. This would be more expensive, time consuming, laborious and create structural weaknesses within the new structure. In this context, we instructed the contractor to build a separate structure as it would be better, faster, cheaper and easier. A cost estimate and a sketch of the latrine pit was put together and issued to the contractor. Also explained to him were the terms and conditions under which that new constrcuction was to be ruled and with which he completely disagree. One of the conditions specified our use of the penalty fees incurred during the period of september to november 2012. According to the construction schedule and final date of substantial completion, the work is over 3 months behind schedule. Numerous conversations were held but no final decisions were reached.
A 7 day notice was issued to the contractor in response to the suspension of works on site. If nothing's decided within 4 days, we will mobilize and complete the works.