SIGMAFlange™ Universal Saves the Day on JFK Airport HVAC Project
When Tishman/AECOM and the New York Port Authority launched a major overhaul of JFK Airport, they hired F.W. Sims Mechanical, a subsidiary of Electra USA, as the contractor. F.W. Sims is the largest mechanical contractor in the greater New York City area, and they deployed their team to tackle the JFK job in phases. Phase I involved replacing thousands of feet of underground HVAC pipe. The job was timed to be completed ahead of summer so that the air conditioning would be fully operational when it was needed. And then…
Bill Gillen, Senior Project Manager for F.W. Sims, comments “This was a huge undertaking with a deadline, and we ran into an unexpected condition just as cooling season was starting. The new piping was manufactured by Thermacor and is a carbon steel system, but as we began to install it we discovered that there would be areas of connection where we would have to join the 24” steel pipe to ductile iron pipe. These two materials do not mate well, and ductile would not have supported the connection of the steel pipe.” The project was well underway so the work stalled while they sought a solution. Mr. Gillen reached out to T. Mina Supply, who was supplying much of the material, and they tapped SIGMA.
SIGMA was able to provide an ideal solution: the SIGMAFlange™ Universal (SFU). This innovative product is a multi-purpose wedge-style restrainer which can be used for ductile iron, steel, AWWA C900 PVC, D2241 “IPS” PVC, HDPE and AWWA C909 PVC. The SFU allows for the ease of field flanging plain-end pipe to any flanged fitting, valve or other flanged appurtenance. It incorporates a ductile iron adapter ring, complete with its own O-ring gasket, and a standard or transition mechanical joint gasket while accommodating necessary pipe-end restraint using a SIGMA ONE-LOK™ Model SLGU wedge-action gland. SIGMA was able to supply the required 24-inch SIGMAFlange™ Universal wedge-style restrainers to the jobsite quickly and efficiently.
Mr. Gillen continues: “The SIGMAFlange™ Universal solved our problem. It was a great product, very well made, and this was the ideal application. SIGMA Territory Sales Manager Kevin Flanagan was extremely helpful. He expedited the delivery so we did not lose a lot of time, and he stayed in communication with us so we were updated every step of the way.” In addition to the logistical and sales service, Mr. Gillen found SIGMA’s technical field support to be a game changer.
He adds: “SIGMA’s Engineer, Satheesh Chandrasekaran, came to the jobsite and stood with us all day to ensure proper installation. This field support was crucial; our team of steamfitters was not familiar with this application, so they really needed that onsite assistance. During the installation process, they hit a snag and required spacer plates—SIGMA got them delivered right away and the job proceeded seamlessly. We tested the system and it performed perfectly. It is really rare to get this type of support from a supplier—the dedication from SIGMA’s sales and engineering professionals is just about the best I’ve ever seen and I’m in my 45th year in the business.”
Satheesh Chandrasekaran, comments, “It was a great experience to work on this project with F.W. Sims and help with installation. There were some challenges onsite and I was glad to be able to provide guidance and address the issues the crew faced in the field.”
SIGMA was pleased to be part of this critical infrastructure project and looks forward to working with T. Mina and F.W. Sims in the future. For more information about SIGMA’s products and services, please visit www.sigmaco.com.