On Tuesday, September 18, 2012 I visited one of the single most amazing laboratories on the planet. The FM Global Research Campus in Glocester, RI is a facility designed to recreate actual failures, fires, natural disasters, and other major loss events. Below are a number of photos from this visit. At one point during the day, one the VPs hosting us noticed my wide-eyed look and smiled knowingly in my direction. I met his gaze, a big smile came over my face, and I said, "Its like Disney World for engineers." He nodded in agreement.

Oakland U's new main entrance sign:

OSH Lab and HHB update

School has started for the Fall semester. The Human Health Building is 99% finished. Crews are touching up paint here and there, fixing locks, installing phones, and putting in bookshelves. OSH Labs are in inventory phase. Most equipment has been put away in drawers and cabinets or in the storage room. Our next phase is processing of already donated equipment and shipments that are expected to arrive soon. Many of these items are large, so they’re scattered about the labs until they will be installed.

Below are some photos from various angles and views around the building and labs.

First, above is an updated photo of the building as viewed from the southern side. Note there aren't any cars! The picture was taken on a Sunday afternoon.

And here's another view, from about the same place, but this is on a Tuesday afternoon.

Above, Melissa doing inventory of OSH lab equipment. 

Eddie and Patrick working in the industrial hygiene lab.

Eddie celebrating (above) after helping to move three fire pump controllers, which are really heavy, into the OSH labs.

And a reminder of where we came from in Hannah Hall:

Parts of Hannah are now being converted into medical schools labs. When finished, these hallways and the labs will be brand new, although the shell of the building will still be the same. Note the room on the right just past the tool bin. This is the old SHS copier and mail room. I was in here packing up a few last items when suddenly a waterfall came raining through the ceiling. It turns out that work in the mechanical space above resulted in disconnected pipes. Here's the video:

The OSH Labs burn room was designed for discharging sprinkler heads. The floor of the room has thick steel grating over a tank capable of holding approximately 6000 gallons of water (6383 if filled to just under the grating). The tank was designed to connect to a well that will eventually contain a vertical turbine pump used to simulate pond and lake water sources for fire protection systems. Today, the connection hole between the tank and the well was drilled with an 8" core bit. It was really cool.

The diagram below is a top view of the tank with the core to the well. Originally we requested a 6" hole.

Below is a side view of the tank and well. The core hole comes out just above the base of the tank into about the middle of the well. The vertical turbine pump is intended to sit near the bottom of the well.

This photo (below) is of the equipment used to drill the hole. The black cylinder is actually a bit. In woodworking, I'm familiar with these as "hole saws." In masonry work, they're core bits or core saws. This one is 8" in diameter. The red can contains water for lubricating the outside of the core bit and helping to remove (and minimize) the concrete dust. 

Here is the operation underway. He's about half-way through.

Hole is cored to the well. The cored-out concrete is still in the bit.

Here's how it looked when it came out of the bit. Its just a tad under 8" in diameter.

Its going to make a really cool door stop for the OSH Labs!

Looking through into the well. The dark stuff is water. The vertical turbine pump will sit in this well a couple of feet lower down than the bottom of the core hole.

I shoved the camera through the hole and took this picture of the grating at the top of the well. Thought it would be a neat shot, and it is, but its also a bit claustrophobic, eh? ;-)

And another fun day was had by all! Woohoo! :-)