Taking Flight

Airport expansion succeeds despite 9/11

Outagamie County Regional Airport Greenville

By Chris Thompson

The logistics involved in expanding an airport concourse can give any project manager a headache.

Throw in the backlash of federal regulations following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, mix them with a complicated expansion layout, and the project could be a nightmare waiting to happen.

But in the case of Miron Construction Co. Inc.'s work expanding and remodeling the Outagamie County Regional Airport in Greenville, the results were more like a dream come true. The Neenah general contractor added 49,000 square feet and eight gates to the airport's concourse and remodeled 30,000 square feet of the existing facility.

And it did it in the midst of the tightened security following Sept. 11.

"9/11 happened while we were under construction," said Tim Kippenhan, Miron vice president. "Everybody had to have badges, and there were fingerprinting and background checks for everybody through the FBI. The airport always had this, but not to this extent."

That was just the tip of the security lockdown. All of Miron's material deliveries had to pass through monitoring gates, and portions of the project design were kicked back to the federal government for reinspection.

The proposed drop-off and pedestrian canopy at the entrance to the airport, for instance, had to go through federal review because of new restrictions involving airport parking and loading zones, Kippenhan said. But even with the four-month delay awaiting federal approval of the canopy, he said Miron finished the $12.3 million project two months ahead of the contractual completion date.

"We took it in stride," Kippenhan said. "The coordination between the county, the airport representatives and the contractors was extremely great. It could have been real difficult."

Design challenges

Sept. 11 security issues aside, the project posed a host of challenges for Miron. The curved design of the expansion kept the contractor from finding a right angle to anchor the construction. As a result, it all came down to focusing on layout points.

Project Name: Outagamie County Regional Airport Location: Greenville Submitting Company: Miron Construction Co. Inc., Neenah General Contractor/Construction Manager: Miron Construction Co. Inc., Neenah Architect: Mead and Hunt Inc., Madison Engineer: Mead and Hunt Inc., Madison Owner: Outagamie County Project Cost: $12.3 million Start Date: May 2001 Completion Date: October 2002

"The most difficult thing with this project is there isn't a single square corner in the building — they're all rounded," Kippenhan said. "So the amount of layout was extremely difficult. All of the foundations are on radial lines, so it's not a rectangular building at all.

"It was an extremely difficult structure both in pouring the concrete and erecting the structural steel," he added. "There was a real attention to detail. It was a lot more labor intensive as far as doing the layout."

The end result, Kippenhan said, was worth the effort. The new concourse mirrors the circuitous route of the nearby Fox River, and the south-facing windows and skylights flood the addition with natural light.

"It's a first-class facility, and it's important to give a good first impression of the Fox River Valley," Kippenhan said. "We're extremely proud of what was built."

But that doesn't mean it was easy.

"It was an extremely difficult project from a logistical standpoint and Sept. 11," Kippenhan said. "We're proud it will stand there for the next 30 years, and our name is associated with it."

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