Ipswich Antenna Test Facility
Ipswich, Massachusetts

Watermark was awarded a contract by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District (CENAE) to perform the planning, execution, and closure reporting for the deconstruction and restoration of the Ipswich Antenna Test Facility located in Ipswich, Massachusetts.  The work included the demolition of 10 buildings encompassing over 25,000 square feet, located throughout the 65 acre property including the deconstruction of a three-story reinforced concrete antenna test facility that contained offices, classrooms, laboratories, freight elevator, and testing facilities.  Work  also included the relocation of an emergency generator and roof-top chiller; decommissioning, demolition, and proper disposal of all buildings, structures, subsurface utilities, pavement, and oil tanks; identification and removal of hazardous materials including asbestos, lead, polychlorinated biphenyls, and mercury; and the restoration of the project site disturbed by demolition work.

Prior to initiating demolition activities, all salvage items and accessible asbestos and other hazardous building materials were removed from the 10 buildings and structures.  Asbestos containing building materials included floor tile, mastic, pipe insulation, door/window caulking, boiler insulation, joint compound, vapor barrier adhesive, and pipe insulation in utility duct banks.  Watermark performed testing of soil surrounding utility duct banks to determine presence of asbestos in surrounding soils.  Asbestos containing soils were segregated and properly disposed of at a licensed off-site disposal facility.

Demolition proceeded from building to building until all above ground structures were reduced.  All paved areas, concrete pads, and sidewalks were then stripped from the surface to uncover any remaining foundations, underground utilities, and other structures.  All building foundations and column footings were entirely removed.  Next, all above ground and underground utilities (> 6,000 linear feet), fuel and septic storage tanks, storm water systems, and septic systems were excavated, removed, and capped/terminated at the property line.  Finally, all roadways approximately 20,000 square feet and 3,000 linear feet of fencing were removed from the site. A final rough grading of the site was completed.