Carus - ML Piping | Chicago, IL

Manhattan Mechanical Services

Specialty Contractor > Mechanical: Industrial > Mechanical: Industrial

Manhattan Mechanical Services supports its customers in multiple areas, including process piping, structural steel, equipment installation, scaffolding, and insulation. Our multi-craft craftsmen strive for nothing less than the best for our clients.

Manhattan Mechanical was awarded the ML Piping Project at Carus in 2023. Due to unforeseen circumstances, Manhattan Mechanical was called for a total rebuild of a unit to get the plant up and running to somewhat normal operations. This consisted of a 5-week timeline to install over a mile of pipe, supports, pump setting, and valve installs. This included all NDE and Quality Control documentation upon final close. The timeline and location of this project caused Manhattan Mechanical to reallocate resources to meet the demands of the schedule.

Harsh conditions, job tracking, and logistics played a major role in creating obstacles for us to be successful. By thinking outside the box, coming up with strategic plans, and adjusting normal work schedules, we were able to strategize as a team to transition

needed team members to work abnormal shifts to not only cover all the work that was needed done but to also cover the planning, execution, job tracking and meetings required to continue to work seamlessly with the plant, the engineers, and multiple insurance representatives that required action items to keep moving forward.

Tie-in points and pipe runs to existing and new equipment were in all different locations due to needed demolition that was on-going as the project was in motion. This caused a lot of planning to ensure that we did not interfere or slow other work that was being done.

Continually finding discovery work that would normally delay the timeline caused Manhattan Mechanical to have to react with redirecting more manpower and resources across the board. QC and Safety coverage, along with upper management was needed every day. Necessary collaborations between all the departments to stay on top of the workload, work safely, and meet QC requirements was an absolute must. Manhattan was able to accomplish this with the experienced and seasoned employees we had on site and the continual training and hands on skills we provide our people.

Manhattan Mechanical safely worked over 7,200 manhours injury free on this project, and this has contributed to our already over 2 million manhours worked without a recordable. With passing over 70 radiography tests and 50 penetrant tests with zero failures, and the passing of all hydro testing on over a mile of pipe we achieved zero leaks on start-up. This, on top of our successful completion of the project, has allowed us to not only grow and build relationships, but has also given more opportunities to our employees to advance within the company.

We now have a strong everyday presence on site, and another pleased client that contributes to Manhattan Mechanical’s ability to provide a safe, and stable work environment for our employees without compromising our culture. Success can be defined in many ways, and on many different levels. Overcoming these challenges, giving people opportunities to step up, splitting our team into different groups, changing management and structure to fit the situation, and giving our lower-level craft work experience, coupled with successful cost tracking, training and zero safety incidents, have allowed us to experience success on many different levels with this project. We are thankful for customers that trust our leadership and employees that continue to amaze us with their skill and professionalism.

We are grateful for the opportunity to present one of our projects for the Excellence in Construction Awards in 2023. Manhattan Mechanical submits this project on behalf of a crew who completed the work safely, while also surpassing our client's expectations despite being faced with many obstacles. We are extremely proud of our whole team.