The National Marine Life Center » Construction

Thanks Tobey Hospital !

Sea Rogers Williams — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:44:44 +0000

The Animal Care staff is very grateful to the generous donation of a Narkomed anesthesia unit from Tobey Hospital and particularly for the help from Robert Casmira to coordinate this effort. This fully functional unit, while no longer the state-of-the-art for human anesthesia, is more advanced then the vast majority of veterinary units and has multiple anesthesia maintenance options including isoflurane, sevoflorane, and desflorane. The unit incorporates anesthetic patient monitoring and even has a ventilator. This is a key component to the veterinary diagnostic and therapy suite for the marine animal stranding hospital which is nearing completion. Anesthesia is necessary for surgical procedures and some mildly invasive medical diagnostic and therapy procedures for stranded marine mammals and sea turtles.

Chemistry, Art, & Two Guys from Wisconsin

Kathy Zagzebski — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 23:25:00 +0000

In researching various floor coatings, we considered a variety of products. We looked at the “do it yourself” versions of garage floor coatings, as well as several products applied by contractors. One of our biggest challenges was the need to coat the floor in February in Massachusetts. Cape Cod isn’t the coldest place on earth right now, but it’s far chillier than the temperatures optimal for sealing concrete floors. Fortunately, we were referred to Harry Heise of Specialty Coating Solutions (SCS).

Zig (left) and Harry (right) touch up the surface around one of the sea turtle tanks.

With a degree in Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Harry loves to figure out the perfect product for the situation at hand. He has patented at least one mixture, and has come up with innovative applications for many others. At first, most of his work was in industry – waste water, paper mills, utility companies. One day he was asked to consult on a zoo application, and suddenly a sideline in the zoo and aquarium industry was born. Harry says he enjoyed working on the National Marine Life Center job because he is excited to use his experience to help the animals.

A job well done! Harry (left) and Zig (right) of Specialty Coating Solutions.

Siegfried (Seig) Fritz helped Harry with the job at NMLC. With a degree in Art from the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, Sieg finds he can apply some of the skills and principles of floor sealing to his art. He also enjoyed visiting several of the art galleries in Falmouth while here. (Like Harry, Sieg currently lives in North Carolina.) Sieg said he looks forward to returning to NMLC once we open for patients!

Thank you Harry and Sieg of Specialty Coating Solutions for your stories, your good humor in cold weather, and your excellent workmanship!

Sealing the floor

Kathy Zagzebski — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:06:38 +0000

Preparing the concrete

One of the critical aspects of a marine animal hospital is providing an easily cleaned, sanitary environment. To that end, as we proceed with finishing the sea turtle ward, it was necessary to seal the concrete floor. Although concrete seems to be a durable, easily washed surface, without a protectant it will quickly chip and crack and become discolored under the pressure of constant cleaning and disinfecting. “Specialty Coating Solutions (SCS)” to the rescue!

Rollers were used to apply the product.

To form a durable, lasting coating takes a number of steps.
Step 1: prepare the concrete by roughening the surface to create a texture that will soak up the sealant.
Step 2: apply a primer coat. For NMLC, SCS used a resin primer with styrene mixed in to form a durable bond with the concrete.
Step 3: apply an intermediate coat. The intermediate coat included resin mixed with calcium carbonate to both coat the surface and fill in cracks and small holes in the concrete.
Step 4: apply top coat. The top coat protects the two earlier coats. In some cases, tint may be added for color and/or grit may be added to reduce slipperiness.

The primer coat

The final result.

Record Number of Sea Turtle Strandings

Kathy Zagzebski — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 00:32:19 +0000

According to the Cape Cod Times, a record number of sea turtles stranded yesterday. The National Marine Life Center would like to be able to help the MassAudubon Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary (authorized beach respondants) and the New England Aquarium (authorized intensive care unit) by opening our new sea turtle ward to these severely debilitated animals. Sadly, we recently had to halt construction on our new marine animal hospital just short of opening our new sea turtle ward. We need to raise $200,000 to complete our sea turtle ward and open our doors to these stranded sea turtles and the dozens more that will strand over the next month. Without the National Marine Life Center, there simply aren’t enough rehabilitation pools and trained personnel in Massachusetts to care for the number of turtles that will strand. Our partner organizations are counting on us to help. The turtles are counting on us to help. We are counting on you to help us open our doors.

Please, give what you can today.

Stranded Kemp's ridley sea turtle, photo by Bill Allen, MassAudubon Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary

Stranded loggerhead sea turtle, photo by Don Lewis, Cape Cod Consultants

Stranded Kemp's ridley sea turtle, photo by Don Lewis, Cape Cod Consultants

Stranded loggerhead sea turtle, photo by Don Lewis, Cape Cod Consultants

We need YOU to help Open Our Doors!

Kathy Zagzebski — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 01:47:48 +0000

Exactly two years ago, the National Marine Life Center had a crisis situation. The roof over our rehabilitation facility began to collapse and we had to move out of the building.

We put in a massive effort to raise the $3.1 million needed to remove the original building and replace it with a new hospital that will serve many of the nearly 300 turtles, seals, dolphins and even whales needing help in our area each year.

Building the new hospital.

But again we have a critical situation and this time we need your help to solve it.

We need to raise $200,000 by January 15 to continue our mission and complete the hospital and open for patients. The building is up and the sea turtle ward is nearly ready, but we still need to connect the life support system and complete the plumbing and electricity; we need to install the sprinkler system to obtain an occupancy permit; we need to install stairs in order to safely access the mezzanine level and life support rooms; and we need to close up the main wall to make the building weather-tight and secure.

We are so close! We just have a few more steps to complete the building and sea turtle ward before we can open our doors to animals in need. Once open, the first patient to enter our new sea turtle ward will be named “Betsy” in memory and honor of Elizabeth Hornor who, along with her husband Townsend, had a dream to build a sea turtle and marine mammal hospital right here on Cape Cod, where hundreds of these critically endangered animals strand or coldstun. “Betsy” may be a Kemp’s ridley, a loggerhead, or a green who will strand cold-stunned and near death. “Betsy” may even be a seal who will strand with severe illness. We have a brand new rehabilitation tank waiting for her, but we need your help to hook up the life support system. We have trained caregivers standing by to help, but we need your help to install necessary equipment for them to do their life-saving work. We are very close to realizing Elizabeth and Townsend’s dream, and we need your help to succeed.

Help us do this NOW. Please, donate what you can. We will give every donor a membership and thank you gift in return. If you are already a member, we will gladly give a gift membership to the person of your choice. Think of it this way – we are so close, but at a standstill. Help us help “Betsy” and other animals like her.

This year has been challenging for people and animals alike. If you are able, please consider a year-end gift to the National Marine Life Center. The sea turtle ward of our new hospital is nearly finished, but we need your help to open our doors and begin accepting new patients. Any amount will help save stranded animals and return them to their ocean home. Thank you.

Will we be able to open our doors to “Betsy” and others like her? Only with your help. Please give what you can today. Thank you.

Roll-up Door

Kathy Zagzebski — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 19:52:17 +0000

The “working door” of our new hospital was installed today – a roll-up door at the rear of the building through which dolphins, porpoises, and pilot whales will eventually be admitted. Installed by Overhead Door Garage Headquarters, the roll-up steel door is 12 feet tall by 12 feet wide. Eventually, a bridge crane will be added to help offload large animals and bring them inside to the rehabilitation tanks.

Turtle Ward Walls

Kathy Zagzebski — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 02:28:31 +0000

This week the crew from Target Construction has been busy erecting walls around NMLC’s new sea turtle ward. The walls are made of a moisture and mold resistant drywall affixed to metal studs. A layer of “FRP” (fiberglass reinforced panels) is then glued to the drywall in order to provide a durable, washable surface. Washable is very important! Soon, we’ll be ready for sea turtles!

Durable metal studs provide framework for the walls.

Richard and Martin next fasten drywall to the metal studs.

Drywall seams are taped, then FRP panels are glued over the drywall.

A finished wall!

Extech Doors

Kathy Zagzebski — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:08:12 +0000

The final components of our Extech facade were the doors. Specially designed for NMLC, each door is twelve feet high, six feet wide, and 600 pounds in weight. Also made of translucent Extech material, the doors are secured in a heavy metal frame and swing outward in “carriage door” style. Heavy bolts secure the doors to the concrete wall when not in use. Later, a small loading platform with stairs may be added. The front doors will serve as a secondary access to NMLC’s new marine animal hospital. A roll-up metal “garage door” style door with a ramp and loading dock at the rear of the facility will serve as the primary loading/unloading door to bring in dolphins and small whales.

Offloading the doors. Each weighed 600 pounds, and the crew from Village Plumbing came out to lend a hand.

The first door.

The second door.

The completed facade.

Soon, we will open these doors to stranded sea turtles even as we work to expand the hospital for seals, dolphins, and small whales.

Many thanks to Extech-Voegle for a product that is both stunning and functional, to cosestudi for their brilliantly creative design, to W.W. Reich for excellent general construction and project management, and especially to Target Construction for taking on a new challenge and executing it masterfully. Thanks to this team, NMLC’s new marine animal hospital is a place of beauty as well as healing. A final thank you to NMLC’s Brian Moore, who threw his job description out the window and is pitching in wherever necessary to save money and get our hospital open as quickly as possible – even donning a hard hat and helping to install Extech!

Extech Installation – Day 5

Kathy Zagzebski — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 19:21:14 +0000

The last nine Extech panels were installed today, and the front facade is nearly complete! Work continued with adding a frame around the edges to help hold the panels in place. All that’s left are the doors, which were delivered at the end of the day. Inside, you can see how much light the panels allow in. The sunset at the end of the day was beautifully reflected.

The last panel!

Lifting the panel.

Adding the frame.

Frame detail.

From inside.

Sunset.

Extech Installation – Day 4

Kathy Zagzebski — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 22:11:08 +0000

The weather cleared today, allowing Extech installation to continue. Richard and Mac from Target Construction framed the west half of the facade, then Brian helped install 16 more panels. We’re almost done!

36 panels

Fun Facts about NMLC’s Extech Facade:
~ There will be 49 total panels.
~ Except for the first and the 49th panel, each panel is 2 feet wide.
~ The shortest panels on each end are 23 feet 11 3/8 inches tall.
~ The tallest panel in the middle is 26 feet 11 3/4 inches tall.
~ The panels are designed in a “tongue in groove” style that forms a water-tight seam. On NMLC’s facade, the left edge of the panels have the rounded tongue that fits into the groove along the right edge of the previous panel.
~ Each panel is made from multi-cellular polycarbonate plastic. The cellular structure helps provide insulation.
~ The cellular structure also helps diffuse incoming light. Glass beads are coextruded with the polycarbonate, enhancing light diffusion.
~ The exterior face has a UV-resistant finish.
~ Aluminum framing fitted with low-friction gasketing helps to hold the panels in place. This specially-designed frame not only provides a finished look for the product but also allows for thermal movement of the panels.

View from inside

40 panels