70,000 Sq Yd of DIA Carpet Reclaimed

A project at Denver International Airport that will replace carpeting in two concourses and parts of the main terminal is reclaiming 70,000 sq yd of old carpet.

Installation and tear-out, which are being done concurrently because of the nature of the job and airport passenger safety concerns, began in April on Concourse C and in early May on Concourse A. The project will undergo a planned installation hiatus during August for the Democratic National Convention but is expected to be complete in November.

The old carpet consists of two types that will all be reclaimed in some manner, according to Denver-based flooring contractor, ReSource Colorado Inc. The material from Concourse C was manufactured by C&A, a Dalton, Ga.-based flooring company, which has engineering a reclamation program specifically for its product.

The carpet is collected in semi-trailers and shipped to the company’s Georgia facility. The material is processed and begins a second life as backing for new carpet.

The carpet from Concourse A and the terminal is a rubber-backed product. ReSource Colorado has contracted with a cement plant in Sugar Creek, Mo., where materials will be shipped and burned for fuel. Built in 2007, the $7-million facility was constructed specifically for this purpose and operates under specific guidelines.

“I was required to send samples of the carpet to the plant so that it could be cleared for acceptance,” said John Stanfield, president of ReSource Colorado. “The material was thoroughly tested according to their specification to be certain it would burn clean and not emit any potentially harmful pollutants.”

The flooring contractor has a crew of 30 for the DIA project, including supply truck drivers, measuring specialists, project managers and 24 full-time installers working two shifts around the clock to complete the project by November.

Along with the schedule, the company has faced a number of added considerations not typical of everyday flooring projects.

“From an installer’s perspective, things like fingerprinting for security clearance and the logistics of working in a facility that is always very busy aren’t normal concerns,” said Stanfield. “None of my guys were certified to drive on an airport runway, but they are now.”

Each of the crew had to be formally fingerprinted and cleared by the Transportation Security Administration and issued a photo ID badge in order to work the airport. But TSA involvement did not stop there. The government agency conducts daily checks on installation tools like carpet knives and razors brought into the airport building.

The number of sharp objects checked out by TSA is recorded onto a log, and tools must be checked back in at the end of each shift. The check-in and check-out numbers are required to match every day.

“I think the biggest thing we have learned during this process is the value of coordination, patience and sound project management skills,” said Tanner DeJonge, project manager for ReSource Colorado. “Coordination with airport management, government security, the mill and reclamation facility are key to this project’s timely success.”

Another challenge the ReSource crew has faced is the lack of freight elevators in parts of the airport facility. “We had to get creative in transporting 650- to 900-lb rolls of carpet up and down airport escalators,” said DeJonge. The entire project consists of 70,000 cu yd of Bentley broadloom carpet that will be installed from 12-ft rolls.

According to Starnet Worldwide Commercial Flooring Partnership, a national alliance of commercial flooring contractors, this is one of the largest carpet recovery projects performed by a member to date.