Project of the Month: JM Coull completes Gables apartment building renovations at the University of New Hampshire

JM Coull (JMC) completed renovations in three of the five Gables residential buildings at UNH's Durham campus. Under this "Summer Slammer" project, JMC and its design partner, Harriman Architects and Engineers, performed upgrades to Gables A, B, and C, including demolition of existing interior structures and installation of new carpeting, lighting, flooring, kitchen cabinets and appliances, countertops, toilets/showers, vanities, as well as new paint throughout all units and the main hallway on each floor. The suites required significant renovations in order to provide students with refreshed and modernized spaces, which would be a challenge under any fast-track schedule. However, the sheer magnitude of the work makes this such a unique project. JMC completed 101 suites across three buildings (1,134 rooms total) in 68 days. At minimum, 350 workers were involved, for a total of 54,000 man hours recorded. Project highlights include: * 1,440 gallons of paint used * 63 new windows installed * 1,599 cabinets installed * 153,990 sf carpet/tile/VCT installed * 14,850 countertops and sills installed * 183 solid surface showers installed. "The UNH gables project was a success because it was set up correctly from the beginning," said JMC project executive/manager Josh Brandt. "There was adequate time to plan with everyone's input. With our design partner and subcontractors, we had open lines of communication and were able to establish a sense of trust and work towards a common goal for UNH. We had the proper team in place for this challenging project, and came together to solve problems quickly and effectively when issues arose. I am extremely grateful for everyone's hard work, and am pleased we were able to help UNH provide its students with improved facilities." JMC's team was led by Brandt, assistant project manager Jason Tessitore, and superintendents Tom Roche, Derrick Buron, and Mike Mason. Melissa Metivier and Sharon Ames led Harriman's design efforts. UNH personnel included: Michel Williams, assistant director of housing facilities and operations; Sean Winston, housing facilities project manager; Don Hagstrom, facilities project manager; and Brenda Whitmore, director of facilities project management. The Gables renovation marks JMC's second project at UNH. The company previously transformed Smith Hall, a former dormitory, into office space for multiple university departments. JMC is currently on site for the relocation of UNH's electron microscope from Kendall Hall to Parsons Hall. In addition to managing the transport of this extremely rare device, JMC is performing demolition and providing new partitions, casework, epoxy flooring, ductwork, process piping, vibration control, and commissioning.