Creating a giant space of land threatens to eat your company alive while pinning a medal of honor onto your chest. Steele Indian School Park, a 75-acre piece of land, was originally designed to house and school Native American children earlier in the century. With run-down asbestos-plagued buildings and overgrown weeds standing among great piles of dirt, it looked more like a nightmare. It was Terrain Systems' job to change that. The City of Phoenix attained the historic property known as the Indian School in 1996. After acquiring the property, the City moved toward the construction of the largest urban park that had ever been proposed for Phoenix. In the fashion of New York and other large metroplexes, the City intended that this park be a "Central Park" for Phoenicians to enjoy. Thus began the formation of Steele Indian School Park. The construction of Steele Indian School Park first began in June 2000. The first thoughts of David Lyons, the project engineer, were, "This is a great big chunk of dirt and it?EUR(TM)s going to take a lot to turn it into a world-class, showplace park. It?EUR(TM)s going to be here as long as there?EUR(TM)s a Phoenix so we better get it right." The park rested on over 75 acres of land and housed run-down buildings and an undeveloped landscape. Transforming a barren wasteland into a beautiful, water-filled, green park appeared impossible. The architect conceived a park that reflected the cultural roots of the property and Arizona itself. Incorporating Native American traditional elements into her design, Christy Ten Eyck had the park transition into four pieces that adjoined in the center around the old Indian School Auditorium and Dining Hall. All the pieces were inter- and intra-functional. That meant all the subcontractors had to work closely together to come out with a finished product that reflected the beauty of its design and the city that commissioned it. Terrain Systems received the contract to install the landscape elements. This meant positioning 136 palm trees, installing over 3 miles of mainline, and keeping on schedule. From day one, Randy Decker, Terrain?EUR(TM)s project foreman, had to efficiently coordinate the effort of his crew. Todd Huston, the project manager, had to maintain the relationships between Terrain Systems the City of Phoenix, Stantec Engineering, Christy Ten Eyk and Target General. Tom Beckley, the superintendent, worked closely with Huston in order to coordinate Terrain?EUR(TM)s efforts with those of the other contractors and kept Decker informed of each move so that he could work as efficiently as possible. Getting Started A huge contract; a huge piece of dirt. What every Landscape Contractor both cringes at with fear and smiles at with anticipation. Terrain Systems?EUR(TM) Todd Huston successfully negotiated the subcontract for Steele Indian School Park and arranged the pieces necessary to begin the site. He established a crew and arranged the purchasing and management throughout the construction process. He also coordinated with the City?EUR(TM)s architect, the designing architect, the general contractor, and the project engineer. Huston and Tom Beckley worked together to make sure all the documentation and change orders were successfully submitted to the City and the General Contractor. They also made sure that Decker had the proper instructions and measurements to be successful in accomplishing his objectives. Through their coordination, Huston and Beckley found themselves generating close working relationships with the various project managers. Setting up the project involved some focused decision-making. Huston chose Decker to be the project foreman, which turned into more of an on-site superintendent role, due to his previous experience in directing large projects. Decker brought on Domingo Garcia to head-up the mainline installation and other underground facilities. The purchasing of the site materials was an on-going process. Horizon Irrigation supported Terrain?EUR(TM)s needs tremendously and even parked a supply trailer loaded with over $50,000 worth of material, all whole goods, valves and such, on the site for most of the project. This gave Terrain the ability to move forward without being hindered by a lack of supplies and materials. As the project permitted, other materials were purchased and change orders made to complete the giant project. Keeping On Task Decker organized a strategy by studying the plans. Using color codes for the mainline and directional arrows to follow the movement of the extended lines, Decker plotted the shortest route each controller wire could take while hitting the sleeves and following the mainline. The first week, he and his crew marked out all the sleeve locations. Very few hardscape items had been established on site and the vast dirt plot was muddy from a week of unusually heavy rains. Because the engineer?EUR(TM)s markings were buried in the dirt piles and holes, Decker and his crew had to find a new means to establish the placement of the irrigation sleeves. By triangulating with two 300-feet and one 100-feet tape measures off an old existing fence along the major street, the team plotted each space and moved from one end to the other using each previous mark as the next cardinal point. When the first concrete was poured into place a few weeks later, they were relieved to see that their sleeves were right on the mark and that established, clearly identifiable points of reference were now in existence. For four months, the crew worked solely on laying the underground irrigation system. The mainline was Class 200 Rubber Ring pipe with Harco Ductile Iron Fittings. Over nine Rainbird Maxicon Satellite Control System Boxes were needed to control the all-Rainbird valve system. All of this had to be completed before the sidewalks and pavement could be laid. Each section had to be left open from gate valve to gate valve for strict pressure testing and inspection. This left many holes and spaces vulnerable to damage by other trades. After the above elements had been installed, the larger trees were planted with drip systems. Then the crew had to wait for the site to be re-graded for sidewalks, then excavated, poured and regraded before the sprinklers could be installed and the smaller foliage put into place. The enormity of the project meant many hands were needed. The crew went from four to nine workers by the end of the first week. By the end of the first month, there were 16 workers. The second month brought a second crew to support the first one. For the next 10 months, 40 or more workers were on the site Monday through Saturday, working long hours and often skipping breaks. By June of 2001, Decker felt that the project was accomplishable. The end was in sight. "I had a dream of a smooth project where problems didn?EUR(TM)t exist, for more than a day anyway." He found out that as soon as one problem was solved, another one would appear. The Entry Garden One of the last and most grueling pieces of the park to install was the Entry Garden. The design of the garden recreated the various vegetative habitats by which each Indian Nation was identified. A path encircles the 15-acre section, twisting downward toward a cistern of water at the end of the path. This made the Entry Garden one of the most intricate pieces of the park as it required in itself three mainlines and over 70 sleeves. The progress was supposed to move from the bottom of the circle toward the top, with the concrete subcontractor following Terrain up toward the top of the circle. Terrain placed the mainline, which was a three-armed structure. Then, Terrain laid the sleeves into place as the wall was built up the walkway. As for installing the topical pieces, the goal was to get the big parts done first. This would allow the crane to move the large, heavy items to the bottom of the garden, then, moving up a level, install the material there and so on. Otherwise the crane was going to have to cross over more than wall, which would be both a hassle and less safe. This would also prevent the crane from destroying the smaller landscaping if the larger went in first. After the heavy items were placed, the crews installed the granite, sprinklers and foliage. They worked from this point toward the top, but, by the final two weeks, Decker had to enlist 77 workers to finish the last eighth of the Entry Garden. They also had to hand-water most of the area until the electricians could power the valve box. So how do you stay motivated to accomplish such a task? Decker attributes it to three factors: ?EUR? Setting Goals "Early on in the project, we set goals of where we wanted to be in two weeks." This gave the landscapers the edge they needed to direct the project. By setting two-week goals, finishing by July seemed possible. They could see their progress in the midst of the vast emptiness at first and then could continue completing each piece until it all began to meet and create the whole. ?EUR? The Sense of Accomplishment The flow of work moved North to South with sleeving everywhere. Organization by the general contractor was difficult as different contractors worked at varying paces throughout the park. Decker describes it as being a "war zone." Because the pipelines needed to be pressure tested, Decker and his crew had to leave many of their pipelines open. Often this meant returning to broken pieces and covered holes. Knowing that they were staying on task helped the crew stay motivated to continue installing their work even with the possibility of it being damaged or destroyed. When they finally began putting the pieces together and installing the trees, they could see that their work was solid and that the park was going to be incredible once it was finished. ?EUR? Remaining Focused and Ethical With pieces of their work torn up constantly and other subs unwilling to comply or help out, Decker became more and more frustrated until it hit him. Of all the subs out there, very few had held to their commitment. Only one had continually met their standards and production objectives -- Terrain Systems, Inc. Instead of wondering why he continued on this job, Decker began to think, why would I want to leave this job? The 16-hour days full of anxious thought about the park and the hours of labor were long but the park no longer was a project, it was an accomplishment. This park was Decker?EUR(TM)s and Terrain?EUR(TM)s, and they were going to get it done right. Remaining ethical in standards and practices kept Decker and his crew going when the rest of the park seemed to be falling to pieces. The park was no longer just a job; it had become Decker?EUR(TM)s "personal" project. Solving Problems So a huge piece of land should equal tight reigns and organization. Contractors working together to finish an enormous project. Well, what if this doesn?EUR(TM)t occur? Decker was surprised by the lack of organization and cooperation he found in working with the other subs. Many times, he found the progress his crews were making was destroyed by the other trades?EUR(TM) work. One thing Decker found helpful was creating a mutual agreement with other subs. Running through and ruining each other?EUR(TM)s work was inevitable on such a site as Steele Indian School Park, but Decker teamed with General Electric and formed an agreement to reduce the impact to each other and help the project move ahead. They mutually agreed to the following four procedures: 1. First ask for location of underground pipes and facilities. 2. Pothole or hand trench over crossings. 3. If one cuts the other?EUR(TM)s work, dig it up and clean it to prepare for repair. 4. Always tell the other one about any damage, even if it is only suspected and you?EUR(TM)re not sure you hit it. This proved very helpful for the electrician and Terrain. While all of these procedures seemed like a common sense approach, the other trades continually could, or wouldn?EUR(TM)t, cooperate in protecting each other?EUR(TM)s work. This proved very helpful. Decker?EUR(TM)s core crew of seven men and himself comprised the brain trust of the project. Between the sharp minds of his young crew leaders and his accurate as-builts, Decker was able to make progress. Often, months would pass from the time an area began and the time when they could return to complete the work. One of his crew members would point to a mound of dirt and remark, "Here is where we can tie onto the mainline." Sure enough, buried three feet below would be the point of connection that they needed. Decker?EUR(TM)s organizational skills paid off. The City asked him to prepare a schedule for all the trades to follow that would get the park completed in the final four months. His plan was successful. He and all the other subs met their deadline and the park was ready for the public in November of 2001. Decker attributes the success of Indian School Park to several items: ?EUR? A 300-foot tape measure. This tool allowed Decker to place the sleeving accurately throughout the park when other sources of measurements failed to be properly placed. ?EUR? Fishing Tape. Used to pull 10 to 43 wires through the 96 sleeved wire crossings, this was the most indispensable item. ?EUR? Accurate As-Built drawings of the site as the project progressed. ?EUR? Ditch Witch 3500 trenchers and one 5000 series trencher with spreader teeth for the three-and-a-half miles of mainline and hundreds of 4- to 10-inch sleeves. ?EUR? Kawasaki golf cart with bed to optimize supervising and production on the project that covered seven blocks east to west by one half mile north to south. ?EUR? The Ford pickup that moved approximately 375,000 feet of pipe and such from one end to the other. ?EUR? The seven young minds of his crew members. "I?EUR(TM)m so proud of my seven guys?EUR?when they would come back to an area that had been piped four months before and now had dirt piled on it with regrading and reshaping, equipment piled and parked on it, they could tell me exactly where the pipe was and where the tree should be placed."