Ernst & Young, LLP
CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS BUILDING
#5 TIMES SQUARE
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
NATURE OF PROJECT:
Blast Mitigation
SCOPE OF PROJECT:
Sq. Ft. of Windows Protected – 134,000
Panes of Glass Protected – 4,500
TYPE OF FILM INSTALLED:
8-mil Fragment Retention Film
FILM CHARACTERISTICS:
Blast Protection
CHARACTER OF PROJECT:
The installation required a heavy, protective film on the lower levels of the building with 8-mil film and perimeter attachments applied to the upper windows. To minimize disruption of Ernst and Young’s daily activities, installation was done at night and because of the sensitive nature of the firm’s work, intensive security checks were required. Though the customer allotted 150 days for completion, Commercial Window Shield finished the work in only 46 days.
Project Details
Situated at a prime location in Midtown Manhattan, Ernst & Young, LLP contracted to have a vulnerability assessment performed on the building they occupy at #5 Times Square. Although the building is owned and managed by Boston Properties, Ernst & Young holds a long-term lease and took the responsibility to determine and act on developing security measures designed to protect their employees. Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), the largest employee-owned research and engineering firm in the United States, was hired to conduct a thorough review of the building.
One of the areas of concern was the predominantly glass exterior. The building is in a high profile location and the entire facade of this 40 story building is made up of either vision or spandrel glass. The building's orientation and location made it vulnerable to a terrorist bomb blast, even if it were to occur blocks away.
SAIC contacted and met with Commercial Window Shield experts to discuss the sustainable pressure loads that could be anticipated from potential bomb blast scenarios. From their review and calculations, SAIC specified an application of an 8-mil film with perimeter attachments on all areas of the building except the lower floors. A heavier, more protective film was applied on lower level locations.
Ernst & Young asked several companies to participate in a bid process and invited each firm to respond to their request for proposal (RFP). Commercial Window Shield was selected to do the work based on a combination of their understanding the scope of the work, their past performance and price. The project consisted of applying film with an attachment system to over 4,500 panes of glass – more than 134,000 square feet of glass.
Since there are so many high level accounting people located at the headquarters, it was required that the work be done at night to minimize disruption to the firm's daily activities. And because of the sensitive nature of Ernst & Young's work, Commercial Window Shield's team of installers was required to go through an intensive security check to be able to work in the building. Although Ernst & Young allowed 150 days for the project to be complete, Commercial Window Shield efficiently completed the installation in 46 calendar days.
Contact names and phone numbers for Ernst & Young and SAIC are available upon request.
"Wayne, Thank you for your email. Based on the information you have provided me below, I will give Steve the appropriate documents he needs from me. We will take care of the change order as quickly as possible, keeping in mind many people are on vacation due to the Christmas holiday. I would also like to thank you and your team for the outstanding work performed. DIA is extremely pleased with how quickly the work was done and with so few disruptions to the employees. You have a very professional and reliable crew. Please pass on my sincere thanks for their outstanding work. Have a Merry Christmas!"
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Susannah T. Finch
P.E.