I have recommended O.T. Neighoff for several reasons. They are a large, quality oriented contractor, who has earned a fine reputation in our market over many years. In fact, they are the only contractor I would recommend for a project that is as complex, high profile and demanding as this one. I...
Dulles International Airport Toll Plazas
Industrial Services
Posted: Wednesday, February 16th, 2011
Searching for an Experienced Industrial Painting Contractor
The task was to find an industrial painting contractor within the Maryland Virginia region with the experience and knowledge to prep and paint the failing surfaces of thirty-three toll plazas on Dulles International Airport’s Toll Road without disruption to the heavy traffic volume accessing one of the world’s busiest airports. The Industrial Coatings Contractor chosen to travel to Virginia to stage and complete this complex project was O.T. Neighoff & Sons, Inc.
Timeline and Logistics
The complete operation was conducted at night through four of the coldest months of the year. At 9 PM, the crews arrived at the Toll Road in Sterling, Virginia to set in place traffic directional arrow boards, scissor lifts and boom trucks, lighting, generators, water tanks and pressure washers, and trucks carrying materials and necessary equipment. By 5 AM, all was disassembled and returned to a staging zone so that traffic could flow through the toll plazas unimpeded.
Industrial Project Challenges
Years of exposure to the elements and traffic pollutants had faded and deteriorated the surfaces of the Plaza’s structural framing, columns and ceilings. While traffic was allowed to access at least one lane of the Plazas, portions of the structures were cleaned with a biodegradable cleaner and 3500-psi power washers, followed by meticulous hand sanding to remove any final remaining flakes, achieving a tight sound paintable surface. Following application of an aluminum industrial coatings primer the Toll Plazas received two aliphatic finish coats. Sherwin Williams Industrial Maintenance OTC Coatings were used on the project. (Ozone Transport Commission – responsible for setting lower VOC content regulations for the coatings industries for many eastern states including Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Washington DC and the Northern Virginia suburbs).
Project Results
Despite average night temperatures ranging from single digits to the low 30’s, fog, rain and snow, the four-month project was professionally finished without interruption to the Toll Road traffic by the experienced and dedicated Industrial Maintenance Services Division of OTN.
