Masonry Magazine February 1961 Page. 27
West System Helps Contractor
Handle 5 Million Brick Equivalents
On Schedule, Safely, Economically
Masonry work on the 6 buildings comprising the new Music and Speech Center at Kent State University, in Kent, Ohio, posed many and varied day-to-day problems. All were quickly, safely and economically solved with the help of the West System for "keeping masonry materials on the move," according to Project Superintendent G. E. Carnahan, Melbourne Bros. Construction Co., Canton.
Over 3,000,000 face brick, an additional million common brick, more than 500,000 block and in excess of 100,000 ceramic glazed structural facing tile were specified by Architects Mellenbrook, Foley & Scott, of Berea, Ohio.
West System components included 3 manually-operated Half Brick Buggies, 5 Mortar Tubs and a "445 Skytrak" - representing an investment of $9,500.
All masonry units were palletized after delivery - on 16" x 24" pallets, handled "in pairs" so they could be quickly "split and spotted at mason stations." The "West 445" served the scaffold to a height of "3 bucks" - then it placed materials on a standard hoist which served walls as high as 120 for the main theater.
Exterior walls are face brick, backed with block. Many interior partitions are structural tile, plastered, finished with special acoustical material or ceramic glazed structural tile (in a wide variety of colors) for corridors, wash rooms and other traffic areas.
What about the productive efficiency of the West System? Under the direction of Masonry Superintendent John Adams, a crew of 29 brickmasons - served by 16 laborers following the West System - averaged 15,000 face brick per day (plus block backup for a 12" header wall) on exterior walls. This labor also was responsible for scaffold building and cleanup. Comparative efficiency was achieved with smaller crews, and on inside work as well, as the masonry work neared completion.
"Results like this are possible because of advance set-up and a steady flow of material, all of it in usable condition, direct to the mason," points out Superintendent Carnahan. Before the Kent project, he had used the West System on a hospital addition in nearby Ravenna, and on the Twinsburg (Ohio) Chrysler Plant with solid masonry walls 1700' long.
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to MCAA Show
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"Skytrak to hoist-to scaffold - to point of use, the West System improves worker morale, reduces wall costs and eliminates material breakage," reports Project Superintendent G. E. Carnahan (right).
In addition to its 20"-6" "reach," stability and power the West Skytrak is especially useful around the jobsite because of its "shuttle clutch" and generally-simplified operation.
Resident Architect Dick Schaefer (left) confers with Masonry Superintendent John Adams (right) as brickmasons "top out" the 50' high walls of the Recital Hall.