Standing Strong with the Men and Women in Blue

LATE SUMMER 2020 – Spray Foam Magazine – Spray Foam Magazine recently investigated a new project for our local Jupiter, Florida police department: a new emergency operations and IT data center. Reports of roof leaks during severe storms are an example of how the department was long overdue for a new building, since the original was built in the 1980s. Jupiter is an aqua blue gem of a beach town some celebrity A-listers call home, hidden from the hustle and bustle of Fort Lauderdale and Miami to the South.

Available land in the area is being snapped up quickly, and the old buildings are being replaced by newer, more technological builds. So it only seems fitting that the local law enforcement was not to be left out with the construction of a new building to fit in with its idyllic surroundings and to make sure their new roof doesn’t leak. “Jupiter is overdue to offer its police department a standalone building of its own. One of the big things that came out of these storms was realizing our police station and data centers were woefully inadequate to handle a major storm,” Mayor Todd Wodraska explained.

They were recently interviewed by the local newspaper, The Palm Beach Post, with Police Chief Daniel Kerr stating, “This is a very, very important project and the building will be vital during hurricanes.” There was a real concern that Hurricane Dorian was going to make a direct hit to the seaside town on Labor Day weekend 2019 with Kerr pointing out that the pre-existing headquarters would not have survived.

Kaufman Lynn Construction, one of the leading full-service commercial construction companies in the southeastern United States, was excited to take on the project. Founder and CEO Michael Kaufman celebrated the company’s 30th anniversary last year and reflected on some of their award-winning projects, such as the exterior renovation of Miami’s iconic Freedom Tower, Miami’s Paraiso at Fountain Square apartments, and their recognition of work on behalf of both Palm Beach County and Miami Dade College. “I’m humbled by our success and feel a responsibility to ensure all members of the community get similar opportunities to succeed,” said Kaufman. “We encourage our employees to become engaged in civic involvement because giving back to our communities is a fundamental part of the Kaufman Lynn tradition.”

The job was specified by the architect, who required foamed-in-place foam for the roof deck and in the attic space on this project. The builder and architect chose spray foam due to its efficiency, quality, and longevity. The SPF insulation company hired to seal the buildings envelope was Tailored Foam of Florida, Inc. A family-owned business, Tailored Foam has completed over 50,000 projects, installing SPF. They are fully certified and have provided the many benefits of foam insulation for some of of America’s largest retailers and iconic sports facilities like Orlando’s Amway Center and Miami’s Marlins Park, plus the 2.1 million square-foot, state-of-the-art Orlando Orange County Convention Center, Tallahassee’s venerable Florida Supreme Court Building, schools, churches, and for thousands of Florida homeowners.

Stefan Sigurjonsson, Commercial Sales Manager at Tailored Foam, explained the basics of the emergency operations and IT data center spray, “We sprayed the underside of the roof deck and sealed off the perimeter soffits. We also sprayed a cantilever and a soffit above the entry lobby.» Once the spray foam installation was complete, we used F10E thermal barrier for our 15-minute thermal barrier. We also used Core-Fill 500 on the exterior walls that were included in the spec.”

There are several benefits for using spray foam on this project including the reduction in energy cost. The Jupiter Police Department will see a tremendous difference in the monthly utility bill while also keeping the building comfortable for the occupants. Sigurjonsson adds, “South Florida is hot and humid for a large portion of the year and SPF will keep the humidity out and the cool air in. It will also help with sound dampening, fire suppression, and sealing the building from the elements in addition to making the structure stronger and resilient to the severe storms and more hurricanes South Florida endures.”

Because the build was a new construction, the crew had a nice clean substrate to work with. Kaufman and the architect had an energy calculation completed prior to the install and the Tailored Foam crew met those energy calculations based on their input. They also made sure to spray the thermal barrier over the foam to meet building code. The crew of two (one head sprayer and an assistant) referred to the project as, ‘a decent size’ at 27,000 square feet to spray. The crew sprayed Icynene Classic Ultra Select foam. The crew sprayed a nominal 5.5 inches (R-value of 20), using roughly 8 sets of foam onto a corrugated metal deck with plywood sheathing and metal trusses that were 16 feet tall at the roof peak. Then, they applied 21 mils wet, and 14 mils dry of Fireshell coating. Tailored Foam always uses a Graco E-30 reactor on their spray foam rigs and usually have between 250 to 310 feet of hose with a Fusion spray gun. They also have industrial paint sprayers for applying the thermal barrier.

The crew said the scheduling and logistics were a challenge on this project because there were a lot of moving pieces. They made sure to stay in constant communication to keep the overall schedule limited to eight days. The crew’s safety orientation and toolbox talks were both conducted on this project with the crew working on lifts and ladders where necessary. They wore full Tyvek suits, gloves, and respirators, while a Tennessee Chill Box kept them cool.

Sigurjonsson concludes, “Kaufman Lynn Construction have given this police department a product that will pay for itself in far less time than conventional insulation, and it won’t need to be reapplied. They have given them longevity in how long their HVAC system will last and saved the client tens of thousands of dollars over the next 30 years. Kaufman is always a great firm to work with and we are happy to complete another wonderful project with their team!”

The Jupiter Police Dept can rest assured that their new building is safe, strong, and ready to stand up to the elements and anything else that should come their way. Mayor Wodraska highlighted how much larger and more modern the new municipal complex is compared to the old building, “I think it just shows our commitment to public safety.”