In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Waldinger Corporation had several projects delayed or cancelled, while the John W. Danforth Company needed additional detailing support. Using GTP Services’ STRATUS software, they successfully collaborated on a large project, to the benefit of both companies. STRATUS allowed the contractors to share resources and also digitize their paper-based workflow, eliminating mistakes and increasing productivity.
Waldinger, located in Des Moines, IA, purchased their first Tigerstop automated cutting saw in November 2017 and integrated it using a new software tool: GTP’s STRATUS. After a few months of trial and error, they had a workflow setup that sent information directly from the model to the Tigerstop saw. Not only did STRATUS control the saw, it generated a label that was applied to the hanger and had all the fabrication information needed.
Fast forward three years to 2020. Danforth of Tonawanda, NY, was contracted for an addition and renovation to an existing laboratory building for the University of Vermont Firestone Research Center, and Waldinger had an unexpected decline in workload. As the two companies discussed collaboration, the main concern was how to integrate fabrication and construction processes when the companies were using different modeling software. The solution was GTP’s STRATUS software.
Under the direction of Danforth’s project management team, including Craig Rexford and Thomas Walker, Waldinger’s Virtual Design and Construction team completed a coordinated, construction level detail for the project. The original building posed construction challenges because of its short floor-to-floor heights filled with a myriad of laboratory gas apparatus and other piping.
After construction and coordination was complete, the first items to be fabricated were the hangers in May 2021. At about the same time, Danforth had just purchased a new Tigerstop cutting system for their hanger fabrication and were starting to work with the STRATUS software.
Waldinger offered Danforth a login to their STRATUS software, enabling Danforth to drive their Tigerstop with the Waldinger STRATUS database. Teams from both companies worked together to develop a label that would work for Danforth’s fabrication and field crews. In the end, Danforth fabricated 4,500 hangers in their Tonawanda shop and shipped them to Vermont for field installation.
Patrick Moran, Danforth’s vice president of Virtual Design and Construction, said, “We’ve been doing hanger fabrication for a long time. We purchased STRATUS and the Tigerstop to help take our fabrication to the next level and eliminate some of our paper-based processes—but being able to partner with someone who had already implemented the Tigerstop with STRATUS gave us a jumpstart and reduced our implementation time.”
Waldinger’s Director of Preconstruction Services, Stacy Zerr, added, “STRATUS is a tool that we are using to eliminate paper through our shop fabrication processes—from hanger fabrication to pipe cutting and shop assembly. We were grateful to be able to collaborate with Danforth and keep our detailers busy through an unexpected dip in our workload. We were able to share best practices and software tips that aided both companies. It’s a great example of how MCAA brings contractors together for the benefit of both organizations.”
For more information, visit stratus.gogtp.com.
