Case study · Construction Management
Confidential Spec-Build Rescue, Midwest US
A 3 MW facility that was 1.5 years behind schedule and $30 million over budget when PGCIS arrived. The network design was rebuilt from scratch. The builder was replaced mid-project. Zero work stoppages. Zero OSHA recordables.
The challenge
The damage was already done.
By the time PGCIS arrived, the facility was 1.5 years past its delivery date and $30 million over budget. The building was a redeveloped industrial power facility, and remediation of the existing structure was part of the scope. Project funding was at risk. COVID-19 was disrupting supply chains and requiring new on-site protocols that added friction to everything.
The design was the root problem. It took forensic analysis to understand how far the mechanical, electrical, and network design had drifted from what the facility actually needed. The network design, including the pathway to a major carrier hotel 12 fiber miles away, had to be rebuilt from scratch. The general contractor and several subcontractors had not performed, and replacing them mid-project without stopping work is not a routine action. It requires precise coordination and a plan that accounts for every possible disruption before it arrives.
Every decision on a project this far gone carries compounded risk. The wrong move does not just fail to help. It adds to the problem.
Our role
Forensic review, then surgical replacement.
Benton Peret led design management and advisory for PGCIS, starting with a forensic review of the building systems and network design. The analysis identified what had to be corrected versus what could be preserved, and informed a value engineering effort that addressed the budget overrun without reducing what the facility needed to operate.
The network design was completely rebuilt, including the 12-fiber-mile pathway to the carrier hotel. Equipment procurement was restructured to address supply chain gaps. We replaced the GC and multiple subcontractors, managed each transition, and kept the site running through every change. COVID mitigation procedures were implemented and held across the site for the duration.
Commissioning management ran alongside construction management through to completion. Operational readiness, compliance verification, and go-to-market preparation were also in scope, positioning the client to start leasing from a building that could actually sustain tenants.
Outcomes
What happened
- Project recovered from 1.5 years behind schedule and $30M over budget
- Complete network redesign executed, including 12-fiber-mile pathway to a major carrier hotel
- GC and several subcontractors replaced mid-project with zero work stoppages
- Zero OSHA recordable incidents through project completion
- COVID-19 mitigation protocols implemented and sustained across the site
- PUE 1.15 achieved on delivery; 3 MW operational with path to 12 MW
- Facility delivered to operational readiness and compliance standards
What this proves
Rescue without adding instability.
A rescue is a different job than a healthy build. The schedule and budget are already gone, the design may not be sound, and every move risks adding to the instability instead of cutting it. The job is to replace what has to go and fix what can be saved without creating new problems. Zero work stoppages and zero OSHA recordables, through multiple contractor replacements, on a remediation site, during a pandemic.