photo courtesy of Timothy Hursley
Crews logged 291,000 man-hours without an accident while renovating the 200,000-sq-ft St. Louis Central Library.

Despite difficult working conditions, including an extremely cramped area when converting a sub-basement coal bin into an auditorium, crews logged 291,000 man-hours without an accident while renovating the 200,000-sq-ft St. Louis Central Library. The sub- basement was one of several outmoded spaces that workers adapted to new uses in the 100-year-old landmark structure, originally designed by Cass Gilbert.

General contractor BSI Constructors Inc. executed a voluntary protection program (VPP), which emphasizes hazard prevention and control as outlined by the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration. Among other criteria, workers were required to complete OSHA 10- or 30-hour courses prior to arriving on-site. At the time, BSI was the first and only general contractor in OSHA's Region VII admitted into the VPP program.

Project Team

Owner: St. Louis Public Library

General Contractor: BSI Constructors

Lead Design: Cannon Design

Structural Engineer: David Mason & Associates

MEP Engineer: William Tao & Associates

Civil Engineer: David Mason & Associates