Fenton Construction Company Inc., played a pivotal part in the recently completed 57,000 SF Miller A. Bugliari ’52 Athletics Center at The Pingry School in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. Fenton served as the general contractor for the project, which spanned 12 months, and began in December 2015 with the foundation being laid in January 2016. As the general contractor, Fenton oversaw the foundation, building shell, floor slabs, exterior steel structure and walls, and EPDM roof, as well as the building interior fit out. Contributing to the project’s success were Pingry CFO, Olaf Weckesser and Michael Waelz, the school’s Director of Facilities; while Kevin Aitken, the Senior Sports Architect, represented CHA Companies, architects for the project; and Michael Virzi acted as Construction Manager on behalf of The Fulcrum Group.
A well-coordinated team effort among the many different contributors generated a final result that was not only on time, but also within the budget constraints.
Fenton was directly involved in the design of the sports facility structure and worked closely with Butler Manufacturing™ to configure the building’s steel shell according to plan. In addition to engineering and supplying the steel structure, Butler supplied its renowned MR-24 Standing Seam Roof system, which is recognized worldwide for its superior quality and maintenance-free performance. The modern, spacious field house provides locker rooms for both Pingry and visiting teams along with a strength and conditioning room. In addition to two (2) full basketball courts and four (4) basketball side courts, there are eight (8) squash courts and ample room for fencing and wrestling events. The structure also serves as an indoor practice facility for lacrosse, softball and baseball. The exterior lobby walls are constructed of Nichiha Illuminations Panel, a cementitious modular panel from Japan, which is used in combination with aluminum and glass elements to create a unique entry space. Adorning the entry are entire walls of life-size sports murals depicting past Pingry sports achievements. Michael Mulcahy concludes, “At Fenton, our philosophy and mission is to construct buildings to a higher standard – the goals and dreams of our clients. We envision Pingry’s new field house serving future generations of coaches and student athletes as they write the school’s next chapter of athletic achievement.”
