Reading Terminal Market, Giant Work Platform and overhead protection
Reading Terminal Market, Philadelphia, PA
Superior Scaffold erected a 580 foot long work deck or platform on both sides of the barrel shaped Reading Terminal Market (RTM) so crews could get access to replace the roof.
The platform is 5 feet wide by 6 feet High by 580 feet long and allows crews to roll their equipment from the mast climber at one end to their location anywhere along building.
Reading Terminal Market is a sprawling, somewhat chaotic indoor farmer’s market and food haven where over 100 merchants offer culinary treats, fresh produce and unique merchandise. It occupies an old train shed that was built in 1893 and sits at 12th and Arch Streets in downtown, Philadelphia.
The hardest part was tying into the wood truss that ran all the way down the side of the barrel and then setting the supporting scaffold in place. You can see here how we tied into that truss and then weatherproofed the connection with a sealed rubber boot.
The actual work platform was decked with steel plank and plywood the entire length of the market so crews could use their rolling equipment carts to move from the mast climber to their location. It has toe-board and guard rails down the entire length. There is system scaffold, trusses and compression tie-ins underneath. It’s really a pretty interesting design.
The canopy on 12th street is 580’ X 8’ high X 8’ wide. You’ll notice that this overhead protection system is constructed of bridge columns instead of our normal system scaffold. We painted the debris panels a matching green to help the entire canopy blend in better.
It spans over Filbert St. We had to have 2 giant steel beams specially manufactured at 50’ long to span that gap. You can clearly see them in this shot. Cranes were brought in to set them into place. This project is going to be up for a while so it had to be incredibly durable. Alternated Design Solutions engineered the steel beams for us.
The sidewalk shed over the Arch St. side, and the crosswalk from the new convention center to the old one, spans Arch St. and it’s 120’ long X 8’ high X 8’ wide on each side. There are also stair towers on both sides and a mast climber on each side to provide crews with everything they need up on the roof.
If you need access solutions to any project call Bob at Superior Scaffold today at 215-743-2200.