Cambridge, MA – Abbot Building Restoration Company, Inc. is in the final stages of a major facade repair and exterior improvement project involving two identical brick and precast concrete condominium buildings located on either side of Crawford Street off of Broadway Street in Cambridge. Each of the buildings consists of three addresses with multiple units at each address.
Abbot was awarded the project following a competitive bidding process among several qualified commercial masonry firms in the local area. Under the supervision of the owner’s agent, Brigs, LLC, and the coordination with engineering firm Barnes Constructing Group, LLC, Abbot is serving as the project’s overall general contractor while also performing all of the masonry and waterproofing work. The multiple subcontractors managed by Abbot include ironworkers, carpenters, roofers, a staging contractor, and a precast stone fabricator.
The scope of the project is wide-ranging and comprehensive. As the building facades were in significant disrepair, much of the initial work was focused on repairing and restoring the deteriorated concrete and brick. Among the most significant specific tasks, Abbot replaced the majority of the precast concrete, cut and pointed all of the brick and precast masonry, and replaced any damaged and deteriorated brick units.
The project scope also called for Abbot to remove and replace the wood window trim with custom extruded PVC to provide an exact match to the original trim, replace the stone cap joints on the top of the roof edges, and demolish and rebuild two masonry chimneys. Additionally, Abbot was tasked to rebuild several parapets to match the originals, demolish and rebuild the rear stairwell entrances on one building, and rebuild missing or partially missing dentils at each cornice.
Abbot has conducted periodic meetings with the engineers, the management company, and the condominium board to review work in progress and to address any necessary modifications. Abbot continues to coordinate its own work as well as the work of all of the subcontractors so that the remainder of the project remains on time and on budget.
