With wiring from the '40s, electrical system upgraded update

With official approval for funding from the Board of Trustees, Penn is ready to bring a seventy-year-old electrical system into the 21st century.

With electrical voltage in some of its buildings dating back to the 1930s and '40s, the second phase of construction on Penn's electrical infrastructure will include replacing electrical cable and making electricity distribution more reliable.

Construction for phase two of Penn's electrical-infrastructure update project will begin as soon as next summer.

The University has allocated $5.685 million for the second phase in addition to the $5 million for phase one, which is currently 85 percent complete. Officials estimate that another $3 million worth of construction will still be necessary to complete the project.

The project is designed to replace the 2,400-volt service in some of Penn's oldest buildings with 13,200 volts. The higher voltage is the standard for normal campus distribution, while the 2,400 voltage dates back to the 1930s and '40s, said Principal Planning Engineer Joe Monahan.

"If we can pull out a 1940 cable and put in a 2005 cable, we're in much better shape," he explained.

Penn is unique in its electrical infrastructure because it handles its own distribution. PECO feeds electricity to six substations at Penn, which then distribute electricity throughout the campus. This set-up allows Penn to consolidate its electrical inputs on one bill and receive a discounted rate from PECO.

Construction will involve updating these substations as well as replacing underground wiring throughout Penn's campus.

Monahan estimated that phase-two construction would last from three to three and a half years, and that the first building to be updated would be the Towne Building.

Other buildings to be updated in phase two include Hutchinson Gymnasium and the Palestra, David Rittenhouse Laboratory, Morgan Building, the Music Building and Steinberg-Dietrich Hall.

And because Penn handles its own electricity, these electrical updates have nothing to do with the electrical fires on 41st Street a few weeks ago, Monahan said. Off-campus electricity comes from PECO feeds, which Penn has no control over.

Kim Dengler, director of design and construction at Penn Facilities, gave updates on other prominent campus construction projects:

n Locust Walk bridge construction will wrap up by next week. The project consisted of cleaning the bridge's stainless steel and improving poor drainage by widening drainage swales.

n Preliminary construction on the Annenberg Public Policy Center continues, with the current focus on excavation and foundation work. Utility work on 36th Street will also continue, although the section of pathway in front of the ARCH building will open up again in two weeks once brick and asphalt pavers finish work there. The rest of the walk will remain fenced off until the building is completed, which will be in time for the 2009-2010 academic year.

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