Visy Paper, Inc.

Butler Heavy Structures designed and supplied the conventional framing, integrated with secondaries and cladding, for Visy Paper’s recycling mill in Staten Island, New York. The project was fast-tracked, with design, fabrication, and construction on the $150 million facility completed in just 18 months. The facility is made up of ten different buildings and annexes with multiple floor levels and clear heights of up to 80′.

The processes and equipment used in the paper production operation required a number of special building applications. SP-6 surface preparation on all primary steel with a two-coat epoxy paint system and G90 galvanized purlins and girts were used to resist corrosion. Elevated floor slabs were designed to support up to 800 psf equipment loads, and 70′ long crane girders were designed to support a 35-ton clamshell crane in the barge unloading area.

A standing seam metal roof, insulated and metal wall panels enclosed the structure. Due to the fast-track nature of the project, the process and equipment design were performed concurrently with the building’s structural design. This tight schedule necessitated design changes on an almost daily basis and generated changes that had to be incorporated once steel was delivered to the site.