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Koch-Armstrong General Engineering recently completed a major project at the world famous Del Mar Racetrack. The project involved the installation of a new surface for the track. Due primarily to the large number of injuries horses and their jockeys encounter the California Horse Racing Board mandated that all racetracks that operate over 40 days a year must replace the track’s surface with new Polytrack material. Using the Poly-track materials has reduced injures to horses and jockeys by an amazing 85%. The material used for the Del Mar Track’s surface is a combination of silica sand, paraffin wax, rubber particles, carpet fibers and ground up spandex.
Koch-Armstrong General Engineering had a very tight schedule in which to complete the project because the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club was committed to having the track available for an important national horse show. The project bid on January 24th and the company began work on Jan 30th.
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The project had to be completed by March 16th or Koch-Armstrong Engineering would face penalties of $5,000 per day beyond that date.“We worked at a breakneck schedule,” said company vice-president, Chris Armstrong. “This was before daylight-savings time. We tried to work at night and use the lights from the grandstand and track. There just wasn’t enough illumination to do the work. We had to use every minute of daylight possible.” In order to complete the work on time the company ran multiple crews ranging in size from 15–25 working six days a week, twelve hours per day.
Work on the one mile racetrack called for Koch-Armstrong General Engineering to first strip off the old material. The track had to be reconfigured so grading was necessary to balance the site to its new contours and cross slopes. In the entire inside and in some outer areas the new contours to the track required the railing to be raised by as much as eighteen inches. Robert Sanchez, director of operations for the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club was instrumental in coordinating the work with Koch-Armstrong. “Del Mar Thoroughbred worked right along with us,” said company president, Monty Koch. |
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“This could have been a very difficult job, Robert Sanchez was extremely important in working with us on this project. He made sure that the Thoroughbred Club’s crews were integrated with our people which made the work go smoothly.”
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Once the track was graded Koch-Armstrong General Engineering installed six miles of perforated drainage pipe with assistance from Anderson Piping who is also installing a pump station at the track for storm and water drainage collection.
The collected water will first be pumped back into the racetrack’s lakes. Once the “first flush” is cleared, the water will be sampled and if it is clean the remaining water will be pumped into the San Dieguito River.
After the drainage pipe was installed Koch-Armstrong Engineering crews laid down a geo-textile fabric over the entire thirteen acre track. Four inches of drainage stone consisting of 1 1/2” crushed rock was placed over the fabric. Next the company installed a layer of 2 1/4” of permeable asphalt over the track. The project required 8,500 tons of asphalt.
The final step in the project had the Koch-Armstrong General Engineering crews installing 13,000 cubic yards of the Polytrack material over the track’s permeable asphalt surface. Because of the permeable asphalts fragility, the Polytrack material was placed by backing trucks up to the asphalt, dumping them and pushing the material out over the asphalt with track mounted skidsteer loaders.
Koch-Armstrong General Engineering is a full service asphalt and concrete company. Monty Koch and Chris Armstrong began their company in June 1998. Both men had worked in the asphalt industry for years and brought well over forty years of combined experience to the table when they opened their doors. The company began small, initially operating out of Monty’s father’s basement in his home in Lakeside. It didn’t take long for the company’s reputation for producing high quality work to get around. Work snow-balled. Two years ago the company moved into their present facilities in El Cajon, CA. The 2 1/4 acre site includes 4,000 sq. ft. of offices and a 3,000 sq. ft. shop. The company has a full inventory of equipment that includes rollers, dozers, skip loaders and water trucks. They also have a shoulder paver and an eight foot paver to complement their two full sized Blaw-Knox’s. Koch-Armstrong’s equipment needs are met by Jerry Hackett of Ingersoll Rand Equipment & Services in El Cajon. Koch-Armstrong has 65 employees. The company has a very low turn-over rate. “We are fortunate to have a great team of people working for us,” Monty acknowledged, a sentiment Chris readily agreed with. “The very first employee who came to work for us when we first started out is sill working for the company.”
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Among the private construction projects Koch-Armstrong is currently involved in is the construction of a new football field and track at Mater Dei High School in Chula Vista. The company specializes in the installation of synthetic track surfaces. The 400 meter track has nine lanes running along the perimeter of the football field. Work on the project began in February of this year and will be completed in mid-June. The company also has a number of commercial site improvement projects going on at various commercial developments in Otay Mesa, Chula Vista and San Marcos.
Koch-Armstrong General Engineering also has a number of public works projects the company is currently working on. They are completing a sidewalk and landscaping project for the city of Oceanside. The company is busy working on a concrete improvement and overlay project for the city of La Mesa. They are also handling a paving project for the Helix Water District. |
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“We have worked for just about every city in the San Diego area,” said Chris. “We have completed projects for Oceanside, Santee, the County, El Cajon, La Mesa, you name it.”
One of the primary reasons for Koch-Armstrong’s success is their high standard of work. “We stand behind our work,” said Armstrong. “Any client deals directly with the principals. This streamlines the operation so that the client gets exactly what they want. We maintain high quality standards on all of our projects.” |
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| Like most construction firms Koch-Armstrong faces the challenges of trying to stay competitive while facing ever rising fuel prices and major price increases in materials. |
| “One of the biggest challenges not only we are facing, but just about everybody in the construction industry is facing is the emissions regulations set by the California Air Resources Board,” said Chris. “The new emission standards deal specifically with diesel vehicles and will make all our current equipment obsolete within a ten year period.”Even with the daunting aspect of dealing with California emissions regulations Koch-Armstrong is moving forward. Staying ahead of work is one of the company’s biggest challenges. The experience Koch-Armstrong brings to the table, along with skilled crews and a dedication to performing high quality work all make for a winning combination and guaranteed success on any project the company is involved. Cc |
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