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HVAC Helps Rebuild Atlanta Motor Speedway

11.23.2005

ATLANTA, GA ? While the catchphrase for the Atlanta Motor Speedway is 'Real racing. Real fast,' without help from a team of skilled contractors from the Northeast Tennessee region, it very well might have been a different line for the popular NASCAR track.

On the evening of July 6, a tornado spawned by Hurricane Cindy hit Atlanta Motor Speedway severely damaging most of the suites and many of the other buildings. Winds in excess of 150 mph and a funnel cloud a half-mile wide caused catastrophic damage, estimated by some to be in excess of $30 million.

According to Edd Hill, owner of Bristol, TN based HVAC, Inc., with the next race weeks away, Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) could not wait to work through a settlement with their insurance carrier and prepare reconstruction drawings.

Real devastation. Real dilemma.

"Every successful NASCAR driver is backed by a knowledgeable and skilled pit crew," said Hill. "That's what SMI needed to bring racing back to Atlanta Motor Speedway — - a rebuild pit crew."

SMI found their team in Northeast Tennessee, selecting contractors who had a solid track record of completing complicated projects at Bristol Motor Speedway within a short lead-time.

In addition to HVAC, Inc., who handled all the mechanical and plumbing for the rebuild, the AMS rebuild team from Northeast Tennessee included: J.A. Street and Associates, Blountville; Rentenbach Constructors, Knoxville; Summit Roofing BSR, Powell Construction, Woods Painting, Peerless Woodworking and Shuttle Engineering, Bristol, TN; and E.S. Dockery Interiors, Johnson City, TN.

According to Hill, the team was on site doing a damage assessment within 72 hours. "Demolition started immediately, and eight days after the tornado hit, we began ordering material and preparing plans to rebuild," said Hill.

"By the last week in August, all of the buildings were dried in with new roofs, 675 tons of new air conditioning equipment was in place, the new plumbing and electrical was roughed in, new sheetrock was installed and painted and ceilings were going in," he added.

Stephen Swift, SMI Project Manager, expressed appreciation to the team given the green flag for the rebuild.

"The contractors from East Tennessee were great. The response time was phenomenal and they performed well past our expectations," said Swift.


"In the short time frame we had to rebuild the buildings, we had to call upon our A-team to help us out. The contractors from East Tennessee without a doubt worked as a team and made this catastrophe a great construction marvel. SMI gives all appreciation to the contractors from East Tennessee," he added.

"Atlanta Motor Speedway had real racing, real fast for the Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 weekend in October," said Hill. "However, the team of contractors from Northeast Tennessee showed them all rebuilding — -the way it oughta' be," he added.

Comfort Zone

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