Transformative Demolition

April 23, 2024
By: Larry Trojak

Every demolition contractor, whether by design or through experience, is an expert in a particular field. While many organizations tout that they offer a range of comprehensive services, there is invariably one discipline in which they pride themselves as being the go-to firm for that specific expertise. For NDA member Frank-Lin Services of Brevard, that area lies in the removal of structures long associated with the U.S. space program of years past.

The company has demolished more than 80 structures for NASA, most of which were part of the space shuttle program, and has also handled major demolition projects for the aerospace industry’s newest big players, Space X and Blue Origin. Frank-Lin is currently heading up the dismantling of the massive Mobile Launch Platform 3 (MLP-3), the platform used for the historic 1968 Apollo 11 lunar mission that landed the first man on the moon. Although small in size when compared to many demo firms, Frank-Lin has carved out a huge niche for itself as the old gives way to the new in space exploration.

Mutually Beneficial

Established in 1990, Frank-Lin Services has been actively completing projects at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Patrick Space Force Base and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station since 2006. In that time, it has demolished many structures that hold historical significance in the storied space pantheon. These include everything from the original Mission Control building at Canaveral Air Force Station to Kennedy Space Center’s Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility 2 to the appropriately named Mate/De-mate Device, which was used to load the space shuttle onto a Boeing 747 for transport.

“We’ve been fortunate to enjoy the solid relationship with KSC that we do,” says Pete Charamut, Frank-Lin’s president. “The comfort level they have in working with us has allowed us to tackle that range of projects. In fact, just a couple years ago, we completed the demolition of NASA’s headquarters building, which, at 440,000 square feet, was the largest demolition project the agency has ever contracted. We do a consistently good job for them — compiling an impressive safety record of zero safety infractions, zero Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) or Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) infractions, and zero injury claims — and they, in turn, have a proven level of confidence in us as new projects arise.”

It’s a Family Affair

A family-owned and operated business, Frank-Lin Services, in addition to Pete Charamut, also counts Pete’s son, Frank, the firm’s general manager (GM) and one of its main operators, as a key figure as Frank-Lin looks ahead.

“Our future is our family, which seems to expand every year,” Pete Charamut says. “As our GM, Frank has already taken the lead on a number of our larger projects at KSC, and we plan to have him at the helm when I retire, sometime within the next five years. Everyone in our family grew up around the business and are qualified heavy equipment operators. That includes my niece Melynda, our office manager; my daughter Carli, her assistant; and my other daughter, Lindsey, who is currently one of our regular operators. Not surprisingly, Frank’s wife, Krystin, is an outstanding equipment operator in her own right, excelling at all things excavator- and processor-related.”

He adds that even those without a direct tie to the Charamut lineage are valued assets. “Some of our key employees, including Randy Burton, our supervisor, and Keith Brooks, our senior lead operator, have been with us between 25 and 35 years,” he says. “We not only appreciate the outstanding work they do for us daily, but we also consider them part of the family. We are truly blessed to work with the team we have.”

Uniquely Qualified

The mobile launch platform (MLP) that is currently Frank-Lin’s subject of focus carries with it a good deal of history. Built between 1963 and 1965, NASA’s fleet of three mobile launchers was used to transport and support the launch of the agency’s Saturn V and Saturn IB rockets. At the conclusion of the Apollo program, the launchers were stripped of their umbilical towers and converted to MLPs. In that configuration, they supported 33 more launches, including those that led to the first docking of a U.S. orbiter to Russia’s Mir space station in 1995, the first mission to the International Space Station in 1998 and the final space shuttle launch in 2011. New programs, new organizations and new rocket designs prompted the eventual mothballing and subsequent demolition of the two MLPs.

KSC’s decision on who to award the bid for the initial MLP-2 demolition (as well as MLP-3) is based, more than any other factor, on qualifications. Ordinarily, a demo company points to its portfolio for proof of its capabilities, and Frank-Lin certainly had scores of examples from which to choose. When contending for the MLP-2 project in 2021, however, no one in the world could claim “mobile launch platform demo” in its list of accomplishments. According to Charamut, however, Frank-Lin had a decent parallel to it.

“In 2013 and 2015, we demoed both of the flame deflectors on KSC’s pads B and A respectively, each of which was within a million pounds of the MLP’s 9-million-pound operating weight,” he says. “And not only were those deflectors close in weight to the MLP, but they were similar in structure. So, it was fairly easy for us to qualify based on that alone. Another factor was whether or not the bidding company had ever lifted anything of that size. Well, we’d worked closely on the MLP-2 demo with the U.S. division of Dutch company Mammoet, which, using support jacks, expertly reduced the structure’s base to approximately 5 feet above ground height, making demolition possible. It’s important to note that NASA wanted the same team that had successfully done the previous MLP. So, Advon Construction, the construction contractor to which we subbed on both platform demos — and which is itself a sub to Boeing, the general contractor — now had proven qualifications for both demo and lifting. That helped secure the bid.”

Lessons Learned

When the time came for work on MLP-3 to begin, it certainly did not hurt that Frank-Lin’s crew had a wealth of fresh knowledge from the structure processed just two years ago. Though there were some major modifications made to the platform — including those made by Northrop Grumman to accommodate its proprietary OmegA launch vehicle — the demo firm knew it would benefit from the previous experience.
“Literally everything we needed to know about deconstructing a mobile launch platform, we learned on MLP-2,” Pete Charamut says. “We knew the ideal girders to cut and exactly where to make those cuts to  avoid putting stress on columns or trusses that could cause torsion or spring the steel box we are cutting up.”

Unlike the majority of their KSC-related projects, in which Komatsu PC 490s equipped with Genesis LXP-400 processors have been the real workhorses, Frank-Lin is taking a different route to deal with the structure’s hardened steel — some of which can be up to 14 inches thick. “Instead, for the more manageable material, we are opting to have our torch crew make control cuts that relieve the heavy stress on the shears, then having the LXP make the finish cut and lift out the whole piece at one time,” Pete Charamut says. “It is very systematic and very effective.”

On a massive job such as the MLP, Pete Charamut is quick to note that support is paramount, and the company has benefited from the solid relationships it has established with its equipment suppliers. “Everyone from Nick Georgi and Lance Boutcher at the Orlando branch of Linder Machinery, our Komatsu dealer; to Mike Ganier, the regional manager for Genesis Attachments; to Janet Paglialona at Boggs Gases, who supply the propane and liquid oxygen for our torching operation, has helped move this project along,” he says. “They’ve all been great partners to work with.”

Carrying a Torch

Like most everyone working in demolition or construction these days, Frank-Lin is vexed by a seemingly nonstop shortage of skilled workers. For that same reason, however, Pete Charamut is also quick to praise his current crews, particularly those wielding the torches over one of Florida’s hottest summers on record.

“It’s been interesting, to say the least,” he says. “This project was delayed for some 45 days at the outset, and, in that time, we lost the entire burner crew we used on MLP-2. That forced Frank to train a new crew of five people — including friends and family — only one of which had any real torch experience. I can’t lie, I was a little nervous. The early stage of the project started out slowly, but after a month, Frank had that rookie crew up to speed, and now we are actually ahead of schedule.”

Having been in demo for as long as they have, both Pete and Frank Charamut understand the rigors of torching in the hot Florida sun. As a result, they’ve made accommodations at MLP-3 to try to help alleviate some of the challenges the torching crew faces daily.

“Wearing a leather apron and personal protective equipment and holding a torch burning at almost 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit while cutting through heavy steel for eight hours is a tough day by anyone’s standards,” Frank Charamut says. “Doing it in 90-plus-degree heat and a stifling humidity only adds to the misery. To help deal with that, we set up a cooldown station with a tent, fan, cold water and snacks where the crew can get a break when needed. That really helped. We also have an air-conditioned container office available for periodic cooldowns. This is extremely challenging work; making the crew more comfortable only ensures they’ll do their jobs better.”

Nice Recovery

By project’s end, Frank-Lin will have recovered roughly 6 million pounds of unprepared ferrous material and 800,000 pounds of nonferrous metal. The company’s fleet of trailer dumps and dump trucks handled the daily removal and hauling of material to TMR Recycling in Rockledge, Florida, located just 10 miles from KSC. As is common for them, Frank-Lin expects to have recycled roughly 90% of what it has encountered in MLP-3.

“Just as it was with MLP-2, this project has been somewhat bittersweet because it signifies yet one more chapter closed on America’s premier space program,” Pete Charamut says. “But these are also exciting times for what lies ahead here at KSC, and if the demolition of MLP-1 should become part of those plans, we will be ready — and more than able — to do so.”
MLP-3 became a full part of aerospace history in November 2023.