Middletown, CT C.E. Floyd was honored with the Best in Show award at the 2018 Connecticut ABC Excellence in Construction Awards. 

This achievement celebrates another award-winning collaboration between C.E. Floyd and Peterman Architects. C.E. Floyd renovated The Southport Savings Bank, previously the oldest continuously running bank in America, to give The Southport School a dedicated space to house its music, arts, and movement programs. 

The brick exterior of the new arts and music building required maintenance and repair. While exploring options for replacement C.E. Floyd learned the brick was very rare, having previously served as ballast on schooners during 18th century seafaring. The project team decided the best solution would be to use salvaged bricks from the interior renovations in order to have a match in both color and structural integrity. 

This was one of the many obstacles C.E. Floyd encountered and overcame during the renovation process. 

Working on an active school campus required a special consideration to the daily construction schedule. 

C.E. Floyd had to consider the pick-up and drop-off location, 15 feet from the jobsite entrance, and the students’ twice daily breaks. To minimize interruptions to the school day C.E. Floyd worked the construction schedule around the school’s, halting construction during pick-up and drop-off as well as taking breaks at the same time as the students. 

The vault removal will forever be a part of C.E. Floyd’s history just as much as it is a part of the building’s. Constructed on 10 tons of solid granite, the vault was load bearing and could not be easily removed without consideration of the structural integrity of the building. The removal of the granite was a collaborative process, from determining the best method to implementing it. The project team’s ability to come up with creative solutions to problems was one key to the success of the project. 

The Southport School’s new art and music building is more than just a renovation; it is a place for students with language-based learning differences to be themselves. The success of the project is owed to everyone involved, from the school and the architect’s vision down to the subcontractors’ coordination and dedication to the project. C.E. Floyd is grateful for the privilege of helping to continue the legacy of this fixture in the Southport community. 

C.E. Floyd’s president of Connecticut operations Chuck Tobin commented on the impact of the project, “This project was a unique opportunity for C.E. Floyd. We took this building with an incredible heritage and transformed it into a state-of-the-art center for students with language-based learning differences. It was an extremely rewarding experience for the entire C.E. Floyd team.” 

C.E. Floyd Company serves New England from its Massachusetts and Connecticut locations.