cannon ball! Ramstein plunges into pool construction

Airman 1st Class Juianne Showalter
Kaiserslautern American


***image1***For the Ramstein Pool project, things are going swimmingly. According to Capt. David Vanderburg, 435th Civil Engineer Squadron chief of construction, the project is progressing through the labor-intensive ground construction phase.

Captain Vanderburg said the pool is now about 10 percent complete, and that his team is working closely with the German contracting company, Züblin, to ensure it meets the June 2008 deadline for completion.

With the ground work and footing finished, the surface structure is beginning to rise. Overall, the indoor pool will be 4,200 square feet with a modern look that will feature an adult swimming pool, children’s pool, diving board, slides, swimming lanes, locker room and snack bar.

***image2***The adult pool is six to 13 feet deep and the kiddie pool is 3.5 feet deep. The two pools will be separate to provide a safer environment. The pool will also feature a main slide and a diving board.

In addition to recreational swimming, the pool will also be used by aircrew members for water survival training. This training was previously held at Baumholder Garrison which is 45 minutes away.

The construction requires a lot of coordination between the civil engineer squadron and the contractor.

***image3***“It’s been a great partnership, and we’ve had good communication on all sides,” said Frank Mahlau, pool site manager for Züblin. 

Captain Vanderburg agreed that having one contracting company involved in the construction has resulted in better communication between both sides. “It helps to relay the message and have better accountability,” he said.

Once the project is complete, the aquatic center’s June 2008 grand opening will be just in time to beat the summer heat. Work on the pool has been in progress since October 2006.