American Superconductor
Devens, Massachusetts
American Superconductor, the world leader in developing and manufacturing products using flexible superconducting materials for electric power applications, is constructing the world’s first commercial high temperature superconducting (HTS) cable manufacturing facility in Devens, Massachusetts. This HTS cable technology is 100 times more efficient in transmitting electricity than traditional copper wire. Working with their strategic partners - Electricitie de France, General Electric, Pirelli, ABB and Rockwell/Reliance - American Superconductor is locating the manufacturing and distribution facility for this cutting edge technology on 34 acres of the former Fort Devens Military Base.
Situated in the Jackson Technology Park, this project includes a 354,000 square foot building, parking, loading area and loop roadway. Daylor’s interdisciplinary Site Design Studio worked in conjunction with the project architect, Cutler Associates, to provide fast track environmental permitting, site design, civil engineering and landscape architecture services for this project.
In preparing the project site design, the Studio team addressed MassDevelopment’s Devens Design Guideline requirements and the Devens Enterprise Commission’s Bylaws, Rules and Regulations requirements. Project design mitigated unavoidable impacts to the site finger wetland area by narrowing the roadway and utilizing a headwall to minimize alteration to the wetland and buffer zone. In addition to ensuring minimum environmental impact resulting from development, Daylor designed a Wetland Replication Plan to mitigate the small losses incurred by the roadway construction. This plan replicates five times the amount of wetlands actually disturbed. The buffer zone area disturbed by previous clean-up activities will be replaced by 3,400 square feet of vegetated buffer zone. Daylor engineers also designed a stormwater management system, utilizing a retention/wetpond design in which runoff would be detained downstream of the wetlands.
Daylor and Cutler then worked with the Commission staff to refine the project design and prepare a Notice of Intent (NOI). This was filed with both the Devens Enterprise Commission and the MA Department of Environmental Protection as part of the Unified Permit Application. All permits were secured with unanimous approval in July, 2000 during a single Devens Enterprise Commission public hearing.
