Ideally, once a tented event is over, the structure removed and the site cleared, few traces would remain to indicate that something had taken place at that location. Surfaces would be left unharmed, with the grounds swiftly returned to their original state or at least a very close approximation. Any peripheral/decorative elements—walkways, plantings, lighting, statuary and so on—would look relatively undisturbed.
However, the reality often is far removed from the ideal. As everyone in the industry knows, there’s a lot that can go wrong in terms of damage when it comes to tented events. And although one might think that smaller gatherings are less prone to mishaps than larger ones, this isn’t always the case. Variables such as weather, site and surface conditions, equipment and even other service providers/contractors can play a huge role in whether or not the venue emerges unscathed.
“Every site has its own challenges,” says Dave Cesar, president of Blue Peak Tents Inc. in Batavia, Ill. “We work with very affluent clientele who keep their properties in pristine condition. Whether we are working on grass, through landscape, or driveways or on patios, we have to minimize damage as much as possible.”
For Cesar, whose company primarily provides tents and flooring for upscale events throughout the Midwest (other services include power, staging, restrooms and lighting), ensuring that installation and dismantle crews are fully knowledgeable about the property, its features and restrictions represents the biggest challenge for any project.
“We try to take as many photos as possible to share with crews ahead of time,” he says. “And often, the sales representative meets our installation crews on-site to start the process and go over all the details again in person so nothing is forgotten.”
Ben Naylor, vice president of Classical Tents and Party Goods, has similar concerns when his crew is on-site. Located in Pittsfield, Mass., the full-line event rental company provides products and services for weddings, corporate events, galas, memorial services, birthdays, graduations and more.
“The most challenging aspect is making sure everyone on-site is aware of the processes and procedures we are using at a particular site to protect the particular components of that site,” Naylor says. “Everyone needs to have a full understanding of what to do or not do, and what equipment we will use to help protect the surfaces in question.”
The most troublesome surfaces are highly manicured grass areas/lawns, where damage can result from wet grounds or heavy foot or machine traffic, he says. The consequences can be torn-up, rutted or muddied sections of lawns or areas where the grass is entirely gone. Stone, brick or tile patios and walkways pose another challenge, with these surfaces vulnerable to chips and to cracked or dislodged stones, tiles or bricks. In some cases, sections of the walkway or patio might even sink.
“Once everyone is aware and brought into the precautionary measures we are taking, it generally goes fairly well for the most part,” says Naylor, explaining they’ll often discuss these concerns during morning meetings. “But like anything, it needs a plan, communication of that plan and the equipment to execute that plan. If all of that is in place, generally the crews follow what is necessary to protect the grounds.”
Threats increase
Before an event, Mark S. McCollister, director of client services for Arena Aztec Shaffer (DBA Shaffer Sports), worries most about preventing damage caused by “downstream contractors” who might improperly attach apparatus to a structure or drill where they should not. Afterward, a big concern is the handling and packing of parts and materials for shipment to the next event or warehouse. In response to the latter issue, Shaffer has designed a variety of specialty racks, containers and packaging methods/accessories to protect items during movement and shipping.
Located in Houston, Shaffer offers scaffold flooring, temporary structures, seating systems and furniture to clients including those in professional golf (men’s pro golf is its largest market), auto racing, tennis and horse racing.
Many of the company’s structures are open-air and multilevel, presenting the greatest opportunity for water damage, with accessories such as glass walls and doors that are vulnerable to high-wind events or to extreme weather such as tornados, microbursts or flooding. “As more venues have moved towards open-air structures, Shaffer’s waterproofing panel systems on double- and triple-level structures have become important in mitigating water egress into multilevel structures,” McCollister explains, adding the company also offers guttering systems on its tenting to thwart water intrusion.
“Both covered back walkways and waterproofing panels are aesthetically pleasing and dually functional,” he continues. “Covered back walkways provide a shaded and water-shedding area, and waterproofing panels provide a similar appearance as ceiling liners.”
Flood control
Due to heavier rains and increasingly dangerous microburst storms—the latter of which Arnon Rosan, CEO of Garrison™ Flood Control, a division of Garrison Systems LLC, describes as a “relatively new phenomenon”—flooding is increasingly exposing events to much higher risk.
“Flooding can bring significant damage to events by damaging flooring, carpet and electrical equipment, resulting in extensive repairs or worse, cancellations of events,” he explains. “Due to the large footprints of tented events, oftentimes a tremendous amount of rainwater ends up flowing down the sidewall of tents and can pool in lower areas or create uninvited rivers that flow through the event space.
“Sloped parking lots can flood, resulting in flooded tents,” Rosan continues. “Access ways at event sites such as festival grounds can get saturated and drains can fill up and overflow, creating flooding that prevents vehicle or pedestrian access.”
Until recently, flood protection hasn’t been top-of-mind for most people, says Rosan. But now, driven by today’s more extreme and unpredictable weather patterns, and because of all the preparation that goes into tented events, rental companies have started planning for more severe weather events, particularly since the consequences of being caught flatfooted can prove dire.
Headquartered in New York City, Garrison provides a range of products designed to divert water from event equipment and venues. These include the Mayim™ Modular Flood Barrier, a modular ABS plastic flood panel system used for perimeter protection and for sending water away from an event site; Guppy® Water Filled Flood Tubes, an “aqua dam” also effective where surfaces are uneven; and the self-deploying Stingray™ Water Dam, constructed from flexible PVC material.
“As water accumulates inside the dam’s pocket chambers, it ballasts the bottom of the nonslip fabric,” Rosan says, explaining how Stingray works. “As water enters the barrier’s pocket, water pressure builds up and this causes the barrier to open up in a ‘V’ shape, providing effective protection to tents, event grounds and event venues by holding back flood waters.”
Garrison’s products are receiving more attention as tent and event companies try to proactively address any potential weather- and water-related issues, says Rosan, adding that advanced planning is essential when it comes to successful flood prevention.
Damage defense
McCollister says their “primary effort” to avert or minimize damage begins with their design and engineering standards. “[This] starts with performing soil geotechnical analysis and subsequently designing our understructures in accordance with geotechnical results in order to avoid damages from wind or dynamic loads,” he explains. “Since this work is ‘understructure’ primarily and hidden by mesh/scrim around the flooring in most installations, it does not have an effect on aesthetics.”
When protecting grass surfaces from heavy equipment such as forklifts and other machinery, Cesar says they’ll usually put down plywood or plastic Duradek road matting, but he favors Duradek because it doesn’t rot or leave wood splinters on the ground. They will also sometimes lay these materials down on walking paths if the ground is wet or muddy. “Our in-house machinery is all equipped with turf tires, similar to a lawn mower, to minimize grass damage for areas that we don’t have driving mats on,” he adds.
For patios, driveways or other hard surfaces, they place rubber matting under the tent frame or structure feet and under cement blocks to avoid scratching surfaces, Cesar says. When trucks are parked on these surfaces, the practice is to put wood under the engine to catch any leaks. They also have “tire booties” for when forklifts have to drive onto cement pads so that no black rubber marks are left behind.
Naylor says site visits and utilizing mats, “road ply” and other forms of padding/protection for lawns are among the company’s primary damage-defense strategies. “We try to take before and after pictures of the site and access routes,” he says. “When poor weather is expected or has arrived, we talk extensively with our delivery setup crews to explain our and our customers’ concerns, to help prepare the crew. We constantly are talking with our crews about being aware of our customers’ lawns and property and about being careful and mindful while on it.”
What is most important is demonstrating that minimizing damage is of the uppermost concern, says Cesar. Fail to do so, and the planners or clients won’t be very understanding if damage does happen, even if the event itself has gone spectacularly well. “[However] if you make a good effort and prepare the client ahead of time for potential damages, then everyone involved will be much more forgiving if something were to occur,” he says.
And if it does, own up to it, says Naylor. “Go to the person responsible for the property and explain what occurred as soon as you can,” he advises. “Be apologetic and offer repair solutions. Do not hide it in any way or delay notifying the customer.”
Pamela Mills-Senn is a freelance writer based in Seal Beach, Calif.
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