Renovating a Landmark: Dallas electrical contractor renovates historic church

May 1, 2002
A-Lectric Contracting and Service Co., Dallas, helped bring a historic church back to its former glory. The First Baptist Church, a three-story brick building built in 1922, is a historic landmark in Corsicana, Texas. In December 1999, its ceramic tile roof collapsed, crushed all the pews and broke the wooden sanctuary floor. The church directors worked to restore the building back to its original

A-Lectric Contracting and Service Co., Dallas, helped bring a historic church back to its former glory.

The First Baptist Church, a three-story brick building built in 1922, is a historic landmark in Corsicana, Texas. In December 1999, its ceramic tile roof collapsed, crushed all the pews and broke the wooden sanctuary floor. The church directors worked to restore the building back to its original design.

A-Lectric was hired as the electrical subcontractor to bring the church up to modern safety codes while not damaging the plaster in the building.

“There was a lot of plaster, which is difficult to work with,” said Becky Elze, president of A-Lectric. “They didn't want it damaged, so we had to go around it with the conduit. Sometimes we had to go into a different room to avoid damaged plaster walls. We had to pull twice as far and pull twice as much conduit to do this job.”

The rolled-barrel ceiling over the bapistry also presented a challenge to the electrical crew. Nothing could be squared with all the curves and slants, and the lighting fixtures had to be recessed in the curved ceiling.

The electricians also installed a computerized panel to replace an old lighting dimmer panel, Elze said.

“Church directors had hoped to use the old lighting dimmer panel that had been donated to the church in the 1950s, but parts of it had been damaged and destroyed, and the manufacturer had gone out of business in the 1970s,” she said.

FAST FACTS ON A-LECTRIC

FOUNDED. 1984

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES. 35

COMPANY'S SPECIALITIES

  • Industrial controls

  • Automation and systems integration

  • Commercial new construction and remodeling

  • Designing and installing lighting packages

  • Installing and servicing printing presses nationwide

CLIENTS

  • Industrial plants
  • Commercial general contractors
  • Graphics arts and printing companies
  • Hospitals
  • School systems safety

“We have striven to continue our impeccable standards that we began with, and focus on quality projects completed on time and at a fair price.”

Attention CEE News readers: Do you have a news item for Electric Avenue? E-mail it to Mike Harrington at [email protected].

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