Cooling Tower Reconstruction at Harold Washington College in Chicago
OWNER: City Colleges of Chicago
GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Autumn Construction Services, Inc.
PROJECT: CCC JOC Cooling Tower Reconstruction – Harold Washington College
LOCATION: Chicago, IL
PROJECT VALUE: $198,856.95
CONSTRUCTION START: March 2026
COMPLETION: April 2026
Autumn Construction was awarded the cooling tower reconstruction scope for the City Colleges of Chicago JOC project at Harold Washington College. The project was completed by our subcontractor partner Bullock, Logan and Associates for City Colleges of Chicago at the Harold Washington College campus.
The work consisted of a comprehensive rehabilitation of the existing cooling tower system, including isolation of condenser piping, complete removal and disposal of deteriorated internal cooling tower components, and full cleaning and surface preparation of the cooling tower interior. All internal PVC fill media, drift eliminators, hot water distribution components, suction hoods, strainers, and corroded steel components were removed and disposed.
The interior of the cooling tower was cleaned, sandblasted, and prepared down to base metal in all wetted areas, including the cold-water basin, structural supports, and distribution casings. Damaged steel was repaired with new patches, and all internal seams were sealed. A high-performance primer and elastomeric polyurethane liner system was applied to fully encapsulate interior steel surfaces and protect against future corrosion.
Autumn furnished and installed new high-efficiency Evapco PVC fill and new corrosion-resistant PVC water distribution systems with large-orifice EvapJet nozzles for both cooling tower cells. All work was coordinated to ensure system durability and restore thermal performance.
