Catastrophic Failure Risk - Empire State Building
John R. South, Jr.
Keller Graduate School of Management
PM 595 Project Risk Management
Professor Bill Ketterman
February 11, 2011

Table of Contents
Catastrophic Failure Title Page 1
Table of Contents 2
Introduction 3
Sources of Construction Risks 4
Systems to Address Project Risk 8
Discussion of Fault Trees 10
Conclusion 13
References 15
Appendix I - III 16 Introduction

As the contractor that will construct the largest building during this time period, we must first review the facts about this building. New York City's soaring skyline wouldn't be the same without the Empire State Building. Reaching 1,250 feet, it holds the title of the seventh tallest building in the world. It remained the world’s tallest building for 41 years until the World Trade Center topped it off and seven followed. Built during the depression in 1930 and 1931, it cost a whopping 41 million dollars. The engineer who took on this giant project was H.G. Balcom. The design of the building changed 16 times during planning, but the 3,000 workers managed to pull it off in record timing, 1 year and 45 days, including holidays and Sundays. This skyscraper is made of 60,000 tons of steel, 200,000 cubic feet of Indiana limestone and granite, 10 million bricks, and 730 tons of aluminum and stainless steel. In 1945, a B-25 Bomber on its way to Newark Airport in New Jersey crashed into the 79th floor only causing minor damage luckily. One hundred tons of trash is removed from the building each month. A small known fact is that the building is designed to serve as a lightning rod for the surrounding area. It is struck about 100 times per year. There are 1,575 stairs to the top floor, which is the 86th floor. The Empire State Building was one of the best crafted skyscrapers ever built and will always mount above