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Gradeworks Inc., a West Des Moines excavation company, brought a claw-wielding trackhoe to Great Ape Trust to crush modular office units destroyed by record flooding in June. Great Ape Trust photo.
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Work continues to restore complex electronics in bonobo home
Des Moines, Iowa – July 29, 2008 – The psychological boost to Great Ape Trust employees displaced in the Floods of 2008 wasn't lost on Operations Director Jim Aipperspach as four modular office units were crushed by a claw-wielding track hoe and hauled away for disposal.
The demolition of the units – affectionately called "suites" by the Great Ape Trust staff, but in actuality doublewide trailers – is one of the most visible flood-recovery signs so far on the southeast Des Moines campus of the internationally known scientific research institute studying great ape intelligence and behavior. Seven weeks ago, record flooding on the Des Moines River left the entire 230-acre campus under water, parts of it by as much as 12 feet.
The modular units were never intended to be permanent offices for the nearly two dozen scientists, research assistants and administrative staff workers who, in a June 10 race against the rising floodwaters, hastily packed valuable research data and files and evacuated the campus. Aipperspach said plans are being developed for a permanent, "flood friendly" structure to be built in their place.
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Director of Bonobo Research William M. Fields shows flood damage to electrical components in the technologically complex bonobo home. Great Ape Trust photo.
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"Our hope is that we can build more permanent administrative offices on campus, possibly in the same location, that comply more with nature and complement nature," he said.
Members of The Trust's management team, who are hopeful that all scientific research and administrative personnel can be working under one roof by the flood's first-year anniversary, are discussing a variety of building designs.
Until then, scientific research and administrative personnel are working at temporary offices in private homes near Great Ape Trust, and from leased office space at 1515 Linden St., Suite 220, in downtown Des Moines.
The loss of administrative buildings is estimated at about $327,000, a figure that includes the four units as well as septic systems, sidewalks, Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant ramps and other improvements. The full extent of Great Ape Trust's losses is still being calculated, particularly as repair continues in the home of the seven resident bonobos. Up to three feet of muddy floodwater filled the building during the peak of the emergency. As cleanup continues, flood-related problems continue to surface in the complex computer interface that supports the bonobo language research program.
An intricate network of conduits installed in the floors and walls before concrete was poured supports those interfaces. Because bonobos are physically very strong, "it's important to have as much technology as possible embedded so you can protect it against great ape play," said Great Ape Trust Director of Bonobo Research William M. Fields.
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A foot of water stood in the bonobo home when this photo was taken June 12. It rose another foot before the flood's crest. Great Ape Trust photo.
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Such complexity is required for the unique type of research undertaken by Fields and his team, the only scientists in the world studying the acquisition of language by bonobos. Fields explained that because much insight can be gained from spontaneous language events as the bonobos move throughout their spacious home, a sophisticated maze of audio and visual equipment is essential to capture that data.
"These events are not reproducible," he said. "They are one-time events and have to be captured opportunistically."
The technology in the bonobo building is not only a valuable research tool, but a communicative device for bonobos Kanzi, Panbanisha, Nyota and Nathan, who have demonstrated varying degrees of receptive competence for spoken English. They use a symbol-based vocabulary presented on a lexigram, available to the bonobos in both a laminated and a computerized form.
"To interface research and our social needs, we need a cybernetic building," Fields said.
Crews from the Wolin companies – Wolin & Associates Inc., the mechanical, plumbing and HVAC side of the business, and Wolin Electric, L.C., which specializes in power, lighting and communications systems – have been working since water receded from the building to restore the bonobos' home to pre-flood condition.
However, great progress has already been made, and from a mechanical standpoint, the bonobo home is functioning normally. Electricity, air conditioning and a large 400-kilowatt backup power generator have been restored, commercial washers and dryers used to launder the bonobos' bedding have been replaced, and drywall in the lobby has been replaced. The doors that give bonobos access to different parts of their home are functioning normally again, after a sustained period about a week ago when the complex sensor that controls them malfunctioned and they began opening and closing on their own.
That and other delayed effects of flooding and a buildup of humidity are among the surprises the workers have encountered. "They have to go through it wire by wire, and there are hundreds of them. It's going to take a very long time," Fields said, explaining it may be another six months before rewiring is completed. "There's no off-the-shelf technology. It's all custom-designed, and much of it we have made ourselves."
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Great Ape Trust is certified by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums
