THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, June 10, 1995 TAG: 9506100307
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: TARA TROWER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 71 lines
Rhae Adams Jr. is accustomed to strange requests. Among the more than 20,000 projects completed by his Virginia Beach construction company are portable steel covers for military welders, an indoor firing range for high-tech weapons and an indoor polo facility.
So when 20th Century Fox hired his company, SteelMaster Inc., to build a major prop for an upcoming action movie, Adams took it pretty much in stride.
``We've managed to do a little bit of everything,'' he said as he flipped through the ``family album,'' photos of the company's projects. The latest addition to the collection is a 450-foot-long steel tunnel that served as a New York aqueduct in this summer's blockbuster hit ``Die Hard With a Vengeance.''
The tunnel, plus two smaller tunnels made in case the set location didn't work out, cost the studio about $140,000. After final assembly, the tunnel was, at almost 1,200 feet, one of the largest outdoor sets ever made for a motion picture, Adams said.
In the big scene, bad guy Jeremy Irons tries to drown the movie's star, Bruce Willis, in the aqueduct by blowing up a dam. Luckily, Willis finds a way out, just as the floodwaters overtake him. To find out how, you need to see the movie.
Two of SteelMaster's half-round steel buildings were connected to make the aqueduct. The tunnel was shipped in more than 2,000 pieces on two flatbed trucks to the movie's set in Charleston, S.C., where it was assembled by studio crews under the supervision of Phil Krout, SteelMaster's southeast regional marketing director.
Adams calls the project ``unique,'' but not completely unusual for the 16-year-old company. In fact, this isn't the company's first foray into show business. They've also worked with Mazda to produce props for a Miata commercial that aired during this year's Super Bowl.
The company's latest triumph may further its showbiz image. According to Krout, SteelMaster has received several calls since the release of the third ``Die Hard'' from movie companies needing similar work.
When the company isn't working for the government or Hollywood, which is 60 percent of the time, it makes commercial buildings, backyard storage barns, farm outbuildings and other types of shelters.
Aside from 20th Century Fox, the company has a customer list that includes the D.C. Department of Corrections, Toyota, Purdue Chicken, Norshipco and the U.S. Department of Defense.
The company was started in 1979 by Adams's father, Rhae Adams Sr., who ran it until his death in 1992. Since its beginnings, the company has expanded internationally, doing business in Canada, England, Italy, Korea, New Zealand, the Middle East and South America.
Sales in the Southeast United States alone reached about $10 million this year. All that success is because of the durability of the buildings and the ease of assembly, Adams said.
``We do really well in hurricanes,'' Adams said, noting that he has received testimonials from customers whose buildings survived Hurricane Hugo unscathed.
Additionally, by following the enclosed instructions, customers can assemble the buildings themselves, as was the case with the ``Die Hard'' project.
What's the next big project for SteelMaster?
``We'll just have to wait and see what comes along,'' Adams said. ILLUSTRATION: [Color photo]
by CNB