Construction could begin this month for a new $13 million perimeter security system for Rome Lab, according to a lab official.

The design is currently being reviewed at the “90% Construction Documents level,” Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Information Directorate Deputy Director Michael Hayduk said Thursday.

“It is anticipated that construction could begin as early as October...with project completion scheduled for August 2021,” Hayduk added. Rome Lab, based at Griffiss park, is formally known as the AFRL Information Directorate.

Plans for the new security system include wrought-iron fencing that will be eight feet high and cover 9,000 linear feet overall, plus a visitor control center and entry-control point among the features. A $13.15 million construction contract was awarded in January, and a ceremony launching work on the project was held in February at the lab. Pre-construction phases were delayed about six weeks due to COVID-19 impacts.

The on-site workforce at Rome Lab also has been affected by the COVID-19 situation. Hayduk said it is averaging about 400 on-site daily, reflecting about 30% of the workforce, and “others are still teleworking to the fullest extent possible.” In March the on-site presence at the lab had been reduced to about 3% of the workforce, and after that it rose gradually.

Total employment at the lab in fiscal 2019 included 755 civilian and 61 military positions along with 403 on-site contractors, according to its economic impact analysis report. Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, headquarters for the overall ARFL, has said Rome Lab “leads the Air Force and nation in Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence (C4I) and cyber science, technology, research, and development.”