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Associated Engineering received Canadian Consulting Engineering’s
highest honour, the Schreyer Award, at the 2006 Annual
Awards on October 26, 2006 in Ottawa, Ontario for our design
of the Gold Bar Wastewater Treatment Plant Industrial Water
Reuse Facility.
Working with the City of Edmonton and Petro-Canada, Associated
Engineering developed a treatment process incorporating
membrane filter technology to treat wastewater effluent
from the City’s Gold Bar Wastewater Treatment Plant
to the high quality that Petro-Canada required for use
as process water at its Edmonton refinery.
Associated Engineering completed detailed design and developed
the construction strategy to retrofit the Gold Bar Industrial
Water Reuse Facility into the wastewater treatment plant. Compounding
the complexity of the project, construction of the Industrial
Water Reuse Facility had to be undertaken without impacting
plant operations at the Gold Bar plant, which treats wastewater
from 700,000 residents as well as industrial and commercial
clients. Design and construction also had to consider
other ongoing construction at the Gold Bar plant.
Start up and commissioning of the $14 million Gold Bar
Industrial Water Reuse Facility--the largest water reuse
facility to employ membrane technology in Canada--was completed
on budget and on schedule in December 2005, without impacting
plant operations or adjacent construction.
Transmission of 5 million litres per day of recycled water
to Petro-Canada began in May 2006. Ultimately, the
facility will be capable of producing 40 million litres
per day of water.
In addition to supplying water to Petro-Canada, the Gold
Bar Water Reuse Facility will also supply recycled water
to Edmonton’s Parks and Recreation Department to
service a nearby park and ski hill as well as to the neighbouring
Strathcona County. The Gold Bar Industrial Water
Reuse Facility recycles a valuable water resource for reuse,
and protects the water quality, aquatic life, and aquatic
habitat in the North Saskatchewan River by reducing the
wastewater
effluent discharge to the river.
Associated Engineering received a Commendation Award in
the pedestrian bridge category from the Institution of
Structural Engineers (IStructE) for the design of the Whitemud
Creek Arch Bridge in Edmonton.
The IStructE Structural Awards are the world's preeminent
awards for structural engineering excellence. The annual
international awards celebrate excellence in structural
engineering.
See http://www.istructe.org/structuralawards/ for more information on the IStructE awards.
At the CEA's Showcase Awards on February 3, 2006, we received
an Award of Excellence in the Community Outreach, In-House
Initiatives category for our in-house Wellness Program.
We also received an Award of Excellence in the Natural
Resources, Mining, Industrial category and Award of Merit
in the Environmental category for the Gold Bar Wastewater
Treatment Plant Industrial Water Reuse project.
Associated Engineering’s design of the Sea to Sky
Highway Test Section received an Award of Excellence at
the annual Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards of Excellence
in November 2005. Our design of the test section is part
of the B.C. Ministry of Transportation’s upgrade
of the Sea to Sky Highway from Vancouver to Whistler for
the 2010 Olympics. See article in AE Today http://www.ae.ca/aetoday/050302.html for
more information
Associated Engineering recently received Awards of Excellence
for Technology Innovation and Infrastructure from the Consulting
Engineers of Saskatchewan for our work on Highway No. 9
Improvements in the City of Yorkton. See article
in AE Today http://www.ae.ca/aetoday/050303.html for
more information
Annacis Island Wastewater Treatment Plant Secondary Treatment Upgrade, Delta,
B.C.
Greater Vancouver Regional District
Until
October 1998, the Annacis Island Wastewater Treatment Plant discharged primary-treated
wastewater from one million people to the Fraser River, the world's largest salmon
fishery. To protect this valuable resource, the Greater Vancouver Regional District
has completed an upgrade of the Annacis Island plant to secondary treatment. The
largest and most technically-advanced wastewater treatment facility of its kind
in the world, this plant incorporates many innovative and complex features including:
- The world's first extended thermophilic anaerobic digestion process
which produces almost pathogen-free biosolids
- One of North America's first
sludge screen installations
- One of North America's first biofilter installations
for odour control
- A raft foundation which ties the large tank and building
foundations together to eliminate the risk of tank separation and minimize differential
settlement during a liquefaction event
- The world's largest vertical turbine
solids handling pumps
- A state-of-the-art computer data acquisition and control
system that communicates with more than 5000 pieces of equipment throughout the
site.
To conserve energy, the plant uses biogas generated by sludge
digestion to provide approximately 50% of the plant power
demand and emergency power during service interruptions. In
addition, waste heat from the cogeneration engines is recovered
for heating.
Completion of this project met all critical milestones,
with costs almost $90 million below the original $530 million
budget. Since start-up, the Annacis Island plant has consistently
met stringent provincial discharge criteria. This improvement
in effluent preserves the Fraser River's fisheries resource
and marine environment, provides additional safeguards to
public health, and maintains water-related recreational
values.
Little Mountain Reservoir Reconstruction, Vancouver,
B.C.
Greater Vancouver Regional District
The Consulting Engineers of B.C. (CEBC) recently presented
Associated Engineering and Sandwell Engineering with an
Award of Excellence for the Little Mountain Reservoir Reconstruction
Project in Vancouver, B.C. Sandwell, as the prime consultant,
with Associated Engineering as the main subconsultant, led
a comprehensive team to carry out the detailed design and
construction management of the 138 million litre Little
Mountain Reservoir, located in Vancouver’s Queen Elizabeth
Park. Sustainability principles were drivers throughout
the project, including maximizing recycling of demolished
materials and use of EcoSmartTM concrete. The project also
received the Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of
B.C.’s 2003 Sustainability Award.
City of Saskatoon South East Sector Stormwater Management
Master Plan
CES awarded the Brian Eckel Award of Excellence in the
Environmental Category to Associated Engineering for the
South East Sector Stormwater Management Master Plan for
the City of Saskatoon.
Saskatoon's South East sector is under pressure for both
development and conservation. The purpose of the stormwater
management master plan was to determine how best to develop
the area, while minimizing impact on the stormwater management
system and considering land development, habitat preservation,
and recreational opportunities. Associated Engineering developed
three sustainable concepts, considering natural resources,
wetlands, habitat, geotechnical conditions, hydrotechnical
and hydraulic constraints, modelling, stormwater quality,
and the existing stormwater system. The project featured
extensive stakeholder and public involvement to determine
issues and build consensus.
Double Barrel Pipe Repair
and Replacement, Edmonton, Alberta
City of Edmonton
The Consulting Engineers of Alberta recently presented Associated Engineering
with an Award of Merit for Edmonton’s Double Barrel Pipe Repair and Replacement
Project. Associated Engineering designed a pilot test and subsequently completed
design and construction administration for relining double-barrel pipes which
handled sanitary and storm flows. The dividing wall between the double-barrel
pipes had deteriorated over time, which resulted in sanitary sewage leaking into
the storm side of the pipe, and ultimately, into the North Saskatchewan River.
Design incorporated relining using cast-in-place-pipe (CIPP) technology, and maintained
the structural integrity of the dividing wall and accommodated cold weather construction.
In presenting the award, judges commented that, "This project incorporated
basic principals and innovations in resolving a very unique problem. This project
demonstrates truly creative engineering at its best."
Rogers Sugar Ltd. - Taber Modernization Project,
Taber, Alberta
Rogers Sugar Ltd.
Rogers Sugar Ltd., a major sugar producer in Canada, recently invested
in the modernization of their Taber, Alberta facility. The Taber Modernization
Project was undertaken over a two-year period to increase the production of the
sugar beet processing factory to 6,000 tonnes of beets per day, a 50% increase.
Rogers Sugar retained Associated Engineering for engineering, procurement and
construction management of the modernization work, including an $8.5 million wastewater
treatment plant that was designed, constructed and commissioned in less than one
year. In presenting the Award of Excellence - Resource Development and
Award of Merit - Environment to Associated Engineering, judges noted that, "The
Rogers Sugar Ltd. project illustrates a good combination of technical excellence
and a good use of technology which benefitted both the company and the community....[The
project] was delivered in a short time frame, utilized international collaboration
and products, tried to advance a technology in a previously untried market (food
industry), reduced the environmental impact on the city's infrastructure, and
led to a 50% increase in production."
Fulton
Creek Regional Wetlands, Edmonton, Alberta
City of Edmonton
Associated Engineering had identified a need for a stormwater management
pond along Fulton Creek as part of the 1994 Drainage Master Plan for this future
residential area. Due to economic constraints, the City of Edmonton did not immediately
proceed with construction of the stormwater management pond. In 1996, during
the design of the extension of Whitemud Drive, a four-lane freeway, Associated
Engineering recognized the opportunity to economically construct the Fulton Creek
stormwater management facility by excavating the large quantity of fill required
to construct the freeway embankment from the Fulton Creek area. From this excavated
area, Associated Engineering designed the Fulton Creek Wetlands. The wetlands
create a naturalized area for waterfowl nesting, birds, and wildlife, serve as
a regional recreational and wildlife viewing area, improve the quality of stormwater runoff, and reduce the risk of downstream flooding. Judges for the award
said, "The Fulton Creek project] goes beyond simply providing an engineered solution
to the problems at hand, it instead provides an environmentally conscious engineered
solution which contributes to the project but also to the community in a significantly
larger number of ways than other solutions might have done." Project
sheet
Enhanced Water Quality
Implementation, Taber, Alberta
Town of Taber
When the Town of
Taber needed to improve water quality from their water treatment plant, they retained
Associated Engineering to come up with modifications. After successful completion
of a pilot testing program, Associated Engineering recommended a dissolved air
flotation (DAF) addition to the plant to improve particle removal. The new
28 million litre per day DAF clarification system is by far the largest in Western
Canada and is the first system to be designed and built in place. The fully-automated
plant now produces clearer, better tasting water, and increases public health
protection by improving Giardia and Cryptosporidium removal and reducing disinfection
byproducts. Moreover, the process has decreased chemical usage and wastewater
production at the plant by 50% and 75%, respectively.
Sea to Sky Highway Test Section, B.C.
Ministry of Transportation
The design of the test section is part of the B.C. Ministry of Transportation’s
upgrade of the Sea to Sky Highway from Vancouver to Whistler for the 2010 Olympics.
The existing highway is characterized by sharp curves, steep climbs, and dramatic
drop-offs to the ocean below. The Ministry wished to upgrade the highway to
improve safety, reliability, and capacity for travelers. The Ministry selected
Associated Engineering with Golder Associates to complete detailed design of
an 800 metre long test section north of Horseshoe Bay. The objectives of the
test section were to demonstrate that the challenging construction of the entire
highway could be done on time, economically, and without major traffic closures.
Specific challenges along the test section included near vertical rock cuts,
marginally stable rockfill slopes, and the nearby CN Rail corridor. The design
team addressed the constraints by developing unique downslope structures (half
bridges) and innovative retaining wall systems. The project was delivered on
schedule, 30 percent under budget, and requiring only short (20 minute), single-lane
road closures.
Highway No. 9, Yorkton, Saskatchewan
City of Yorkton & Saskatchewan
Department of Highways
The provincial highways located through Yorkton are major routes for moving
people and goods in Saskatchewan and across Western Canada. Highway No. 9 from
Queen Street to Darlington Street is an important part of the roadway network.
Located within this section is the intersection of Broadway Street (Highway
No. 10), the busiest intersection in the City, serving over 10,000 vehicles
per day. The increase in truck traffic and weights, poor soil conditions, and
poor surface drainage contributed to severe deterioration of the existing roadway
surface, resulting in extreme cracking and poor ride.
The City of Yorkton formed a partnership agreement with Saskatchewan Highways
and Transportation to complete improvements to Highway No. 9. The Partnership
engaged Associated Engineering to complete the survey, functional and detailed
design, tendering, and construction inspection and administration, and provide
overall project management. Associated Engineering completed the design
using CAiCE design software to create a digital terrain model and develop cross-section
design templates, horizontal alignment, vertical profile, automated superelevation,
and two-dimensional and three-dimensional visualization. The team completed
off-tracking analysis for every turning movement using AutoTurn 4.0 vehicle
off tracking simulation software. This software allows the designer to simulate
the turning movements of large tractor- trailer units, thus optimizing the
surface area required at each radius. The project stakeout was completed
using total station and real time kinematic (RTK) GPS survey methods. This
method allowed for electronic transfer of design data and field stakeout with
sub-centimetre accuracy at significantly reduced cost.
Highway No. 9 was completed in October 2005, improving the transportation corridor
and providing economic and social benefits for the City of Yorkton and Province
of Saskatchewan.
Duke Point
Underpass, Nanaimo, B.C.
B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Highways
 The
Duke Point Underpass in Nanaimo is one of many bridges on
the $1 billion Vancouver Island Highway project. The Ministry
of Transportation and Highways originally tendered the bridge
as two, twin-cell, cast-in-place, post-tensioned, trapezoidal
box girders. Each girder was 1500 mm deep, connected by
a cast-in-place concrete deck slab with edge cantilevers.
Spans required were 21 m, 38 m, and 21 m, with a 17.5 m
wide deck. The superstructure was skewed, curved-in-plan
and super-elevated.
The design required construction on falsework, and provision for future external
post-tensioning. The contractor, Emil Anderson Construction Ltd., wished to condense
the construction schedule, and eliminate most of the falsework for construction
of the superstructure. The Ministry's contract documents allowed for provision
of alternative solutions, as long as the alternate design was of similar depth
and span configuration, and aesthetically pleasing. Associated Engineering
proposed a precast concrete bridge, with similar span, geometry, and aesthetics.
The innovative concept utilized an available, precast trapezoidal box girder form
to manufacture segments which were post-tensioned together in the field. The precast
girders allowed the Contractor to minimize falsework. Precasting concrete manufacturing
paralleled substructure construction, thereby shortening the construction schedule.
To simplify construction, the concept avoided the use of external diaphragms
except at the abutments. Here, integral ballast walls provided torque-restraint
for the girders and a location for the post-tensioning anchorages. Use of monolithic
abutment walls also eliminated the cost and maintenance associated with expansion
joints at deck ends. Additional savings were achieved by adding the future post-tensioning
provision to the initial prestressing provided during construction. The Ministry
accepted Associated Engineering's alternative design, which was priced at about
20% less than the original cast-in-place design. This project demonstrated that
efficiently designed, elegant precast concrete solutions can be highly cost-effective
when compared with equivalent cast-in-place designs. Project
sheet
Athabasca River Bridge, Alberta
Suncor Inc. - Oil Sands Group
 Suncor's
Athabasca River bridge crosses the Athabasca River approximately 30 km north of
the Fort McMurray providing access to Suncor's new Steepbank tarsand mine. Approximately
400 m long and is 22.5 m wide, the bridge carries two traffic lanes and 12 production
pipelines for hydrotransport of tarsand and tailing sand return.
Associated
Engineering selected a unique foundation system consisting of 2.5 m diameter rock
socketed piles to reduce cost, risk, and the environmental impact associated with
cofferdams during construction. The rock characteristics were carefully addressed
at each pile location through a series of boreholes and an appropriate tip elevation
chosen. The piles are connected with a concrete diaphragm above river level. The
controlling load for the bridge substructure is that associated with ice impact
during the spring break-up. Ice forces that impact on one pier are transferred
through the bearings to the deck and hence are shared by other substructure elements
including the abutments. This leads to a structural concept that has a high level
of "toughness". The superstructure for the five-span bridge consists of continuous
3.3 m deep steel plate girders with a reinforced concrete deck varying in thickness
from 300 mm to 450 mm. The bridge is designed to carry unloaded mine haul trucks
with a gross vehicle weight of 170 tonnes on two axles approximately five times
higher than a standard highway design axle loading. The bridge was constructed
under a $25 million fast-track, design-build contract with Kiewit Management Ltd,
and opened to traffic in the fall of 1997. In winning the Consulting Engineers
of Alberta Showcase Awards, the judges noted "the short design/build period which
allowed the client to gain almost two years on its development plan, its utilization
of the adverse winter environment as an advantage during pier construction, numerous
unique design features, and innovative approaches to geotechnical challenges".
Project
sheet
Wabamun Lake Level Mitigation and Water
Treatment Plant Project, Wabamun Lake, Alberta
TransAlta Utilities Corporation
Wabamun Lake, located 60 km east of Edmonton in central Alberta, supports sport
and commercial fisheries and sees extensive year-round recreational use. Lower
than normal lake levels have resulted from below average precipitation in recent
years and the impact of TransAlta Utilities' operation of three electrical generating
plants in the area. To offset the impact of their operations on the lake level,
TransAlta established a mitigation plan which involves taking water from the North
Saskatchewan River, and cooling and treating the water before transferring it
to Wabamun Lake. To minimize the potential for introduction of non-indigenous
biota into the lake, TransAlta required a state-of-the-art water treatment facility.
TransAlta Utilities Corporation retained Associated Engineering to provide
engineering, procurement and construction management for the water treatment plant.
Camp Dresser & McKee provided ozone process technical review services. The
water treatment facility will use both physical and chemical barriers to prevent
the transport and survival of organisms from the source water to the receiving
water, and produce a quality that complies with the latest edition of the Guidelines
for Canadian Drinking Water Quality. The water treatment facility was designed
to meet or exceed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Surface Water Treatment
Rule (SWTR) standards for removal or inactivation of bacteria, parasites and viruses.
Water quality objectives are turbidity less than or equal to 0.5 NTU, 5.5 log
inactivation of Giardia oocysts, and 4.0 LOG inactivation of viruses. Key
processes of the 45 ML/d facility are raw water pumping, a 36 m diameter solids
contact upflow clarifier, six dual-media filters, ozone disinfection system, a
four-cell cooling tower, and a treated-water effluent system. The plant's ability
to achieve 5.5 log inactivation of Giardia oocysts makes it a Canadian first.
The multiple barrier treatment process utilizes ozone disinfection to accomplish
the major portion of this inactivation. Cooling towers keep the transferred water
temperature within 3%C of lake water temperature, minimizing any temperature impacts
on the lake. Water treated by the new facility was first discharged to Wabamun
Lake on September 26, 1997, 21 months after the start of preliminary design. Project
sheet
National Highway No.
1A
Government of Vietnam, Ministry of Transport
 Over
1,600 km in length, Vietnam's National Highway No. 1A is
the country's main transportation corridor. Highway No.
1A extends from the Chinese border in the north (near Hanoi,
the capital city), to the southern tip (near Ho Chi Minh
City, formerly known as Saigon). As part of Vietnam's urgently-needed
transportation infrastructure development and renewal, Vietnam's
Ministry of Transport designated thirty-six (36) bridges
along Highway No. 1A for immediate replacement.
With loans from
the Japanese Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund, the Ministry retained an international
engineering consortium to perform the planning, detailed design and contract document
preparation, working together with local Vietnamese engineers and technicians.
This consortium, led by the Japanese engineering firms Pacific Consultants International
and Nippon-Koei Co. Ltd., included the joint venture team of Klohn-Crippen Consultants
Ltd. and Associated Engineering International Ltd. This engineering team was
responsible for technology transfer, supervision of bridge design and construction
planning for the Vietnamese engineers, who were unfamiliar with international
design standards and preparation of drawings and specifications for international
tendering. As well, there were language difficulties that had to be overcome.
Complicating the process further was the tight deadline for this project. The
Ministry required that all 36 new bridge designs had to be ready for construction
tendering (with prequalified international construction joint ventures) in only
nine months time. Through careful discussions, meetings and training sessions
with state-of-the-art computerized design technology, our team produced a streamlined
design procedure to standardize and optimize designs and drawing production. The
process was very successful, enabling all 36 bridge designs to go to construction
tender as per the Ministry's schedule.
New Parallel
Runway, Richmond, B.C.
Vancouver International Airport Authority
 The
Vancouver International Airport Authority (YVRAA) has undertaken a program to
improve and expand airport operations to better serve the community's and the
province's needs and development priorities. To this end, YVRAA retained Crippen
Associated Consultants, a joint venture of the Crippen Division of H.A. Simons
Ltd. and Associated Engineering, to prepare project definition reports and cost
estimates for site development works. Subsequently, Crippen Associated Consultants
was engaged to prepare detailed design drawings, technical specifications and
provide resident engineering services during construction of the new parallel
runway, new taxiways, airfield lighting system, civil works, and associated ground-side
works.
The project team dealt effectively with the sensitive geotechnical
and environmental concerns of the site and offered innovative solutions, such
as a system to protect existing utilities and a materials management plan, which
reduced overall project costs. The new Parallel Runway will increase the ultimate
airport capacity by 40% and accommodate all current types of aircraft, as well
as the anticipated aircraft of the future. The Runway features a Category III
Lighting System, the first of its kind in Canada. The airfield lighting system
will maximize use of the airport by allowing aircraft operation to continue at
visibility limits down to 200 m. At 9:30 am on Monday, November 4, 1996 the
world's newest large airliner, the Boeing 777-200, became the first aircraft to
land on the new Parallel Runway. This marked the successful conclusion of this
$95 million project on schedule and within budget. Project
sheet
Deltaport Container Terminal,
Roberts Bank, B.C.
Vancouver Port Corporation
 Deltaport
is a 40 hectare container terminal at Roberts Bank with
a construction value in the order of $50 million. It is
the major component in the Vancouver Port Corporation's
initiative to maintain and improve Vancouver's share of
the west coast container trade. A terminal design which
provided efficiency in container handling was considered
essential to the productivity and overall success of the
Deltaport facility.
Acting as a subconsultant to Klohn-Crippen Consultants Ltd., Associated Engineering
provided specialist design input in the area of civil engineering for this important
development project, most particularly related to grading, paving and surface
drainage. Associated Engineering was responsible for preliminary design, detail
design and construction inspection of surface works for the entire site which
included a container yard, intermodal yard, gate area, access causeway, internal
roads and parking areas. Special surfacing design features for this facility
include a uni-directional grading scheme with slot drains, tailored to rubber
tired gantry and top pick operations, reinforced concrete runways for rubber tired
gantry operations integrated with slot drain crossings, and areas of roller compacted
concrete pavement as well as asphalt on granular pavement.
Ratmalana
- Moratuwa Wastewater Collection, Treatment and Disposal Feasibility Study
Metropolitan Environmental Improvement Program
Government of Sri Lanka
 The
Ratmalana - Moratuwa area, located south of Colombo, developed as an industrial/residential
suburb of Colombo in the 1950's. Approximately 350,000 inhabitants live within
the Region. The area is characterized by mixed land uses with a large number of
industrial and institutional facilities intermixed with residential and commercial
areas. Industrial pollution has long been recognized as a problem in the area
with liquid wastes from industries being discharged untreated into nearby drainage
courses. The domestic wastewater is directed to individual septic tanks. Pressure
from an expanding population has forced residents to construct wells adjacent
to existing septic tanks, in violation of minimum safe distances required by planning
agencies. A high water table further aggravates this problem and faecal contamination
of wells is common.
The Government of Sri Lanka, through the Metropolitan
Environmental Improvement Program engaged the services of Associated Engineering
to undertake a wastewater management study for the Ratmalana - Moratuwa Area.
The objective of the study was to assess the potential for waste minimization,
pollution prevention, and a central wastewater collection, treatment and disposal
system for the area. The project involved assessing wastewater management scenarios
available to the area and further developing the preferred scenario. This included
estimating and computer modelling sewerage flows for the conceptual design of
the collection system, the central treatment plant, and an ocean outfall. The
study also included establishing industrial pretreatment standards, reviewing
viable ownership and management options, conducting financial analysis of the
long term viability of the system, developing an implementation plan, and assessing
potential environmental and social impacts of the project on the surrounding areas
and residents. The Canadian International Development Agency and the World
Bank provided funding for the $600,000 study. Project
sheet
Alberni Pulp Mill Pipeline Trestle
Replacement
Macmillian Bloedel Ltd.
Associated
Engineering provided preliminary and detailed design services to replace 700 m
of a deteriorated timber trestle located in an ecologically-sensitive tidal flat.
The trestle supports a 1370 mm water pipeline which supplies MacMillan Bloedel's
Alberni Pulp and Paper mill with process water. The project had to be completed
without disruption to important fish habitat while maintaining a continuous supply
of water to the mill. Associated Engineering worked with the owner to develop
an innovative solution which included the construction of a pile-supported working
platform above the pipeline. The platform permitted demolition of the existing
trestle and construction of the new trestle without disruption to the environmentally-sensitive
fish habitat or interruption of the mill's water supply.
Esker Overhead, near Terrace, B.C.
Ministry of Transportation and
Highways
 The
50 m-span Esker Overhead is located on Highway 16 between Terrace and Prince Rupert,
B.C. Some 1500 km by road from the Vancouver area, the remote location offered
a considerable challenge to design economically using structural concrete.
The structure provides grade separation for a previously at-grade crossing of
the Canadian National Railway, and allows for the existing plus a future operational
track. Site constraints mandated a crossing at a 60% skew. During detailed design
by the project consultant, the bridge skew was reduced to 45%, and reinforced
earth curved-in-plan abutments were selected. Designs in precast concrete and
structural steel were offered for tender with alternate designs using segmental
precast girders permitted under the contract. During the tender period, it
became apparent that the one-piece precast girders were very costly to transport
(either by barge to Prince Rupert or by rail) to the site and to erect using two
large cranes. Con-Force Structures Ltd. commissioned Associated Engineering to
prepare an alternate segmental design. This option permitted segment transportation
by truck and erection by a single crane. The segments were erected on falsework
and field post-tensioned together prior to placement of the concrete deck. The
post-tensioning anchorages were located in the cast-in-place end diaphragms and
segment splices were field-grouted after splicing post-tensioning ducts. The innovative
concepts used resulted in a cost saving of $140,000 compared to the steel alternative.
The bridge won the 1991 Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute of Chicago
Award for Bridges of greater than 41 m span and the prestigious Harry H. Edwards
Industry Advancement Award. The jury cited the technical innovation which permitted
a precast concrete solution to be produced economically in a situation where it
would not normally be applicable.
Nass River Bridge
B.C. Ministry of Forests
 In
order to provide access to new unlogged watersheds on the
west bank of the Nass River in northwestern British Columbia,
the Ministry of Forests needed a new bridge crossing of
the Nass Canyon. A cable-stayed bridge with a 96 m main
span with timber deck was offered for tender. The lowest
tender received was for over $2.3 million which exceeded
the Ministry's budget.
Associated Engineering designed
an alternate steel-box girder design with precast concrete deck which was tendered
at $1.4 million by a leading bridge contractor. The alternate 108 m-long bridge
provided equal or better quality, was within budget and was accepted by the Ministry
for construction. The 96 m main span was installed by launching and is believed
to be the longest span installed using this method in Canada. The Nass River
Bridge is one of the largest industrial bridges in B.C., which was made affordable
to the owner as a result of the innovative design concept and erection scheme
prepared by Associated Engineering.
Award of Excellence
North Battleford
Comprehensive High School
In
selecting Associated Engineering for the Award of Excellence in the Building Science
category, the Judges commented, "In all engineering problems, there is always
a question as to how far one goes - how deep do you go into the problem. We were
most impressed with, as the title says, "Attention to Detail ..." This
was a project in which an engineering problem was given thorough treatment - an
exhaustive investigation. And it paid off. The result was a substantial savings
in heating and energy costs, while maintaining a healthy comfortable working environment." Since
opening in 1969, persistent problems with occupant comfort and high utility costs
have plagued the high school. Although adequately sized, the mechanical system
was unable to maintain acceptable space temperatures. Associated Engineering
adopted an investigative approach, using a multi-disciplinary team. All aspects
of the school that had a bearing on occupant comfort were examined. This investigation
discovered many concealed deficiencies that contributed to sub-par mechanical
system performance. Associated Engineering's solution involved simultaneous
repairs and upgrades to the building envelope and air handling system. Consequently,
utility costs decreased and occupant comfort has improved.
Marina Garden
Estates, Delta, B.C.
Marina Garden Estates Ltd.
 The
Marina Garden Estates project is a 83 hectare residential/commercial/marina
complex located near Ladner, B.C. The development, which
incorporates a golf course, clubhouse, hotel, commercial
centre, primary school, and 1400 lot subdivision, is located
adjacent to the Ladner Marsh Wildlife Management Area and
along Green and Ladner Sloughs, near the Fraser River. Each
of the water courses has significant fisheries, water fowl,
and wildlife habitat resource values. The regulating authorities,
coordinated by the Fraser River Estuary Management Program
(FREMP), were concerned about any potential discharge of
stormwater containing suspended solids and pollutants from
urban streets, and herbicides and fertilizers from the golf
course.
Marina
Gardens Estates engaged Associated Engineering to review the stormwater discharge
requirements, complete detailed design, prepare contract documents, and provide
construction inspection and contract administration services. Associated Engineering
developed a stormwater treatment pond system using a series of detention ponds
planted with carefully-selected aquatic plants to provide passive treatment of
the stormwater. A series of weirs and pump station control water levels by limiting
the rate of water passage through the pond system, and permitting tidal water
to mix with the stormwater in the pond system at high tides. The upstream
ponds above the pump station trap sediment and also reduce nutrient and solids
loading. The downstream ponds form a marsh habitat with tidal mixing. The ponds
are planted with native wetland plants to facilitate nutrient conversion for microbiological
activity. The entire area forms part of a natural park with walkways and bridges
built across the weirs. A floodbox, 1900 m river bank protection, flood retaining
walls, and precast concrete bridge were also incorporated in the design as well
as all roads and utilities for the subdivision. The Fraser River Estuary Management
Program felt this project represents an exceptional example of how economic development
and environmental quality can be balanced in a sustainable way. Project
sheet
King George Flyover, Surrey,
B.C.
B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Highways
 Because
of poor ground conditions, the 115 m-long, two-lane King
George Flyover was restricted to a low profile superstructure
for its 43 m main span and two 36 m flanking spans. The
Ministry had designed a bridge in structural steel for the
crossing, but the local precast industry persuaded the Ministry
to offer an alternate design prepared by Associated Engineering
in precast concrete. When tendered, the concrete design
proved to be 10% less costly overall as a result of a 25%
saving in the cost of the girders.
Associated Engineering's design utilized twin, trapezoidal-section,
precast- concrete, box girders with cast-in-place concrete deck. Intermediate
piers comprised twin column bents, while all foundations were supported by driven,
steel-pipe piles.  The
girders comprised long precast segments, five per girder, connected by cast-in-place
field splices and site post-tensioning. The hybrid-girder design greatly improved
the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the concept, and provided an elegant
low-maintenance structure for this highly-visible urban flyover.
| 
President's
Awards
Consulting Engineers of Alberta