Barnard Construction Co. Forms Tunnel Group
Formed in 1975 and established as a heavy civil contractor specializing in dam, reservoir and pipeline construction, Barnard Construction Co. has recently formed a tunnel group to address an increasing workload in the areas of shaft building, tunneling and underground construction. Key personnel include:
Bob Reseigh, Tunnel Group Advisor: Resigh has 40 years of underground mining, engineering and management experience in the heavy civil and mining industries. An alumni of the Colorado School of Mines (1968), Resigh has participated in the construction of 60 miles of tunnels and shafts.
Boodie Hurd, Tunnel Safety Manager: An OSHA- and MSHA-certified instructor, Hurd has 39 years of underground mining, safety and health management experience in the heavy civil and mining industries. He has worked on more than 20 miles of tunnels and shafts.
Mickey Aliff, Tunnel Superintendent: Aliff has 38 years and 55 miles of underground mining and supervisory experience in the heavy civil and mining industries. He has earned numerous safety and contractor of the year awards during his career.
Brad Bush, P.E., Underground Construction Manager: Bush has 28 years of underground mining, engineering, and management experience in the civil and mining industries, including construction of more than 25 miles of tunnels and shafts. Bush is an alumni of the University of Utah (1980).
Shelley Burg, P.E., Business Development: Burg holds degrees from the University of Maryland (1986) and Michigan Tech (1983), and has 20 years of underground engineering and management experience in the heavy civil industry with construction of over 30 miles of tunnels and shafts.
Caterpillar Announces Lovat Purchase
Caterpillar has acquired Canadian TBM manufacturer Lovat, and by doing so has announced its entry into the tunnel boring business.
“This acquisition is Caterpillar’s entry into the rapidly expanding tunnel boring machine business, and it represents an excellent strategic fit for our companies and the customers we serve around the world,” said Stu Levenick, Caterpillar group president.
Lovat customers will benefit from the strength of Caterpillar’s global purchasing organization, from its research and development initiatives, Caterpillar’s global reach and its experience in large-scale manufacturing processes.
“Lovat customers are already familiar with seeing Caterpillar products working as support machines at tunnel boring projects, and we intend to leverage our global business with continued investment in the Lovat product line and in the tunnel boring business,” said Chris Curfman, Caterpillar vice president with responsibility for mining and underground products.
The financial details of the acquisition are not being released. Rick Lovat, president and chief executive officer of Lovat Inc., will join Caterpillar’s Global Mining Division and will have responsibility for growing the tunnel boring business within Caterpillar.
“Caterpillar recognizes the value of our terrific people, great product offerings and the premium Lovat places on customer relationships. We are honored to be part of Caterpillar,” Lovat said.
Caterpillar Global Mining supplies support equipment to the surface mining sector and is the world’s leading provider of production, support and technology solutions for surface and underground hard-rock mining.
Lake Mead Tunnel Contract Awarded
The Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) recently awarded a $447 million design-build contract to Vegas Tunnel Constructors LLC (a joint venture of Impreglio S.p.A. and S.A. Healy Co.). The contract includes a 20-ft diameter 15,000 lf tunnel under the lake bed, a 16-ft diameter, 60- to 80-ft deep water intake shaft and a 32-ft diameter 600-ft deep access shaft. The project adds a third intake to the largest man-made lake and reservoir in the United States.
Lake Mead is on the Colorado River and is formed by water impounded by the Hoover Dam.
A growing drought problem has caused the water level to drop significantly, with February 2008 measurements at roughly 50 percent of capacity. Officials are concerned that the two existing intakes could become inoperable if levels continue to drop, as they are not capable of reaching the depth that this new intake will reach.
The JV is purchasing a hybrid TBM from Herrenknecht, which will be able to bore both open- and closed-face. Arup has been engaged by the JV as designer.
The intake tunnel has a 1,571-day project schedule and is expected to finish by July 2012. Four associated projects have yet to bid and the entire raw water intake project is schedule for completion by early 2013 at an estimated $817 million.
Niagara Tunnel Project May Be Delayed
Challenging rock formations may delay completion of the new hydro tunnel being bored under Niagara Falls.
According to a third quarter financial report released by Ontario Power Generation, Austria-based contracting firm Strabag has encountered problems drilling through Queenston shale. The anticipated completion date has already been pushed back to 2010 from the originally planned late 2009 date, but the project could experience further delays as Strabag investigates the rock conditions.
The rock formation is part of the former St. Davids Gorge riverbed. Reports indicate that the rock fractures easily and has been prone to collapse in the wake of the TBM, sometimes damaging the machine. Work has slowed, but has not yet stopped as investigations are under way. One proposed solution is altering the bore path to work into firmer soil conditions.
Strabag will report any changes to alignments, timelines and budgets after it bores to the 2,300 m mark later this year.
The 10-km tunnel will allow more water to the Sir Adam Beck generating stations in Queenston, Ont., adding enough electricity to power a city twice the size of Niagara Falls.
Lyman Henn Relocates
Effective March 3, Lyman Henn has moved to a new suite in the Petroleum Building in Denver. The updated address is: Lyman Henn, Inc., 110 16th Street, Ste 700, Denver, CO 80202-5202. Note that the address remains as it was before, with an updated suite number.
Second Tunnel Boring Machine Breaks Through at Beacon Hill
After a 4,300-ft drive through 60,000 cu yds of earth, the second TBM broke through on Seattle’s Beacon Hill project March 5. The first tunnel broke through in May 2007.
The twin tunnels are part of the construction of a light rail line from Seattle to SeaTac airport. The project is expected to be complete and in use by late 2009, carrying an estimated 45,000 people per day.
Bechtel and Parsons Brinckerhoff Reach Settlement on Big Dig
Bechtel Infrastructure Corp. and Parsons Brinckerhoff reached an agreement that settles claims by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts regarding their work as management consultant for the Boston Central Artery/Tunnel project, also known as the Big Dig.
John MacDonald, chairman of the Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff (B/PB) joint venture, issued the following statement:
“We have reached a full and final settlement of claims by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts.
Protracted legal proceedings would have served no one well, and we believe that this resolution is in the interests of all concerned.
We have always said that we take responsibility for our work. We understand and acknowledge with this resolution that our performance did not meet our commitment to the public or our own expectations. Above all, we deeply regret the tragic death of Milena Del Valle in the I-90 tunnel.
“Our companies have a long history of delivering safe, high-quality engineering and construction services. Our willingness to scrutinize our own performance and learn from experience has been a major factor in our success. Going forward, we will implement a number of specific measures to apply lessons learned to our future work, such as improving quality management systems, more extensive and mandatory training for field engineers, and additional standardized specifications for design and construction.
“The Boston Central Artery/Tunnel project remains one of this country’s most remarkable infrastructure achievements. It will serve the people of Massachusetts well into the next century.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Bechtel Infrastructure Corp. (BINFRA) will contribute $352 million toward the settlement, with Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB) contributing $47,230,500, which includes funds intended for future repairs and nonroutine maintenance of the Central Artery/Tunnel. Both BINFRA and PB will take specific actions to enhance their existing training, compliance, and quality assurance programs in order to improve long-term performance and ensure that future work benefits from lessons learned during the Central Artery/Tunnel project. The agreement also provides remedies in the unlikely event of a future major incident for which B/PB is liable.
Port of Miami Tunnel Moves Closer to Go-Ahead
The Florida Department of Transportation formally announced it will award the $914 million, 35-year contract to a consortium lead by Bouygues Travaux Publics and the global investment bankers Babcock & Brown. The team would finance, design and build the tunnel over a 47-month period; then operate and maintain it for an additional 31 years. The announcement eliminates another of the many obstacles that have plagued the project in its bid to build a tunnel under Biscayne Bay to the Port of Miami.
Officials anticipated the announcement would set off a 72-hour bid protest period for the second- and third-ranked teams for the enormous and complex infrastructure build. If the award is not contested, state officials will negotiate the final terms with the Bouygues/Babcock & Brown team.
The tunnel is expected to be operational by 2012.
Schwarzenegger Announces Funding for Bay Area Transit
Calif. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently announced $394 million in transit projects – the first portion of the $20 billion transportation bonds that voters approved in 2006. In total, 106 projects were selected for this first wave of funding.
Included is $52 million in funding to three San Francisco Bay-area transit agencies to help complete improvements and bolster BART’s Transbay Tube against a major earthquake.
“Hundreds of thousands of riders can feel safer while commuting to work,” said Schwarzenegger. “And services can resume quicker if there is an earthquake.”
The funding will help BART pay for the $340 million retrofit of the 3.6-mile twin-bore Transbay Tube. Work on the tube began two years ago and is expected to be finished by 2010.
BART was built in the 1960s to the highest safety standards at the time. Recent earthquakes have given engineers new perspective on how structures such as BART react to earthquakes. Studies have indicated that the Transbay Tube, elevated tracks and stations as well as BART offices and maintenance buildings need to be strengthened.
The systemwide retrofit is expected to cost $1.3 billion, with residents of Alameda, Contra Costa and San Francisco counties paying the bulk of the bill when they voted in 2004 to increase their property taxes to raise $980 million.
