PACIFIC NORTHWEST EDITION
A Supplement to:
®
September 4 2016 Vol. I • No. 18
“The Nation’s Best Read Construction Newspaper… Founded in 1957.” Your Pacific Northwest Connection – Patrick Kiel – 1-877-7CEGLTD – pkiel@cegltd.com
I-5 Improvements Ease Congestion Seismic Program Grants $1B to Retrofit Schools By Lori Tobias CEG CORRESPONDENT
It hasn’t always been common knowledge that the Pacific Northwest from northern California to Vancouver, B.C., is vulnerable to a mega earthquake. Scientists only grew savvy to the potential for the Cascadia Subduction Zone off the west coast to rupture in recent decades. But now that the knowledge is readily available, work is ongoing in many places to make buildings safer and more stable when the earthquake does hit. In Oregon, that’s meant a state seismic program that has so far given out more than $1 billion in grants to schools and other public facilities for rehabilitating buildings deemed likely to fall in such an event. The grants are a maximum of $1.5 million and awarded by an advisory committee. “A survey conducted by the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries listed more than 1,000 school buildings in Oregon at high or very high risk of collapse in a major earthquake,” said Oregon Senate President Peter Courtney in a press release earlier this year. “So many of Oregon schools are at risk because until
WSDOT photo
The $1.5 million dollar upgrade of the railroad crossing included regrading the track, adding cantilever arms and making it ADA compliant.
see OREGON page 10
By Andrea Watts CEG CORRESPONDENT
Since the I-5 Madigan Access Improvement project’s start in October 2015, drivers traveling the stretch of I-5 alongside Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) had to contend with nighttime lane closures while users of Berkeley Street had to navigate construction on the southbound offramp and across the Freedom Bridge. With the construction finally completed in early July, drivers now have a safer southbound commute and are experiencing improved eastbound traffic flow into the Madigan Army Medical Center. The impetus for the project started nearly 10 years ago as traffic congestion along this stretch of JBLM was noticeably worsening, especially during rush hour. In 2009, the city of Lakewood, JBLM, and Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) commissioned a
WSDOT photo
An additional eastbound lane enables the Freedom Bridge to accommodate more traffic heading to Madigan Army Medical Center while the safety features of elevated handrails, wider sidewalks and a guard barrier between the pedestrians and the sidewalk makes it safer.
study to investigate the reason for this congestion. Troy Pokswinski, associate civil engineer with the city of Lakewood and project manager of the I-5 Madigan Access Improvement project, said that the study concluded the congestion was due to not only JBLM expanding, but also the rest of the region. see WSDOT page 12
In Oregon, a state seismic program has so far given out more than $1 billion in grants to schools and other public facilities for rehabilitating buildings deemed likely to fall in such an event.
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Interstate System Forever Changed Eastern Idaho By Bryan Clark POST REGISTER
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (AP) It’s been 60 years since the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act became law. The law, championed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower and broadly supported by both parties, led to the construction of 41,000 mi. (65,983 km) of wide roads that allowed highspeed travel for people and goods. The Interstate Highway System revolutionized the American economy, diet and travel habits, reported the Post Register. And the biggest changes were felt in places like eastern Idaho, where small, spread-out towns could be several days’ travel from major trade and manufacturing centers. “It changed life in huge ways,’’ Idaho Transportation Department District Engineer Ed Bala said. “Starting in the 1980s, American business fundamentally changed how it worked.’’ There were casualties too. “Small town America has been diminished as a result of the freeways,’’ said Rep. Linden Bateman. Eisenhower came to support the idea of an interstate system while leading American forces in the European theater during World War II, as a U.S. Department of Transportation history recounts. Germany already had an interstatelike system: the Autobahn. America was mostly crisscrossed with a network of two-lane roads, and in 1919 Eisenhower had participated in an Army convoy moving troops from Washington, D.C. to San Francisco. That movement impressed him, but he saw a greater value in the Autobahn’s large, multi-lane roadways. “The old convoy had started me thinking about good, two-lane highways, but Germany had made me see the wisdom of broader ribbons across the land,’’ Eisenhower remarked. A variety of plans for a possible system of that type had been circulating in federal agencies since the 1930s, but Eisenhower’s backing pushed the massive public works undertaking toward reality. It was helped along by members of both political parties, including Sen. Albert Gore Sr. and Sen. Prescott Bush — the fathers of Vice
“We can move freight coast-to-coast in about 48 hours. That would just be impossible without the efficiency of the interstate system that we have.’’ Jason Andrus Doug Andrus Distributing
President Al Gore and President George H.W. Bush. The act set in motion one of the largest public works projects in human history, one which would last from 1956 into the 1990s. “More than any single action by the government since the end of the war, this one would change the face of America,’’ Eisenhower later wrote. It did. New Ways of Doing Business Bala began his career in the late 1980s. That was just in time to participate in some of the final extensions of the interstate system in eastern Idaho, such as completing the last stretch of Interstate 15 connecting Idaho to Montana. Prior to the interstate system, when most goods were shipped by train, most stores received shipments only intermittently. So they had to have large warehouses where they could store goods for a long period of time, in order to be sure they would have sufficient stock for their shelves. But today most stores use a system called “just-in-time delivery.’’ Jason Andrus, chief financial officer of Doug Andrus Distributing, said that delivery model was unthinkable before the interstate. “We can move freight coast-tocoast in about 48 hours,’’ Andrus said. “That would just be impossible without the efficiency of the interstate system that we have.’’ Doug Andrus Distributing, which started in 1937 with a single truck, today has a fleet of nearly 300 trucks and employs hundreds of eastern Idahoans, paying about $50 million annually in salaries and benefits. The distribution of goods has
become so reliant on reliable justin-time delivery via interstates, that most stores have done away with those large warehouses. “If there were a mega-earthquake that brought down the interstate system, three days later my grocery store runs out of food,’’ Bala said. “That’s how much we’ve come to depend on the interstate.’’ Small Town America Bateman, who attended Brigham Young University, remembers what it was like to travel from Idaho Falls to Provo, Utah, before the advent of the interstate system. It meant traversing a network of narrow state highways that took a traveler through the middle of small towns. For many years, visitors to Yellowstone National Park coming north from Utah had one main route: U.S. Highway 91, which passes through the middle of Blackfoot, Firth and Shelley. All that traffic meant a constant stream of potential customers for small, local businesses. “I remember how lively the little towns were before the freeways came in,’’ Bateman said. “Firth had some really neat establishments. They had a huge antique barn, and people would come in and stop there. “When the freeway came in, it just ran it out of business.’’ The interstate system wasn’t the only factor in the declining business climate of many small towns. A contemporary shift from small family farms to industrial agriculture also had a negative impact. But the interstate was undoubtedly a key factor. “Blackfoot and Shelley had thriving downtowns,’’ Bala said. “The interstate bypassed those downtowns. That had a negative
impact on them that in many ways they are just starting to recover from.’’ Getting Around The build-out of the interstate system created an explosion in car travel. In 1960, as interstate construction was getting under way, the average American travelled about 7,000 miles on the road every year, according to U.S. Department of Transportation data. By 1990, when the system was essentially complete, that had climbed to about 14,000 miles. When the portion of Interstate 84 that passes through Boise was complete, it saw about 25,000 cars a day, according to Bala. Today, it’s about 120,000. In eastern Idaho, the Transportation Department’s automatic traffic counter on I-15 at Rose Road in Bingham County shows that daily traffic has increased steadily for the last two decades. In 1999, the oldest data available, about 17,000 vehicles passed that site daily. Last year, traffic at that counter increased to a record 22,000 vehicles per 24 hours. Through the first six months of this year, that stretch is seeing an average of 700 more cars per day than it did a year ago. The 26,000 vehicles per day that passed that point in June was the second highest number on record, trailing only July 2015. Those vehicles are also moving faster than ever. Older drivers will remember that the national speed limit on interstates was 55 mph, an effort to reduce fuel consumption following the 1970s oil crisis. That speed limit remained in place until the late 1980s when it was raised to 65 mph. It increased to 75 mph on most stretches of Idaho interstate in 1996 and was raised to 80 mph in Idaho in 2014. With today’s improved roads and higher speed limits, drivers can go from Idaho Falls to Salt Lake City in about three hours. Bateman said sometime around 1919, his grandfather took a train down to Salt Lake City to buy his first car. The drive back took him several days. “It’s just a miracle that you can get in a car, go down to Salt Lake, and get back in a day,’’ he said.
And road travel has become much safer since the advent of the interstate system as well. In 1956, about 6 people died for every million miles of vehicular travel, according to Department of Transportation statistics. By 2007, it was about 1.4 people per million miles. “You just have to wonder: In the next 50 years what else will improve?’’ Bateman said. Bala has a darker view. “I don’t know that our country will ever again be able to rally behind something like the interstate or putting a man on the moon,’’ he said. “We seem to have lost our ability to come together behind big projects.’’ An Uncertain Future In recent years, the interstate system has struggled with a persistent funding shortfall. Maintenance on the interstate system is mainly paid for through the Highway Trust Fund, which receives most of its funding through federal taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel, which haven’t been raised since 1993. Cumulative inflation over that period has eroded 40 percent of the value of those taxes. Last year, the Highway Trust Fund was projected to run completely dry with $8 billion in maintenance left undone. Congress responded with a $52 billion injection of funds to keep it afloat. But that only delayed the problem. The fund is expected to receive revenue of only $35 billion to $38 billion each year for the next decade, while costs are expected to run from $44 billion to $52 billion per year. So the fund is expected to run out of money again in 2022, unless it receives another injection or Congress enacts a fuel tax hike. That worries Andrus. “While the interstate system has made us so much more efficient, it’s critical that we continue to maintain them and add to it to deal with increasing volumes that we’re putting on the interstates,’’ Andrus said. “That’s become a nationwide issue.’’ (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s website at www.constructionequipmentguide.com.)
Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • September 4, 2016 • Page 3
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Freightliner Trucks Names Sea-Tac ‘Hardest Working City’ Seattle-Tacoma was honored at an award presentation as one of Freightliner Trucks’ “Hardest Working Cities.” The program recognizes cities paving the way in community growth and innovation. The city received the award for its substantial employment in construction and manufacturing, and significant investment in infrastructure projects. Washington State Sen. Pam Roach accepted the award on behalf of the city and spoke about the hard work put in by SeattleTacoma workers, most notably in the ongoing $470 million expansion of the Port of Seattle International Arrivals Facility. Business and community leaders attended the presentation, held at Valley Freightliner. “It’s an honor for our city to be presented with the ‘Hardest Working Cities’ award,” said Alex Bernasconi, general manager of Valley Freightliner. “Seattle’s major construction projects like the Link Light Rail transit project and the Elliot Bay Seawall project really illustrate our dedication to growth. We’re a city that’s not afraid to get our hands dirty because we believe in progress.” National Hot Rod Association drivers John Force and Matt Hagan also attended the event and spoke about the importance of hard work in strengthening local economies. Freightliner made visits to three work sites around the area to thank workers. Employees at Potelco, Food Services of America and Miles Sand & Gravel were surprised with gift and food deliveries. To determine the Hardest Working Cities, Freightliner conducted an exhaustive review of
State Sen. Pam Roach (C) accepts Freightliner’s “Hardest Working Cities” award on behalf of Seattle-Tacoma.
more than 400 metropolitan areas in North America. The review measured 11 categories ranging from improvement in unemployment rate to infrastructure investment and the number of jobs in key industry sectors including construction, manufacturing and logistics. Seattle-Tacoma is the ninth city to receive the award since the launch of the program last year. For more information, visit http://www.hardestworkingcities.c om/. (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s website at www.constructionequipmentguide.com.)
Potelco employees were surprised with gift and food deliveries.
Idaho’s Meridian Interchange Wins Engineering Award The recently completed reconstruction of the Meridian Interchange, originally built in 1965, won the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Southern Idaho section award for Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement in a category for projects costing greater than $10 million. In the $50.8 million project, ITD replaced the Meridian Interchange with a single-point urban interchange (SPUI), and improved
Interstate 84 between Meridian and Five Mile roads, including widening the freeway to four lanes in each direction under the interchange. The work also added a third lane over the top on Meridian Road, and installed sidewalks and a bike lane. “Completion of the Meridian Interchange would not have been possible without the close collaboration between the Idaho Transportation Department and its design
and contracting partners, as well as many community stakeholders,” said Amy Schroeder, District 3 engineering manager and GARVEE manager. “Improvements not only enhance safety and mobility through this heavily traveled Treasure Valley interstate corridor, but also future growth and transportation needs in southwest Idaho.” Work began in April 2014, and the inter-
change opened to traffic late in 2015. In 1965, approximately 15,000 vehicles traveled over, under, and on and off the interchange each day. Today, that number has increased to more than 133,000 vehicles, and is expected to continue to climb. (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s Web site at www.constructionequipmentguide.com.)
Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • September 4, 2016 • Page 5
4800 NE Columbia Blvd | Portland, OR 97218 (503) 282-2566 | www.feenaughty.com
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Kenworth T880 Boosts Productivity for Asphalt Hauler For Tucci & Sons, enhancing productivity, driver comfort and safety is the name of the game when it comes to delivering asphalt. And with the new Kenworth T880 super dump, it’s a game Tim Tucci fully expects his family’s Tacoma, Washingtonbased full-service heavy construction business to win. “Depending upon the location of the paving project, we’ve found that in many cases our new Kenworth T880 super dumps can haul up to 10 percent more asphalt in a single day than the dump trucks and end-dump trailers they replaced,” said Tucci, who serves as the company’s secretary/treasurer and fleet operations manager. When a driver delivers asphalt using a dump truck and end-dump trailer, he must first empty the enddump trailer. Then he gets out of the truck, unhitches the end dump trailer, dumps the load in the bed of the dump truck and then re-hitches the end-dump trailer to the truck before he can return to the plant. Tucci said since that entire process can take anywhere from 20 minutes to half hour for each delivery, the company can add back one to two hours’ worth of revenue-generating productivity each day. After all, Tucci & Sons does not make money when its trucks aren’t moving, he said. “Drivers in our new T880 super dumps can deliver their loads to the job sites, dump them and then go right back to our Lakewood or Tacoma plant for another load,” he added. “Also, job site activity and
traffic can make it nerve-racking at best for our drivers to get out of their trucks when they’re delivering asphalt to a busy freeway job site at night.” Tucci worked with Rick Barry, his longtime sales consultant at Kenworth Northwest, the local Kenworth dealer, to choose the specifications for the company’s first two Kenworth T880s compliant with federal bridge formula requirements for lift axle spacing and capacity. Both T880 super dumps achieve their 25-ton (22.6 t) capacity through the use of three 8,000-lb. (3,628 kg) W&C TruTrack Super Alumilite steerable lift axles and an 8,000-lb. steerable “flying tag” axle. The T880s are specified with the PACCAR MX13 engine rated at 500-hp and 1,850 lb.-ft. of torque. The additional axles increase the truck’s gross combination vehicle weight to 80,000 lbs. (36,287 kg) by spreading the weight over more axles, which is permitted under an alternative federal bridge formula used by the state of Washington. The truck, with a 256-in. (650 cm) wheelbase, measures 40 ft. (12 m) from the front bumper to the rear steerable pusher axle. That’s considerably shorter than the 75-ft. (22.8 m) length of the tractor and end dump trailer units the T880 super dumps replaced. That makes the T880 super dumps more maneuverable. And the company doesn’t have to use transfer trucks to deliver asphalt to paving projects in tighter urban areas. The trucks also feature a clear
Colby Williams, Fueled Photography photo
Tucci & Sons driver Ernest “Ernie” Grice appreciates the Kenworth T880’s forward lighting system, which makes it much easier to see things on the road at night, and the panoramic windshield, which makes seeing things in front of his truck during the day easier.
back-of-cab configuration, allowing each truck to carry 110 gal. (416 L) of diesel fuel instead of the typical 75 gal. (284 L). This increased fuel carrying capacity extends the range of the truck, allowing it to go longer distances or to make more trips between refueling. Since his grandfather, Michael Tucci, started the family business in 1950 as a small utility construction company, Tim said Tucci & Sons has always tried to choose trucks and equipment that can offer employees a comfortable and productive work environment. Today, the company runs a truck fleet consisting of 15 tractors and end-dump trailers, six transfer trucks and six water tenders in addition to the two Kenworth T880 Super Dumps that
the company acquired in May. Nearly all of the trucks are Kenworths. Besides its asphalt paving operation, the third-generation family-owned general contractor operates three other divisions — utilities, grading and earthwork, and master planned community construction and development. The asphalt paving division, which operates two asphalt plants with a combined maximum production capacity of 800 tons of asphalt per hour, works on a variety of projects including street and highway repaving for local municipalities, Pierce County, the Washington Department of Transportation and the federal government. The operation also has
done repaving for planned developments, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, local businesses and several planned developments. While the additional productivity for the company’s asphalt operation is certainly welcome, Tucci places equal value on some other benefits the trucks are delivering for his drivers. “Anytime we can keep them inside the truck, that’s better for us and for our drivers, especially at night,” he said. This summer, the trucks are making deliveries of asphalt to Paradise Road in Mount Rainier National Park where the company is rebuilding and resurfacing the road for the Federal Highway Administration. The trucks will also be delivering asphalt to a repaving job on the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. In both cases, the trucks will be making deliveries under tight delivery windows,” said Tucci. “The Kenworth T880 is a phenomenal truck that offers the latest in technology for improved driver comfort and productivity,” Tucci said. “Our drivers love them. And that’s really important to our company for attracting and retaining the best drivers. We’re certainly going to be getting more of these T880 Super Dumps when it comes time to replace our other dump trucks and end-dumps.” For more information, visit www.kenworth.com. (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s website at www.constructionequipmentguide.com.)
Avalanche Bridge Opens in Wash. By Meagan Lott WSDOT BLOG
Traffic across Snoqualmie Pass shifts onto a new avalanche bridge.
Things are going to look a little different in the next couple of days across Snoqualmie Pass as we get ready to put all four lanes of traffic on the new avalanche bridge. This is all part of the major improvement project to widen a 15-mi. (24 km) stretch of I-90 from Hyak to Easton. This traffic shift is so we have enough room to start building the second avalanche bridge this summer. Once complete in 2018, the second bridge will accommodate westbound traffic, while the bridge we just finished will accommodate eastbound traffic. Over the next several weeks, crews are going to be busy removing the old westbound lanes, blasting rock
from the hillside and excavating the avalanche chutes so that snow and other debris this winter will go under the bridge, ultimately reducing the number of closures we have for avalanche control work. Drivers will notice that the drive over the bridge is going to be a little tight, just like most areas across the pass due to construction and the need to shift traffic around the work zone. It’s going to be important to pay close attention to the road and obey the speed limit across the pass. For more information, visit http://wsdotblog.blogspot.com/2016/08/new-avalanche-bridge-opens-to-traffic.html. (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s website at www.constructionequipmentguide.com.)
Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • September 4, 2016 • Page 7
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Plan to Raise Arrowrock Dam Fails Feasibility Study By Keith Ridler ASSOCIATED PRESS
BOISE, Idaho (AP) Hopes of Idaho officials to increase the height of a Boise River dam to double water storage and also create enough space to handle a 500year flood ran aground after the project failed a federal feasibility study. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told the Idaho Water Resource Board back in May that the $1.26 billion cost of raising century-old Arrowrock Dam 70 ft. (21.3 m) outweighed the benefits, killing the project. The board absorbed a second blow shortly after when U.S. Bureau of Reclamation officials said the federal agency will need $1.75 million in cost sharing to study a much less ambitious plan costing an estimated $31 million to raise Anderson Ranch Dam 6 ft. (1.8 m). Board chairman Roger Chase called it a tough day, noting growth in Boise and the surrounding area
means future water demand will exceed supply. “We need water bad,” he said. “We’ve got to find water. And we need flood control.” Initial planning that started in 2009 identified raising Arrowrock Dam as the top-ranked storage option for both flood risk and water supply. Lt. Col. Timothy Vail said early on it looked like raising Arrowrock Dam would meet the cost-benefit requirements. But he said work in the region in the intervening years to improve water supply reduced the benefit, while the costs increased with the unknowns of raising an older dam such as Arrowrock, which started operating in 1915. Vail called the end result of the cost-benefit study an “unpleasant surprise” that he found disappointing. “Boise is what keeps me up at night in terms of flood risk,”' he said. The Army Corps of Engineers does feasibility studies because
“What is the benefit to the local economy if you had another 100,000 acre feet of water? If you could take that into account that might change the overall cost-benefit of the project.” Albert Barker Idaho Water Resource Board
there are potential dam projects throughout the country competing for limited federal dollars. Ultimate approval for projects must come from Congress. Officials said raising Arrowrock Dam just over 70 ft. would add 270,000 acre ft. of storage to the reservoir that can already hold 272,000 acre ft. An acre ft. is the amount of water it takes to cover an acre with a foot of water. Besides supplying additional water for the region, the study found the extra storage would mostly absorb a 500-year flood
event that would otherwise cause billions of dollars in flood damage downstream, including inundating Boise State University. Board member Albert Barker said he thought the cost-benefit analysis undervalued the benefit of additional water to the region. “What is the benefit to the local economy if you had another 100,000 acre feet of water?” he asked Army Corps officials. “If you could take that into account that might change the overall costbenefit of the project.” Board members also contended
that the cost-benefit analysis was flawed because it calculated the benefit of water that board members said didn’t exist, suggesting the benefit of a scarce resource was undervalued. The smaller project upstream of Arrowrock Dam at Anderson Ranch Dam would add about 30,000 acre ft., increasing storage capacity by about 7 percent at that reservoir. But that project is stalled until local governments and other entities can pool $1.75 million to pay for half of a federal feasibility study. Federal officials said the board had various options, including asking for another study on a smaller height increase at Arrowrock Dam that might meet the cost-benefit requirement. The board, openly dismayed with the day’s events, asked for another meeting with federal officials to discuss options. (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s website at www.constructionequipmentguide.com.)
Deschutes County Site in Running for Cost of Expanding National Geothermal Research Lab Convention Center Supporters of the Newberry site said the facility in Seattle Goes Up would bring temporary construction jobs,
BEND, Ore. (AP) The U.S. Department of Energy is considering a site in Oregon’s Deschutes County for a national geothermal research lab. The land near Newberry Volcano is leased by Seattle-based geothermal firm AltaRock Energy Inc., which performs testing there. It’s one of several locations under consideration for the proposed Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy “We feel pretty confident,” AltaRock Spokesman David Stowe told The Bulletin. But he acknowledged that “the competition is pretty stiff,” with sites in Idaho, Nevada, California and Utah still in the running. Supporters of the Newberry site said the facility would bring temporary construction jobs, academic opportunities and an economic boost for local communities. The DOE lab would serve as a research site for scientists and engineers to develop and test new technologies for harnessing geothermal
academic opportunities and an economic boost for local communities. energy. Researchers believe that tapping into up to 2 percent of the geothermal energy potential in the West could power the nation many times over. Geothermal technology wouldn’t contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and could operate consistently, unlike intermittent solar and wind-powered resources. Three potential lab sites will advance to the next round and split about $30 million in Energy Department funding for planning and permitting before the DOE chooses a final site.
The department plans to spend at least five years implementing the lab. Stowe said researchers hope to perfect enhanced geothermal techniques and make them more efficient by that time. AltaRock has already conducted enhanced geothermal testing at the Newberry site and partners say they have the only site on the side of an active volcano. For more information, visit http://www.bendbulletin.com. (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s website at www.constructionequipmentguide.com.)
SEATTLE (AP) The cost of expanding the Washington State Convention Center in downtown Seattle has grown to $1.6 billion, an increase of $200 million. The Seattle Times reports the convention center has also hired a new team of contractors to replace those it fired in March over cost concerns. Clark Construction of Maryland and Lease Crutcher Lewis of Seattle will take over the project, which will double the center’s space across a full block. Construction is expected to begin in summer 2017. Skanska and Hunt Construction Group were dismissed in March over cost concerns. The convention center agreed in April to pay those firms $7.8 million to settle a lawsuit filed over the dismissal, allowing officials to select new contractors. Project managers say the cost increase is largely due to higher costs of buying steel and properties need to build on. For more information, visit http://www.seattletimes.com. (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s website at www.constructionequipmentguide.com.)
Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • September 4, 2016 • Page 9
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Page 10 • September 4, 2016 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide
Oregon Retrofits Schools at Risk for Earthquake Damage OREGON from page 1
the early 1990s, geologists did not consider Oregon a likely site for major earthquake activity and buildings weren’t constructed in a manner to survive earthquakes. The discovery of the Cascadia Subduction Zone off the Oregon Coast changed that perception.” In some places, existing schools have been shuttered — often because they were situated in tsunami zones — and new buildings erected. In other towns, such as Toledo, about 7 mi. (11.2 km) inland from the coast, a $1.5 million grant from the state has allowed the Lincoln County School District to retrofit the high school gymnasium. It’s a task unlike any other construction project, calling for specialized contractors and even equipment, said Russ Carter, president of ZCS Engineering Inc. with offices in Klamath Falls, Oregon City, Medford and Grants Pass. “The biggest aspect is a contractor that is real adaptable to changing conditions,” Carter said. “Oftentimes, we don’t have existing drawings of old structures. We have to make some assumptions. Sometimes we do destructive investigation, meaning we cut holes and look. We cut enough holes to where we believe we understand the building. Then we start the project. Sometimes we find things we didn’t know were there. Sometimes we find things that are damaged and need to be fixed. Then we have to switch gears and modify the design. Having a contractor that can help us adapt and maneuver is a tremendous help. Those contractors are such a big asset.” To add to the challenge, the work must generally be done when the students are gone, and when unexpected issues arise, it can wreak havoc on the schedule and budget. “It’s a real financial schedule sequencing,” Carter said. “They are big puzzles. It’s not just a green field and we go in and build from the ground up. We have to attack an existing building. We have to dive in in June and we have to have it ready by September. Then we find a leak and need to fix it or we find something in the ground we didn’t know was there. We still have only a certain amount of time and money. The contractors and designers must come together and work out the problem. It’s a collaborative approach. It’s very interesting.” In Toledo, the roof was a barrel design, built 60 years ago. “They ended up building a new wall,” said Rich Belloni, support services director for the Lincoln County School District. “They went outside the gym three feet, excavated a hole six feet deep. They poured footing the length of the gym 100 feet long, four feet wide and four feet tall. They ran piling down into the ground and then they came up with steel girders and then some beams. Then they go back into the gym and raised the roof about two feet and then screwed a whole bunch of brackets into concrete walls and put a pony wall above it and tied trusses to that. At the far end, they put in seven steel posts across the 100-foot span and they bolted it to the foundation and then up. They just reinforced the wall all the way around this 100-by-100 gym. Then they pulled the roof off and put on a metal roof with steel trusses. And then you side it and put it back together again. Most people won’t even know there is anything more than a new roof.” A retrofit project might call for tunneling, digging or specialized demolition, Carter said. It often calls for innovation, sometimes even inventing a new piece of equipment on the spot. “A lot of retrofits involve equipment as big as large steel erection equipment, cranes, rigging, lots of access and personal safety equipment, scaffolding, lots of techniques to
To add to the challenge, the work must generally be done when the students are gone, and when unexpected issues arise, it can wreak havoc on the schedule and budget.
In some places, existing schools have been shuttered — often because they were situated in tsunami zones — and new buildings erected.
A retrofit project might call for tunneling, digging or specialized demolition.
It often calls for innovation, sometimes even inventing a new piece of equipment on the spot.
shield and protect surrounding building. There’s lots of handheld drilling, cutting, lots of small specialized excavation equipment. Sometimes we have to do localized foundation excavation inside a building and have to walk the machinery into the building, down a hallway and through a door without damaging anything. There’s lots of confined space work and it’s difficult work. The contractors have to be very clever. We often have to dig deep in very confined spaces. Sometimes we have to drill things into the ground to strengthen the foundation and don’t have a lot of room overhead to bring in a crane. “Innovative is a big word in this.” (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s website at www.constructionequip- It’s a task unlike any other construction project, calling for specialized contractors and even equipment. mentguide.com.) CEG
Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • September 4, 2016 • Page 11
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Page 12 • September 4, 2016 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide
Grant Improves Access to Madigan Army Medical Center WSDOT from page 1
In response to the study, WSDOT drafted a funding package that called for the future expansion and redesign of the interchanges through the corridor and also implemented short-term traffic congestion relief measures such as ramp metering. However, because there was uncertainty as when the package would be funded by the legislature for the total rebuild, Pokswinski said the city of Lakewood “spearheaded the effort” to implement other temporary mitigation strategies identified in the study. One of these mitigation strategies recommended improving the southbound off-ramp onto Berkeley Street and its eastbound lanes across Freedom Bridge into Madigan Army Medical Center. An average of 22,000 cars travel through the Berkeley Street intersection each day, and Pokswinski added that “it’s typical that the southbound stretch of I-5 [for the off-ramp onto Berkeley Street] will be backed up half a mile on the freeway, especially during the a.m. commute.” Grant funding received from the Department of Defense in 2011 through its Access to Improvement grant program provided the $5.7 million for the project, and the city of Lakewood was the only municipality to receive the funding; the other four awardees were state department of transportation agencies. Although WSDOT didn’t participate in the grant process, the agency oversaw the construction since I-5 is their right-of-way, and the city managed the grant administration and design of the project. “It’s very unusual,” Pokswinski said of the city of Lakewood and WSDOT’s partnership. “As far as I know, there’s not too many partnerships like this at all.” It took two years to work through the design process because the design had to accommodate increased car traffic, as well as more rail traffic. When the city of Lakewood learned that Amtrak intended to increase its trips to 15 times a day starting in 2017, they had to design the traffic signal to also accommodate this 79-mph traffic. The result is the most complex traffic signal in the United States that maxes out the current
controller technology available, according to Pokswinksi. “It will run three intersections as well as be connected to the railway, which is critical and will help move traffic along quite a bit,” he said. The final design, which added another eastbound lane on the Freedom Bridge, another left-hand turn lane on the southbound offramp, and railway work, was finalized in November 2014. Following the confirmation of the rail rightof-way in May 2015, the project was put out to bid. Tacoma-based Ceccanti Inc., which specializes in municipal infrastructure and heavy highway projects, was awarded the project. “The city has worked with Ceccanti before on previous projects; we have a good working relaWSDOT photo
During morning rush hour, southbound drivers heading to the Madigan Army Medical Center would be backed up for more than half a mile on the freeway before reaching the off-ramp. The project adds another left-hand turn lane to the off-ramp to accommodate more traffic.
WSDOT photo
Tacoma-based Ceccanti was awarded the $5.7 million project to upgrade Berkely Street. The work included retrofitting the Freedom Bridge, expanding of the southbound off-ramp, and upgrading the railroad crossing.
tionship,” Pokswinski said. Jake Brockmoller, a project manager of Ceccanti, said that the company pursued this project to expand its portfolio to include more structures work. “Ceccanti has always been a civil company, so they’ve dealt quite a bit with heavy underground utilities, deep pipe and bridges in the past,” said Brockmoller. “This project was pretty fitting to take in terms of traffic control and being able to retrofit this bridge.” Retrofitting the bridge came first, and Brockmoller said they
worked with form designer EFCO to develop a system of overhang brackets to help support the bridge after demoing each side. They also consulted with local engineers to firm up the design of the retrofit to ensure the Freedom Bridge would maintain its integrity as it was being taken apart. Demoing the bridge required use of a crane and intricate sawing equipment to cut the 120-ft.-long (36.57 m) span into sections, and roughly 240 ft. (73.15 m) of sidewalk was removed. In all, roughly 30,000 to 40,000 lbs. (13607.77 to
WSDOT photo
The bridge crew worked at night to reduce the impact upon drivers. Crews removed the sidewalks so the bridge could be expanded to accommodate another eastbound lane.
18,143.69 kg) of concrete was hauled away. “To lessen the impact to the public, we had to do the majority of the work at night,” Brockmoller explained. During the demolition, their traffic control crew of 10 managed the traffic flow by closing lanes on I-5, and when necessary, diverting traffic around the work zone via the off-ramps. A bridge crew of 10-11 operators and carpenters completed the majority of the work by the middle of February. In addition to a second eastbound lane, the retrofitted
bridge had a number of safety features that its 1950s’ design didn’t include, such as elevated handrails, wider sidewalks, and a guard barrier between the pedestrians and the sidewalk. “Everything went very well, although we had some minor hiccups along the way,” Brockmoller said. “Of course being a retrofit, there’s always new information when you start opening a bridge up. We found we needed to work extra hard to make sure all the reinforcement was put back together see WSDOT page 13
Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • September 4, 2016 • Page 13
Bridge, Railroad Crossing Among I-5 Improvements WSDOT from page 12
properly.” After the bridge was finished, work began on the southbound off-ramp to add another left-hand turn lane, as well as adding guardrails and fencing. A 24-hour crew of two shifts with a dozen workers each, completed the work. Although the bridge work was done at night, for the off-ramp Brockmoller said that “Ceccanti worked hard to perform as much of the work during the day because it’s safer and production is better.” Of the three project components, he added that “in contrast to the railroad crossing and bridge, the off-ramp was fairly easy.” For the $1.5 million railroad upgrade crossing, Ceccanti’s crew removed the old crossing and regraded the track roughly 100 ft. (30.48 m) on either side of the crossing to improve the profile of the track bed. New ballasts were installed for the railroad to sit on, and the redesigned crossing included new safety features of being ADA compliant and having cantilever arms. Of the overall project, Brockmoller said
that he’s happy with how things went; “the schedule was met, budget was maintained so Ceccanti is very happy with the product we produced.” Pokswinksi described the project as “it’s a little bit of everything…nothing is particularly grand or large scale on this project, but it’s just a mishmash of everything.” In spite of the traffic relief these improvements will provide, in five years Berkeley Street will see yet another redesign. After the city received the grant funding, WSDOT received funding for their package to redesign this stretch of the I-5 corridor; the only improvement that will remain is the railroad crossing. The city knew it was a temporary fix going into the project, Pokswinski said, “but knowing the congestion relief for that amount of time would more than pay for that, we realize that’s got a lot of value to it.” (This story also can be found on Construction Equipment Guide’s website at www.constructionequipmentguide.com.) CEG
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Page 14 • September 4, 2016 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide
Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • September 4, 2016 • Page 15
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Page 16 • September 4, 2016 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide
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