2022 North American Microtunneling Review – The 2022 North American Microtunneling Job Log
The 2022 North American Microtunneling Job Log offers readers a look at some of the planned, ongoing and recently completed microtunneling projects in North America.
The North American Microtunneling Job Log is part of Trenchless Technology’s annual Microtunneling Review section that highlights recent projects and advancements in the North American microtunneling sector.
To submit your project to the Microtunneling Job Log, email Jim Rush, Trenchless Technology editorial consultant, at jrush@benjaminmedia.com.
UNITED STATES
CALIFORNIA
Gilroy
SCRWP Short-Term Phase 1B/2A/1C/2B Project
Vadnais Trenchless Services Inc.
This project consists of a single drive of 330 lf of 48-in. x .75-in. wall welded steel casing. Microtunneling will be performed under the levee through a composition of clayey sand with gravel.
The jacking shaft for microtunneling is 40 ft and receiving shaft is 45 ft deep. The tunnel is above the groundwater table, but there is always the possibility of water and flooding from the levee.
Vadnais’ mobilization date was Aug. 1, 2021, and the project was expected to be completed by Oct. 20, 2022.
The owner is the Santa Clara Valley Water District. The general contractor is Steve P. Rados Inc. Vadnais Trenchless Services is the microtunneling contractor. Kleinfelder is the engineer. Crews are using an Iseki TCS900 48-in. OD MTBM. The bid value of microtunneling is $568,100.
Marina Del Rey
Venice Dual Force Main and Venice Pumping Plant Generator Replacement Project
Vadnais Trenchless Services Inc.
This project is the construction of a new 54-in. ID force main sewer extending approximately 10,392 lf, which originates from a newly constructed manifold adjacent to the existing Venice Pumping Plant. From the manifold the alignment will proceed east, then southeast, and cross beneath the Marina Del Rey Harbor inlet and Ballona Creek channel, continue traveling south under Pacific Avenue and Vista Del Mar ending at the Coastal Interceptor/North Outfall Sewer (CIS/NOS) Junction structure.
The majority (more than 9,450 lf) of the new 54-in. line will be constructed using microtunneling. Most of the microtunneling will be direct-jacked RCCP and approximately 2,800 lf of 80-in. Permalok casing with reinforced concrete cylinder pipe (RCCP) carrier will also be installed. The cut-and-cover construction method will be used for the remaining 150 lf.
The project also consists of the demolition of existing equipment, procurement and installation of three new generators along with an ancillary controller, transfer switches, plus exhaust and cooling systems at the Venice Pumping Plant. Two new 750 kW (480 V) generators and one new 1,500 kW (480 V) generator with complete emissions control systems and fluid storage will be furnished and installed.
This entire project is unique. The entire alignment is alongside the ocean in California making water and natural gasses a big challenge to deal with. The large scope of work and frequent changing underground conditions along with several different shaft construction techniques make this an extremely challenging project.
Award on the project was made in February 2017 and physical work began in May 2017. The project was 96 percent complete at the end of September 2022.
The owner and the engineer are the City of Los Angeles Department of Public Works. The prime contractor is Vadnais Trenchless Services, which is self-performing the microtunneling. Crews are using MTS 1500 (70-in. OD), MTS 1650 (70-in. OD) and MTS 1850 (80-in. OD) microtunnel boring machines (MTBM). The bid value is approximately $88.9 million for the total project.
Morgan Hill
Anderson Dam Tunnel Project
Vadnais Trenchless Services Inc.
The project consists of a single microtunneling drive with the installation of 372 lf of 96-in. diameter steel casing pipe. The MTBM will be launched from a chamber tunneled under the Anderson Dam and recovered in the Anderson Reservoir. The tunnel drive will be a mixture of soft and hard materials.
The Anderson Dam Tunnel project MBTM Lake tap will be launched from inside a 24-ft horseshoe tunnel mined under the Anderson Dam. The 1,600 lf conventional tunnel will incorporate steel horseshoes and a reinforced concrete lining. A reaction frame and portal launch seal will be used to tunnel from the chamber to a lake tap landing pad deep below the surface of the Anderson Reservoir. The MTBM will be recovered using specialty divers, barges and cranes.
Planned mobilization for the MTBM lake tap is scheduled for November 2023 with a completion date of May 2024.
The owner is Santa Clara Valley Water. Flatiron West is the prime contractor with Vadnais Trenchless Services as the microtunneling contractor. AECOM is the engineer. Crews will use a MTS 2350 MTBM (96-in. steel casing). Microtunneling work is approximately $8.8 million.
San Carlos
SVCW Belmont Gravity Pipeline – Design Build
Vadnais Trenchless Services Inc.
This project consists of seven microtunnel drives in which Vadnais Trenchless Services will be supplying, microtunneling and contact grouting approximately 4,324 lf of 36-in. Hobas fiberglass reinforced pipe (FRP) jacking pipe (in 20-ft lengths). Shafts for the microtunneling will be between 17 and 29 ft deep and consist of watertight, sheet pile construction. The microtunnels will be installed in soils consisting primarily of medium-stiff to stiff, fat to lean clay with sand. All tunnel alignments have been approximated to be below the groundwater table, however it is possible that groundwater conditions at the site could change due to variations in rainfall, groundwater withdrawal or recharge, daily tide cycles, surface runoff, etc.
The seven 36-in. microtunnel drives involve different jacking and receiving pit locations. These tunnels will run parallel to the US 101, with one tunnel that crosses the US 101 North Bound On/Off Ramp. Tunnels will also be installed west of the San Carlos Airport (SQL), which will require multiple FAA OE/AA 7460-1 Obstruction Filings/Permits, as well as continuous FAA/Airport Operation coordination. An FAA height restriction of will also be implemented in working zones near the airport.
Vadnais Trenchless Services mobilized to the project on July 28, 2021, with an estimated completion date of Phase 1 (three reaches) by Dec. 1, 2021. Phase 2 (four reaches) is scheduled to commence in Nov. 18, 2022.
San Diego
Morena Pump Station and Pipelines Project
Ward & Burke Tunneling Inc.
The Morena Pump Station and Pipelines Project in San Diego comprises the installation of more than 5,100 lf of 66-, 60- and 48-in. ID pipe via HDPE lined reinforced concrete microtunnel pipe. The average depth of installation is approximately 30 ft through soft alluvium ground conditions. Microtunnel work includes installation of deep launch and reception shafts, multiple curved alignments, and drive lengths up to 1,650 lf. Microtunnelling work is complete.
The owner is the City of San Diego Public Utilities. The general contractor is Flatiron West Inc. The engineer is AECOM. Ward & Burke Tunneling Inc. is the microtunneling contractor. Crews are using Herrenknecht AVN1600, AVN1500 and AVN1200 MTBMs.
San Diego
North City Pure Water Pipeline Project
Ward & Burke Tunneling Inc.
The North City Pure Water Pipeline Project for the City of San Diego Public Utilities involves installation of more than 1,200 lf of 60-in. ID reinforced concrete microtunnel pipe through mixed ground conditions of Stadium Conglomerate and Metavolcanic Rocks at depths up to 90 ft. The work includes the installation of a 48-in. steel carrier pipe and involves an underwater MTBM retrieval at the bottom of Mirimar Reservoir. Microtunneling work is ongoing through 2022.
The general contractor is W.A.Rasic Construction Inc. McMillen Jacobs Associates is the engineer. Ward & Burke Tunneling Inc. is the microtunneling contractor. Crews are using a Herrenknecht AVN1500 MTBM.
San Francisco
Wawona Area Stormwater Improvement and Vicente Street Water Main Replacement
KJ Woods Inc./Ward & Burke/McMillan Jacobs Assoc.
This $30 million project for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) stretches through multiple supervisory districts, residential neighborhoods, business corridors and traffic thoroughfares.
The existing tunnel begins at 20th Avenue and Vicente Street and extends approximately 1,900 ft east to the receiving shaft recently constructed at 14th Avenue and Vicente Street.
The primary objectives of the project are managing stormwater and reducing the risk of flooding at — and around — the 15th Avenue and Wawona Street area, a location that has been susceptible to flooding associated with moderate and heavy storms. In addition, the project will continue the water transmission main alignment from the 19th Avenue Combined City Project, and replace aging water distribution mains in various locations along Vicente Street. When completed this project will reduce the risk of flooding at 15th and Wawona by diverting some of the stormwater flow to a new large sewer pipe to be installed under Vicente Street, and increase the ability to capture and divert street runoff with new stormwater inlets around 15th Avenue and Wawona Street intersection.
For this project the 20-ft deep and 28-ft diameter caisson launching shaft were constructed primarily in dune sands. The new sewer was to be constructed primarily in the Colma and Franciscan Complex formations. A Herrenknecht AVN1200 MTBM was used as the primary construction method for all underground trenchless construction.
The project was approximately 59 percent complete as of Sept. 8. The tunnel boring machine has completed its approximate 1,900 lf underground sewer alignment, with crews having installed over 100 48-in. reinforced concrete sewer pipes in the newly constructed tunnel. The launch shaft at 20th Avenue and Vicente, and the receiving shaft at 14th Avenue and Vicente have been decommissioned and demolished. The tunnel boring machine was rescued at the end of June 2022 and tunneling activities — including demobilization — were completed on Sept. 2, 2022. Final completion of full range of project upgrades is projected for early 2024.
Tunnel Design Consultant is McMillan Jacobs Associates, SFPUC Construction Management Bureau is the construction manager and the main contractor for the work is KJ Woods Construction. Major coordination is ongoing with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, Department of Public Works and Pacific Gas & Electric.
San Mateo
Delaware Street Relief Sewer
Vadnais Trenchless Services Inc.
This project consists of installing 722 lf of 30-in. OD Hobas FRP Jacking Pipe (in 20-ft lengths) via microtunneling in two drives. Tunneling is under a parking lot owned by Cal-Train and in a limited construction area.
Shafts for microtunneling were between 23 ft and 28 ft deep. Microtunneling is through a composition of favorable soil conditions, consisting of silty sand and clayey sand 10 to 15 ft below beneath the groundwater table.
Vadnais Trenchless Services mobilized in September 2022 and is expected to be complete by Nov. 30, 2022.
The owner is the City of San Mateo. The general contractor is JMB Construction, Inc. with Vadnais Trenchless Services as the microtunneling contractor. The engineer is Stantec. Crews are using an Iseki TCC600, 32.5-in. OD MTBM. The bid value of microtunneling is approximately $1.2 million.
Tracy
Paradise Cut Microtunnel
Nada Pacific
The City of Tracy, California, executed an alteration agreement with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and San Joaquin County Public Works to install a new 18,000-lf, 42-in. diameter outfall pipeline. The overall project consisted of a new diffuser in Old River, water body crossings including Sugar Cut, Channel 7, Tom Paine Slough and Paradise Cut. The new diffuser would be installed approximately 800 ft west of the existing diffuser. The water crossing of the Paradise Cut would include a 680-lf microtunnel, exiting out of CMS tunnel shaft, with portal stabilization.
Nada Pacific was hired by Mozingo Construction to install the Paradise Cut Microtunnel. The project scope also included the installation of the welded steel AWWA 42-in. carrier pipe after completion of the tunnel. Nada Pacific also performed the soft eye (Acrylate grout) portal stabilization at both the entrance and exit shafts.
The project was designed by CH2M for the City of Tracy and construction tunneling oversight was provided by Jacobs. Microtunneling was selected due to the sensitive nature of the Old River/San Joaquin River waterway. The site geological conditions included sands, clayey sands, lean clay (CL), and (CH) residuum. Due to the sensitive nature of the waterway, a minimal amount of settlement was allowed. The depths of the tunnel ranged from 70 ft to 50 ft, with groundwater located just below the surface. Not only was settlement monitoring required, but also a complex system of spoils management. Nada Pacific provided a mass accounting system to monitor, weigh and test the spoils.
Due to the ground conditions Nada Pacific used an Akkerman SL52 microtunneling system, with a skin of 55.5 in. and a mixed ground cutterhead. The cutterhead selected was also beneficial since unexpected obstructions were encountered in the many layers of the flood plain, including a significant amount of wood. Permalok steel casing pipe was selected as the tunnel pipe, with a Derrick Separation plant custom built by Nada Pacific.
Mobilization began mid-July 2020, with the completion of the tunnel in mid-September, and completion of the carrier pipe install by mid-October 2020. The tunnel was successfully completed on time, on-line and on-grade.
RELATED: Microtunneling Key to Outfall Water Line in California
COLORADO
Denver
PAR 1232 Second Creek Interceptor
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction is currently performing work on the PAR 1232 Second Creek Interceptor project in Denver. The wastewater interceptor will include a number of trenchless crossings; of which Bradshaw Construction will be installing eight trenchless crossings, totaling over 4,100 lf, by the microtunneling method. Tunnel crossings will range from 48-in. steel casing to 73.5-in. steel casing, with drive lengths reaching 1,500 lf on the longest crossing. FRP from 30 in. to 60 in. will be installed and backfilled once tunneling operations are completed. The tunnels will be installed out of steel sheeted shafts, installed by Lawrence Construction Co. The challenging project geology will consist of multiple mix face conditions with claystone overlaid by coarse and fine alluvium, underneath the water table. Tunnels will pass underneath roads, highways, UPRR and BNSF tracks. To date, Bradshaw Construction has successfully completed five of the eight drives, including the 1,500-ft crossing, with three tunnels remaining.
The project members include the Metro Wastewater Reclamation District (owner), HDR Engineering Inc. (engineer), Garney Construction (CMAR) and Bradshaw Construction working as tunneling subcontractor.
CONNECTICUT
Cromwell
CT DOT Job #033-133-Emergency Declaration Project
CRS Contractors Inc.
This project consisted of 260-lf of 84-in. ID (102-in. OD) reinforced concrete jacking pipe (RCJP) in silty sand as an inline replacement of existing 84-in. CMP. The job was completed between November 2021 and June 2022.
The owner is the Connecticut DOT. Arborio Corp. is the general contractor with CRS Contractors Inc. as the tunneling contractor. Crews used a 103-in. Open Shield to build the $1.558 million project.
East Hartford Route 2 Crossing
CRS Contractors Inc.
CRS Contractors Inc. working as the microtunneling contractor to Empire Paving has completed the Route 2 Crossing project for the Connecticut DOT. CRS used a Herrenknecht AVN1200 to build the $650,000 project through Connecticut Valley Varved Clay. The 60-in. OD microtunnel was constructed from April through July 2022 and consisted of one 160-ft drive.
Hartford
South Hartford Conveyance & Storage Tunnel
CRS Contractors Inc.
The microtunneling was completed through Connecticut Valley Varved Clay, a very soft ground with N-Value “WHO.” The project was completed from August 2020 to July 2022.
This project comprised the installation of 5,070 lf of various size jacking pipe by microtunneling and pilot tube method under local roads. The installations included:
- 60-in. OD; 2 runs; 1,136 lf (1,040 longest)
- 52-in. OD; 4 runs; 2,690 lf (1,280 longest)
- 32-in. OD; 3 runs; 1,242 lf (464 longest)
The owner is the Metropolitan District (MDC), Hartford, Connecticut. CRS Contractors Inc. was the microtunneling contractor for the GC, Empire Paving General Contractors. The engineer was AECOM. Crews used Herrenknecht AVN1000XC and AVN1200TB MTBMs and an Akkerman GMB4800 pilot tube machine. The bid value of microtunneling was $9.1 million.
FLORIDA
Loxahatchee
C-51 Reservoir
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction has begun construction on a private job for Palm Beach Aggregates Inc., situated on an active mine. All work is immediately adjacent to both Florida Power and Light Company (FPL) and Gulfstream Natural Gas utility easements. Bradshaw Construction has since completed one of the 956-lf twin tunnels that are to be mined out of a single 37-ft by 28-ft steel sheeted launch shaft utilizing 96-in. FRP jacking pipe behind an AVND1800AB MTBM. Ground conditions transitioned between sand and limestone, and it is expected to be consistent for both drives. The project is scheduled to be completed in November 2022. Project members include Palm Beach Aggregates (owner), North Star/Black and Veatch (design engineers), Phillips and Jordan (general contractor) and Bradshaw Construction working as the tunneling subcontractor.
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Orlando
SR 400 and Daryl Carter Interchange FDOT Project T5724
Vadnais Trenchless Services Inc.
The project consists if five microtunnel drives using Trinity Tri-Loc spiral welded bare steel pipe ranging from 48 to 60 in. in diameter and 123 ft to 351 ft in lengths. Microtunnels will be installed under three frontage roads, eight lanes of Interstate-4, and four lanes of Palm Parkway. The microtunnel will be installed in very difficult ground conditions all under the groundwater table.
Vadnais Trenchless Servces is scheduled to mobilize in January 2023, with anticipated finish date of December 2023. The owner is the Florida DOT. The prime contractor is Superior Construction with Vadnais Trenchless Services as the microtunneling contractor. The engineer is AECOM Technical Services, Inc. The bid value of microtunneling is approximately $4.6 million.
Tampa
Harbour Island Force Main Replacement Design-Build GMP3
Vadnais Trenchless Services Inc.
This project consists of designing, furnishing and installing a single reach of approximately 3,200 lf of 78-in. OD steel casing by microtunneling method with the installation of 54-in. pressure FRP carrier pipe for a new sewer force main. The microtunnel crossing will be installed primarily in limestone and dense sands beneath the Ybor Turning Basin in North Tampa Bay. The entire tunnel alignment is approximately 55 ft below Tampa Bay.
This project also consists of designing and installing two secant pile shafts approximately 80 ft deep. The jacking shaft will be 40 ft in diameter and the reception shaft will be 20 ft in diameter.
Shaft construction is complete with mining in progress. Overall project completion is at 56 percent with an anticipated project completion date of June 2023.
The owner is the City of Tampa. Kimmins Contracting Corp. is the general contractor with Vadnais Trenchless Services as the trenchless contractor. Wade Trim Inc. is the engineer. Crews are using a MTS 1850 microtunnel system (80-in. OD). The bid value of microtunneling is approximately $28.9 million.
MARYLAND
Kettering
White House Rd. Transmission Water Main Replacement
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction completed construction on a transmission water main replacement project in Prince George’s County for Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC). Two tunnels, totaling 176 lf of 30-in. steel casing, were installed behind a Herrenknecht AVN600 MTBM. The tunnel geology was consistent for both tunnels, which comprised mostly of silty sand with clay. After tunneling was completed, 16-in. ductile iron pipe (DIP) was installed by others. The project was completed in July 2022. Project members include WSSC (owner), Rustler Construction (general contractor) and Bradshaw Construction as the tunneling subcontractor.
NEW YORK
New York
Bay Park Conveyance Project
Western Bays Constructors
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation awarded the microtunneling of the Bay Park Conveyance Project to Northeast Remsco. The project is a partnership between New York State and Nassau County to improve water quality and storm resiliency in Long Island’s Western Bays by upgrading existing wastewater management infrastructure.
Microtunneling began in April 2022. As of May, Western Bays Constructors, the design-builder, accomplished a total drive length of approximately 1,437 lf between Bay Park Shaft 2 and Bay Park Shaft 1.
MARSH-MELLOW, the microtunnel boring machine named by students at Oceanside School District’s Fulton Avenue Elementary, will continue underground from Bay Park Shaft 2 to Bay Park Shaft 3, and then continue north to complete the 2-mile tunnel route from the South Shore Water Reclamation Facility (WRF) to Sunrise Highway. On the east side of the project corridor, a second microtunneling route extends more than 1.5 miles from Sunrise Highway to the Cedar Creek Water Pollution Control Plant.
In addition to microtunneling, the project is using sliplining to repurpose an existing aqueduct beneath Sunrise Highway. Western Bays Constructors began sliplining activities in March, and has successfully installed more than 6,500 lf of pipe. Sliplining will continue to progress at more than 20 work sites, called pits, along Sunrise Highway.
In total, the Bay Park Conveyance Project will construct 10.9 miles of new pipeline using microtunneling and sliplining. A new pump station will be constructed at the South Shore WRF.
New York
SE-859 Capital Project
Northeast Remsco Construction Inc.
The New York City Department of Design and Construction awarded the SE-859 capital project to Northeast Remsco Construction Inc. (NRC). The purpose of the project was to alleviate flooding, improve overall drainage, and improve the quality of drinking water in the Maspeth section of Queens, New York, by replacing old water mains, reconstructing combined sewers, and adding additional capacity.
The new 96-in. gravity sewer was up to 65 ft deep, so the owner required most of the sewer to be installed with microtunneling. The 3,425 ft of microtunneling beneath the narrow streets of this urban neighborhood consisted of nine drives through mostly sand and gravel with occasional cobbles and boulders.
After evaluating the challenges associated with staging the support operations at each jacking pit, NRC decided to combine three of the drives into a single 1,600-ft drive. NRC purchased a new Herrenknecht AVN2000AB microtunneling machine adding an up-skin kit for the 115.5-in. OD pipe and equipping it with a mixed ground cutting wheel to handle the anticipated subsurface conditions. In addition, NRC purchased new Derrick Corp. slurry processing equipment from Clean Slurry Technologies including tanks, two mud cleaners with desanding and desilting hydrocyclones, and a triple Hyperpool High G Shaker. A Derrick DE-7200 big bowl centrifuge was added to help with removal of fines. Tunnel Service Group provided new slurry pumps and bentonite mixing equipment.
Much of the microtunneling work took place through residential neighborhoods on streets only 30 ft wide. The successful staging of the support equipment and slurry processing plant, as well as the movement of each 18.5 ton 10 ft long section of 115.5-in. OD pipe along the streets was accomplished through creative traffic management and comprehensive community outreach.
NORTH CAROLINA
Charlotte
Dairy Branch Tributary
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction continues construction on sanitary sewer tunnels in Charlotte. The 2,399-ft by 60-in. steel casing tunnel will be installed behind a Herrenknecht AVN1200 MTBM for a 36-in. PVC sanitary sewer. Subsurface conditions consist of granitic rock ranging from 25 kpsi to 38 kpsi and alluvial deposits. Construction started in November 2020 and has completed 1,508 ft of the 2,399 ft total. The project members include the Charlotte Water (owner), STV Engineers Inc. (engineer), B.R.S. Inc. (general contractor) and Bradshaw Construction performing as tunneling subcontractor.
Charlotte
Little Sugar Creek Tributary to Central Business District
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction has started construction on one-pass sanitary sewer tunnels in Charlotte. The 3,587-ft by 48-in. reinforced concrete pipe (RCP) tunnel will be installed behind a Herrenknecht AVN1200 MTBM. An additional 600 ft of 48-in. RCP tunnel has been added to the project for a new total of 4,187 ft. Subsurface conditions consist of granitic rock ranging from 9 kpsi to 30 kpsi and alluvial deposits. Construction began in September 2020 and has completed 3,355 ft of the 3,587 ft including 1,170 ft of curved tunnel. The curved tunnels are the first planned direct jack curved sanitary sewer in North Carolina. The project members include the Charlotte Water (owner), WSP USA (engineer), Sanders Utility Construction Co. Inc. (general contractor) and Bradshaw Construction performing as tunneling subcontractor.
Charlotte
Upper Little Sugar Creek Trunk Sewer Improvements
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction has started construction on one-pass sanitary sewer tunnels in Charlotte. The 2,272-ft by 72-in. RCP tunnel will be installed behind a Herrenknecht AVN1800 MTBM along curved alignments. Subsurface conditions consist of partially weathered rock and alluvial deposits. Construction began in November 2021 and has completed 470 ft of the 2,272 ft for the project. The project members include Charlotte Water (owner), Kimley & Horn (engineer), Sanders Utility Construction Co. Inc. (general contractor) and Bradshaw Construction performing as tunneling subcontractor.
Raleigh
Upper Walnut Creek
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction has begun construction on a sanitary sewer improvements project for Raleigh Water. Bradshaw Construction completed mining the first of two tunnels, which spans 101 lf under Sunny Brook Road utilizing single-pass 60-in. FRP Jacking Pipe behind an AVN1200T MTBM. The geotechnical conditions throughout the tunnel transitioned from a fat clay to silty sand. The second tunnel, spanning 186 lf, will utilize the same equipment but is expected to encounter silty sand and partially weathered rock. Project is scheduled to be completed in November 2022. Project members include Raleigh Water (owner), Kimley-Horn and Associates (design engineer), Park Construction (general contractor) and Bradshaw Construction working as the tunneling subcontractor.
OHIO
Cleveland
Shoreline Consolidation Sewer Project
Ward & Burke Tunneling Inc.
The Shoreline Consolidation Sewer Project for the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District comprises almost 5,100 lf of 72-in. ID reinforced concrete microtunnel pipe through very soft cohesive soils up to 100 ft deep. Microtunnelling work is ongoing through 2023.
Kokosing Industrial Inc. is the general contractor. Mott MacDonald is the engineer. Ward & Burke Tunneling Inc. is the microtunneling contractor. Crews are using a Herrenknecht AVN1800 MTBM.
OKLAHOMA
Byng
Atoka Pipeline Raw Water Transmission Line Canadian River Crossing | WC-0875
Vadnais Trenchless Services Inc.
The project consists of four microtunneling drives with the installation of 101.5-in. diameter RCP and 87.5-in. diameter RCP. Total length of all four drives will be approximately 5,523 lf. Drive 1 (101.5-in. concrete pipe with a length of 1,240 ft) and Drive 2 (87.5-in. concrete pipe with a length of 1,233 ft) have been completed. The 72-in. carrier pipe is being installed in Drive 1 followed by the 60-in. carrier pipe to be installed in Drive 2. Two 34-ft diameter central shafts will be excavated to a final depth of 125 ft and supported by 70 vf of secant pile installation and 55 vf of liner plate installation to shaft bottom. Both central shafts have been completed. One central shaft was utilized for Drive 1 and is being utilized for Drive 3 (101.5-in. concrete pipe with a length of 1,505 ft) by turning the machine around 180 degrees and mining under the Canadian River. The other central shaft was used for Drive 2 and will be used for Drive 4 (87.5-in. concrete pipe with a length of 1,545 ft) following the same process. Due to the project’s remoteness, over 5,500 lf of construction road was installed to access the project site.
The slopes for the 101.5- and 87.5-in. microtunnel drives are 8.6 percent and 7.5 percent, and 8.6 percent and 8.2 percent, respectively. Two of the tunnels cross underneath the Canadian River all while tunneling beneath the groundwater table. Hard rock conditions in the shaft excavated using drill-and-shoot. Upon reaching the bottom of the shafts, two launch portals 6-ft deep were excavated and supported with steel sets to initiate launching of the MTBM.
Two tunnels each heading west have been completed. The third reach is under way heading east. The project is scheduled for completion in April 2023 and is approximately 70 percent complete through August 2022.
The owner is The Oklahoma City Water Utilities Trust. The prime contractor is Vadnais Trenchless Services. Engineers are Triad Design Group Inc. and AECOM. Crews are using MTS 1850 (72-in. RCP) and MTS 2350 (84-in. RCP) MTBMs. The bid value of microtunneling is approximately $29.4 million.
Stillwater
Sanitary Sewer Improvements at Kaw Lake Intake Pump Station
Super Excavators Inc.
Super Excavators completed approximately 476 ft of 72-in. ID microtunnel lined with steel jacking pipe from the Wetwell Shaft to Kaw Lake excavated by an Akkerman SL-74P MTBM. The MTBM run commenced from the Wetwell Shaft and terminated at Kaw Lake and thereby constructed a lake tap. The MTBM is to be retrieved in the wet from Kaw Lake. A microtunnel intake to withdraw water from Kaw Lake. Seventy miles of raw water conveyance pipeline, a new 10.5 million gallons per day (MGD) water treatment plant and distribution system improvements.
The purpose of the program is to ensure sufficient clean, safe water to meet population projections, reduce average day demand on the regional aquifers by 35 percent, and remove 7.5 miles of cast iron pipe, which reduces pipes with lead-sealed joints. Bedrock along the microtunnel alignment and at the location of the Wetwell Shaft primarily consists of alternating beds of limestone, shale, sandstone, mudstone, and siltstone.
The owner is the City of Enid. Super Excavators is the trenchless subcontractor. Black & Veatch is the engineer. The project ran from January 2021 to April 2022.
RHODE ISLAND
Pawtucket
NBC 308.05C Consolidated Conduit
CRS Contractors Inc.
This project comprises the installation of up to 1,520 lf of 48-in. ID RCJP by microtunneling in three runs (662 lf, 453 lf and 405 lf). The microtunneling was completed through rock. The project began in July 2022 and is expected to continue through February 2023.
The owner is the Narraganset Bay Commission. CRS Contractors Inc. is the microtunneling contractor for the GC, DiGregorio Inc. The engineer is McMillen Jacobs/Beta Inc. Crews are using a Herrenknecht AVN1200 TBM. The microtunneling portion of the project is valued at approximately $4.6 million.
TEXAS
Beaumont
Collier’s Ferry Pump Station
Super Excavators Inc.
The $7.5 million Collier’s Ferry Pump Station project includes approximately 2,500 lf of 48-in. diameter pipeline constructed by microtunneling extending between the Lawson Pump Station Forebay and the wet well of the Collier’s Ferry Pump Station, in two separate drives. This includes construction of two manholes, one at the Lawson Pump Station site and one at approximately the midpoint of the pipeline alignment, and piping installed by traditional open-cut methods as necessary.
The project began in August 2022 and will run through March 2023. The owner is the City of Beaumont. Super Excavators, Inc. is the microtunneling subcontractor. Freese and Nichols, Inc. is the engineer.
Houston
Sanitary Sewer Improvements at George Bush Intercontinental Airport
Super Excavators Inc.
The $2.7 million project includes replacement of a deteriorating existing 18-in. diameter sanitary sewer with an upgraded 24-in. sanitary sewer at George Bush Intercontinental Airport.
The new 24-in. diameter sewer was installed extending west from Chanute Road lift station through the operational airport beneath taxiways and runways to Terminal A South. The installation of the new sanitary sewer line was accomplished by microtunneling, guided boring method and open-cut techniques with invert depths from 20 to 23 ft.
Most of the project consists of installing 5,594 lf using microtunneling method. The microtunneling portion consisted of installing a 48-in. RCP as the primary tunnel liner with a 24-in. FRP as the carrier pipe and grouted in place. The project alignment is in the Lissie formation, which is heterogeneous and contains interbedded layers of clay, sand and silt. Microtunneling was accomplished utilizing the Akkerman SL-60 MTBM. The tunneling shafts were accomplished using four flange steel liner plates: 24 ft, 18 ft and 14 ft in diameter with an average depth of 24 ft.
The project ran from May 2020 to April 2022. The owner was the Houston Airport System. Super Excavators, Inc. was the contractor. RS&H was the engineer.
Houston
WHCRWA Surface Water Supply Project C1 & C2
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction is installing tunnels on Sections C1 of the Surface Water Supply Project for West Harris County Regional Water Authority (WHCRWA) in Houston. This phase of the water transmission line includes two microtunnel crossings totaling 1,020 ft (380 ft and 625 ft). 99.5-in. OD steel casing will be jacked behind a RASA MTBM out of 36-ft outside diameter liner plate shafts, roughly 55 ft deep. Bradshaw Construction has completed the 625-ft crossing underneath Kieth Harrow Boulevard. The crossing passed underneath the roadway, through sand transitioning into lean clay and caliche, beneath the water table. Bradshaw Construction will next install the 380-ft crossing underneath Bear Creek, through lean clay with sand layers, also beneath the water table. The project members include WHCRWA (owner), Freese & Nichols Inc. (engineer), Brierley Associates (engineer), SJ Louis Construction of Texas (general contractor), and Bradshaw Construction working as tunneling subcontractor.
Additionally, Bradshaw Construction is subcontracted with Harper Brothers Construction (general contractor), currently in the process of installing two microtunnel crossings on the C2 phase of the project. These crossings will total 604 ft (346 ft and 258 ft), again with 99.5-in. OD casing jacked behind the RASA MTBM. These crossings pass underneath two waterways, through lean clay and sand layers under the water table. The tunnels will again be launched and recovered in liner plate shafts.
Irving
Cottonwood & Hackberry Creek Wastewater Interceptor Improvements
Super Excavators Inc.
The work to be performed under this $5 million contract consists of furnishing all pipe, concrete, steel, appurtenances, tools, equipment, labor and incidentals necessary to install complete in place approximately 4,900 lf of 60- and 54-in. FRP, associated manholes, one junction box, lift station demolition, Rochelle lift station site improvements, and odor control devices together with all associated appurtenances to complete this project on Riverside Drive (primarily in the median) – from Spur 348 to approximately 1,500 ft south of California Crossing Road in Irving, Texas.
The project will be carried out from approximately October 2022 through April 2024. The owner is the City of Irving. Super Excavators, Inc. is the contractor. Freese and Nichols, Inc. is the engineer. Akkerman supplied the 54-in. SL-60 MTBM.
New Braunfels
SWTP Discharge Water Line
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction will begin work later this year on the SWTP Discharge Line Project for New Braunfels Utilities. This discharge line will include one microtunnel crossing with 48-in. RCP totaling 413 ft, jacked out of a 30-ft launch shaft. The crossing will be constructed almost entirely on a 620-ft radius vertical curve, wherein VMT guidance technology and JackControl hydraulic joints will be utilized. The crossing passes underneath the Guadalupe River, through lean clay, claystone, and clayey-gravel beneath the water table. The project members include, New Braunfels Utilities (owner), Plummer Associates Inc. (engineer), Pesado Construction (general contractor), and Bradshaw Construction working as the tunneling subcontractor.
VIRGINIA
Richmond
Chimborazo Drop Shaft and Sanitary Sewer Replacement
Bradshaw Construction Corp.
Bradshaw Construction will soon begin work on a sanitary sewer replacement project in downtown Richmond, which will consist of four shafts and two tunnels. The four shafts are comprised of two 33-ft by 21-ft ellipse liner plate launch shafts and two 21-ft diameter recovery shafts, the deepest of which is 104 ft. The two tunnels will span a combined distance of 594 lf, which will utilize 78-in. Permalok steel casing behind a skinned-up Herrenknect AVN1500. Ground conditions are expected to be clayey sand, with sections of elastic silt. The project members include the City of Richmond (owner), Greeley and Hansen (engineer) and Southwood Building Constructors (general contractor), with Bradshaw Construction performing as the shaft and tunneling subcontractor.
WASHINGTON
Seattle
Ship Canal Water Quality Project
LANE Construction/Northwest Boring
The $255 million Ship Canal Water Quality Project (SCWQP) Storage Tunnel Contract for Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) is comprised of 13,939 lf of 18-ft, 10-in. ID segmentally lined tunnel using a 21.5-ft diameter pressurized face tunnel boring machine (TBM) with tunnel depths ranging from 35 to 85 ft to top of tunnel, and a conveyance pipe casing under the Ship Canal installed via a curved microtunnel drive, 646 lf and 94-in. diameter.
All five shafts are complete and both tunnel boring machines have launched. Mudhoney, the 21.5-ft diameter TBM, has completed approximately 4,850 ft (35 percent of the tunnel drive that begins at the Ballard neighborhood eastward along the north side of the Ship Canal toward the Wallingford neighborhood. The 10-ft diameter MTBM is scheduled to complete its journey from Fremont southward under the Ship Canal toward the Queen Anne neighborhood by the fall of 2022. After this period crews will install conveyance pipe and below grade vaults.
The owner is SPU; tunnel designer is McMillen Jacobs Associates; construction manager is Jacobs Engineering and the Herrenknecht is the TBM manufacturer. Major subcontractors are Malcolm Drilling Co. (shaft construction) and Northwest Boring Co. Inc. (microtunneling).
CANADA
ALBERTA
Calgary
North-West Inner City Upper Plateau Separation
Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd.
Ward & Burke is building this project that involves the largest diameter microtunnel project to date in North America. Overall the job includes the installation of 760 m of 3,400-mm ID, 4,056-mm OD reinforced concrete microtunnel pipe in a single drive. The alignment is located in a dense urban area, requiring two horizontal curves with a 300-m and 500-m radius. The depth to invert varies from 13 to 38 m, with a depth of 20 m at the 12-m ID launching shaft constructed by Ward & Burke. Ground conditions are approximately 75 percent weak bedrock and 25 percent coarse gravels mixed with clay.
Microtunnel pipe being manufactured by Langley Concrete Group in Chilliwack, B.C., and each 32-tonne pipe is trucked individually to Calgary. Microtunnel installation is under way and is scheduled for completion by end of year. Overall project completion by Q3 2023.
The owner is City of Calgary Water Services. The general contractor is Whissell Contracting with Ward & Burke Microtunnelling as the trenchless subcontractor. The engineers are Associated Engineering and McMillan Jacobs Associates. Crews are using a Herrenknecht AVN2500 MTBM up-skinned to 3400MT.
BRITISH COLUMBIA
North Vancouver
Lynn Valley Trunk Sewer Upgrade
Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd.
This project comprises installation of 650 m of 1,200-mm ID reinforced concrete HDPE lined microtunnel pipe in two drives. The alignment is located in a dense urban area, requiring horizontal curves on both drives. Ground conditions consist of glacial tills with boulders of up to 3 m in dimension to be expected. The microtunnel alignment is up to 12 m deep. The work includes minor sections of open-cut installations and tie-in connections to existing sewers at the upstream and downstream extremities of the project. The project to commence in Q4 2022 with microtunnelling works scheduled for the first half of 2023.
The owner is the District of North Vancouver. Ward & Burke Microtunnelling is the contractor. WSP is the engineer. The MTBM is a Herrenknecht AVN1200.
ONTARIO
Milton
Britannia Road Reconstruction
Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd.
This project for Halton Region involves the installation of over 3,000 m of 1,500-mm ID reinforced concrete microtunnel pipe by microtunneling. The average depth of installation is approximately 18 m through shale bedrock and glacial till ground conditions. Microtunnel work includes the installation of deep shafts at connecting manhole locations. Drive lengths over 900 m are already complete on the project. Work is scheduled to finish in 2023 with microtunneling ongoing throughout 2022.
Brennan Paving and Construction Ltd. is the general contractor. Ward & Burke Microtunnelling is the mirctotunneling contractor. RV Anderson Associates Ltd. is the engineer. Crews are using a Herrenknecht AVN1500 MTBM.
Milton
Drumquin Wastewater Pumping Station
Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd.
This project for Halton Region includes installation of over 1,500 m of 1,200-mm ID microtunnel through glacial till ground conditions at depths up to 20 m. Microtunnelling work is ongoing with all shafts on the project completed.
Bennett Mechanical Installations Ltd. is the contractor. Ward & Burke Microtunnelling is the microtunneling contractror. Hatch and RV Anderson Associates Ltd. are the engineers. Crews are using a Herrenknecht AVN1200 MTBM.
Richmond Hill
Langstaff Gateway Sanitary Sewer
Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd.
Ward & Burke is installing over 2,000 m of 1,200 mm and 900 mm ID HDPE lined microtunnel pipe through glacial till ground conditions at depths up to 20 m. The work includes a Hwy 407 crossing and tie-in connections to existing sewers at the upstream and downstream extremities of the project.
Microtunneling work has just concluded with manhole installation and reinstatement ongoing. The job is scheduled to be commissioned before the end of 2022.
York Region is the owner with Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd. as the contractor. Associated Engineering is the engineer. Crews are using Herrenknecht AVN1200 and AVN900 MTBMs.
Stratford
Stratford – Queen Street Storm Sewer Diversion
Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd.
This project involved the installation of almost 700 m of 2,286-mm ID reinforced concrete microtunnel pipe through narrow residential streets. Microtunneling work is complete and job is commissioned.
The owner is the City of Stratford. Birnam Excavating Ltd. is the contractor with Ward & Burke Microtunnelling as the microtunneling contractor. Wood is the engineer. Crews used a Herrenknecht AVN2200.
Toronto
NRFP Basement Flooding Protection Program
Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd.
This job consists of the installation of 700 m of 1,800 mm ID reinforced concrete microtunnel pipe under streets adjacent to commercial buildings. Work included the installation of two launch shafts and two reception shafts. Microtunnelling work has just been completed.
The City of Toronto is the owner. Clearway Construction Inc. is the contractor with Ward & Burke Microtunnelling as the microtunneling contractor. WSP is the engineer. Crews used a Herrenknecht AVN1800 MTBM.
