New Installation Honorable Mention

New Installation Honorable Mention: Horizon Pipeline Project

In 2006, Pembina Pipelines, Alberta, Canada, won the contract to supply oil pipeline services to a major new oil sands mine in northern Alberta. To do this, Pembina needed to build two new pipeline networks and complete a pipeline looping program that had started a number of years previous.

The Horizon Pipeline Project ultimately included 69 trenchless crossings for a total length of 10,500 m. The trenchless methods employed included HDD, HD bore and traditional sliplining and auger boring. These methods were used for major water crossings, general water crossings, wetlands, highways, railways and roads.

The project battled two Canadian winter construction seasons, environmental restrictions, fish restricted activity periods (RAP), ungulate RAP in river valleys, fisheries and Oceans Canada requirements, forestry requirements and restricted right of way widths in the Transportation Utility Corridor in Edmonton.

Project Owner: Pembina Pipelines
Engineer: Colt Worley Parsons
Contractor: Ledcor Pipelines

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New Installation Honorable Mention: On Grade in Granite in Atlanta

This challenging and unique project combined the methods of HDD and pilot-tube microtunneling in order to install a new sewer pipe in Atlanta. What made this project so phenomenal was that the drilling crew had to drill through varying types of granite — which ranged from 35,000 to 50,000 psi — all the while having to stay on grade while drilling 40 ft below grade. An aggressive deadline also had to be met.

The project called for four bores totaling 1,000 ft to install 18-in. Can-Clay pipe. This challenging project resulted in the contractor McCowien Drilling, Pierpont, Ohio, to redesign conventional HDD tooling in order to get through the difficult ground conditions. McCowien used an Akkerman 308 GBM and an 80,000 Tulsa Rig Iron drill, as well as a Halco Storm 500 air hammer.


Project Owner: City of Atlanta
Engineer: CH2M HILL
Contractor: McCowien Drilling