Richard Miller Treatment Plant is a 240 mgd cap. potable water treatment facility located in the California area of the Cincinnati, Ohio, US. After installing an advanced ultraviolet (UV) disinfection treatment system in 2013, GCWW became the largest water utility in North America to use UV light following sand filtration and granular activated carbon. The concrete filter gallery building was originally constructed in 1907 with 26 filters, with a 14-filter addition in 1937 and 7 filters added in 1964. After over 110 years of service, the structures started showing significant signs of deterioration, most commonly concrete spalling and reinforcing steel corrosion. This case study will highlight the methods used to evaluate the structures that involved conventional methods such as sounding, crack mapping, chemical and petrographic examinations, along with technology such as Half-Cell Potential/ICOR, Impact-Echo, Ground Penetrating Radar, and UAS (Drone) services.
Dallas City Hall and Plaza are recognized by many due to the opening scenes of Dallas, the television show. What is less known is that the structure is a significant early example of bonded post-tensioned concrete which was utilized throughout the superstructure and two-story parking garage constructed beneath the plaza. Opened in 1977, the parking garage is a two-way bonded post-tensioned concrete slab with unreinforced drop panels supported by flared circular concrete columns. The garage covers two city blocks, extends under two adjacent multi-lane streets, and supports mature landscaping, pool, fountain, and up to 11’-0” of soil. In 2017, several square feet of a drop panel fell from the structure and subsequent observations found multiple locations of drop panel and column capital failures. A structural investigation including destructive and non-destructive testing, and analysis of the existing structure was undertaken to determine the cause of the failures.
This presentation looks at buildings that are new or being rehabilitated and the impact on making buildings more energy efficient. Starting with the 2012 IBC, and specifically the 2012 IECC portion of the building code and newer versions, the presentation will look at three aspects of the building envelope: Water Resistance, Air Leakage, and Moisture Transmission. It will then compare to identical buildings, the first built in 2000 and the second constructed in 2020. Illustrations and calculations will show how controlling air leakage can have an enormous impact on the service life of the structure, initial cost of construction, and on-going operations. Lastly, the presentation will look at how incorporating simple additions during the repair/rehabilitation process can have a positive impact on the environment as well as the building owner and the building’s constituents.
Increasingly, the Construction Industry is being dramatically impacted globally by internal and external forces. These influences range from acute labor and skill shortages, demographic and urbanization shifts, as well as, the Industry’s conversion from analog-based processes to digital workflows. This presentation will overview ten significant trends which are uniquely affecting the Construction Industry, creating both new challenges and opportunities, while transforming the Construction Industry.
What happens when a building owner calls with leaks into a building they just finished? After verifying whether they want to file a lawsuit or not, the course of action is important. An investigation and preliminary testing are typically recommended to understand the original design and the quality and consistency of the construction. Design of remedial repairs and a pilot repair program followed by retesting to confirm results. How extensive are the failures and how invasive do the repairs need to be? Costs? What materials were used and were they compatible? Public perception and developer/owner reputation are important. The occupants have just moved in. Higher expectation of successful repairs. Can we involve the original design and construction team? These are just a few of the issues that need to be faced early in this process. One must communicate often and clearly with the owner and rest of the project team in order to manage expectations, costs and construction quality control.
Arlington Memorial Bridge is a reinforced concrete spandrel arch bridge that connects Washington, DC and Virginia across the Potomac River. After over 85 years in service, the bridge started exhibiting signs of deterioration, including reinforcement corrosion. As part of a major rehabilitation effort to extend the bridge’s service life, targeted cathodic protection (CP) systems were installed in the arch cross-walls, floors, and under arches to mitigate and prevent corrosion. The implemented CP system consisted of galvanic and two-stage anodes to mitigate corrosion. Galvanic anodes were installed in the repair areas to prevent the ring anode affect and ensure a durable concrete repair. The two-stage anodes were installed in areas of concrete which were actively corroding without signs of concrete deterioration.
High Traffic Commercial/Light Industrial applications including light manufacturing, warehouse/big-box stores and high traffic retail applications present their own unique challenges in concrete repair. This presentation will review concrete repair options that a focused on those application that may require both fast application/turnaround time and strength/use durability for forklifts and trucks. High Traffic Commercial/Light Industrial applications including light manufacturing, warehouse/big-box stores and high traffic retail applications present their own unique challenges in concrete repair. This presentation will review concrete repair options that a focused on those application that may require both fast application/turnaround time and strength/use durability for forklifts and trucks. While there are many option for quick repair that can be open to use in a matter of hours, it is important to acknowledge he potential limitations of these options over the long term.
The presentation, through case studies, talks about emergency response services for structural issues encountered during construction of new design projects. Among other examples is an eleven story precast parking structure. The contractor observed significant diagonal faulted cracking of L-beams (supporting double-tee sections) near bearing locations, few days after pouring topping slab. In addition, inverted-tee girders were observed to be supported on cracked corbels at other locations. A quick turn around was required to mitigate any immediate life safety hazard posed by the structural distresses and buy time for thorough investigation, non-destructive testing, analyses, and repair design. Another example is a seven story precast parking structure. The structure was under construction and reportedly erected out of plumb. Poor concrete placing practices and poor weld detailing led to widespread cracking in multiple structural elements throughout the structure...
Dealing with water is always a challenge when constructing a new structure. Whether it is water infiltration that was expected, or water manages to circumvent pre-planned waterproofing methods, it can wreak havoc on the building and interfere with construction schedules. The term “belt and suspenders” is often used in waterproofing and there is a good reason for it. Water chooses the path of least resistance, and many times that path is not discovered until it is too late. There are many methods of water control that can be implemented before, during and after a structure is completed. This presentation will focus on water control methods for new construction that can be implemented during or after the construction process.