Table of Contents Deh Cho Bridge Confirmation Receipt from the online Official Entry Form/Project Summary Entry Consent Form Full Project Description Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards 2013 Associated Engineering Full Project Description Deh Cho Bridge site, extreme weather conditions, and quality management. Executive Summary Effective planning and communication between all stakeholders was a critical factor in managing the project’s progress and facilitated the project’s ultimate success. In addition to collaborative project meetings and a highly-effective project document control system, our team worked closely with the client to develop unique approaches to control schedule, budget, quality, and risk. The Deh Cho Bridge provides a year-round The community was kept fully informed via connection for northern residents with the quarterly newsletters, information boards, rest of Canada, and will help create a project website, a live webcam, and economic development opportunities in the consistent contact with the media, thus North. providing a clear understanding of the For decades, the majority of residents in construction progress and eventual grand the Northwest Territories had no fixed link opening. to the rest of the country. Travellers and The project management team overcame a goods had to cross the Mackenzie, series of challenges by developing a highly Canada’s longest river, via a limited- effective on-site construction inspection operation ferry. The connection was often team, ensuring the project followed a affected by the river’s water levels during robust quality assurance program, the summer season. In the winter, implementing a unique and deliberate travellers crossed an unreliable and management protocol, and by being potentially dangerous ice bridge. In the solution oriented and highly focused on spring thaw and fall freeze-up, locals and delivering the Deh Cho Bridge. visitors had no fixed link with the rest of the country, relying instead on expensive Spanning over one kilometre across air travel. the Mackenzie River, In 2010, the Government of the Northwest the new Deh Cho Bridge is a Territories assumed control of the project remarkable achievement in mid-construction, and appointed engineering management. Associated Engineering as Project Manager. Working together, we implemented a specific project management plan, addressing project challenges, including a geographically dispersed team, a remote 1 Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards 2013 Associated Engineering Full Project Description Deh Cho Bridge Introduction Deh Cho Bridge Site Fort Providence, NT For decades, most residents in the Northwest Territories had no fixed link to the rest of Canada. In 2002, a Public Project Challenges Private Partnership initiated design of the Deh Cho Bridge, near Fort Providence. Construction of the bridge began in 2008; however, the project soon encountered difficulties. With continuing setbacks and delays, in 2010, the Government of the Northwest Territories assumed control of the project mid-construction, after only part of the substructure was completed, retaining a new bridge engineer and contractor. Upon taking over the project, the team Recognizing it needed assistance to deliver faced immense public pressure, fueled by the project, the Government appointed years of delays and cost escalation. It was Associated Engineering as Project immediately clear that the project Manager. presented many unique and diverse challenges that would require innovative At the time, the task of managing the project management approaches to completion of the bridge was likened to overcome. “changing a wheel on a moving vehicle”. Construction had to proceed without delay, Technically, the bridge is unique - a while the design was being finalized. It was continuous Extradosed Bridge System that also important to rapidly assess the quality has two vertical, Warren trusses supported of the previously completed construction by stay cables. The 4.5 metre deep steel and design work, while continuing with the truss, fabricated from built-up, W-shaped construction. members, is composite with the 11.3 metre-wide, precast concrete deck. To With a total length of 1045 metres, reduce weight, the deck spans two the structure is the longest bridge in directions and is only 235 millimetres the Northwest Territories. thick. 2 Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards 2013 Associated Engineering Full Project Description Deh Cho Bridge The truss length has 55 individual winter, necessitated the development of a segments, field bolted together, with two design which allowed for year-round truss sections connected with Chevron construction, with materials carefully cross frames and top and bottom chord selected to have the toughness and wind bracing. Stay cables, attached to two durability to withstand the encountered -40 A-shaped pylons on either side of the main degrees Celsius temperatures. span, support the 190 metre span. The construction site was remote, even by There was a strong need to proceed Canadian standards. All of the materials immediately with construction; however, had to be shipped to site from far-away the engineering consultant was still locations, including 11,000 tonnes of completing the design. Meanwhile, the structural steel from New Brunswick and quality of the constructed works needed to Quebec. Some of the more specialized be confirmed, and the team needed to components were sourced from overseas. understand the project issues. A project of Heavy equipment had to be mobilized, and this magnitude had never been a large, mobile batch concrete plant was constructed so far north in Canada. erected on-site. Our team needed to quickly strategize and address a large number of issues. These Numerous challenges included included: extreme northern conditions, remote site, equipment and materials • Document control delivery, and a geographically • Highway, structural and electrical dispersed team. design • Hydrotechnical review Solution • Construction supervision • Environmental services • Communication • Graphic design. The Mackenzie River itself posed particularly significant challenges. The bridge piers had to be designed to withstand the force of ice sheets up to 1.8 metres thick rushing down the river during spring break-up. The annual freeze and To maintain construction continuity, our thaw cycles also limited the in-river team began by scheduling several large activities during construction. project meetings and facilitating the flow of This determined the methodology for the information between the contractor, pier construction, as well as for the fabricators, and designer so these approach in erecting the superstructure. activities could proceed. The location of the project site, where Our management team identified what site daylight shrinks to 5½ hours during the condition and design information was 3 Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards 2013 Associated Engineering Full Project Description Deh Cho Bridge available, and what was required to move the original P3 project, we made a the project forward. We then managed a significant investment to provide as much team of subconsultants to undertake project information as possible to the required work, such as a design continuity public. Working with the Government of investigation, quality audits, survey and Northwest Territories, our in-house team materials testing. We also mobilized an developed a project logo, brochures, experienced construction supervision project website (www.dehchobridge.info), team. design and content for a quarterly newsletter, public display boards, and two scale models for display in prominent public locations. The project website displayed webcam images in real time. Our team facilitated media tours at the site, provided interviews with magazines, and participated in TV news conferences. Communication Managing a large and geographically dispersed project team was accomplished through effective communication and a tailor-made document control system. The management team formed a strong alliance with the client’s staff through a series of regular meetings and gatherings Budget & Schedule Control which helped to open up communication lines and foster an environment of To regain and maintain control of the partnering and team spirit. Recordings of project’s budget, schedule, risk, and overall all meetings, made available to all quality, as project manager, our team participants, helped to eliminate identified critical elements to address. misunderstandings and ensure the team Based on the state of the project at the was moving forward with a unified vision. start of our involvement, a new schedule was required. Regulators were included in the meetings to mitigate potential regulatory issues. The Our team worked with the contractor and unique, web-based document control the client to develop a revised schedule to system gave all team members access to complete the bridge. With a large project, time-stamped files, such as meeting a small taxpayer base, a number of minutes, reports, drawings and background government levels involved in funding, and information. The document control system close scrutiny by the public, control of the allowed the project to proceed quickly with budget was paramount. By carefully a unified place for information. tracking the budget and working closely with the contractor and the client, we To overturn the prevailing negative public controlled cost escalations on the project. image of the project, based on issues with