MATERIALS + DURABILITY ENGINEERING
PLANNING + ASSESSMENT + INTERVENTION
Our Materials + Durability Engineering Team assists clients during project planning, through construction, and after the construction of their concrete structures. We provide engineering services for the full life-cycle of concrete structures — from selecting the constituent materials pre-construction to understanding the effects of thermal analysis, cracking assessment, chloride penetration, corrosion and latent deleterious reactions etc. Our durability design services are aimed at minimizing construction costs related to constructability issues and resultant time delays, while minimizing life cycle maintenance costs for your structure.
DURABILITY ENGINEERING SERVICES
Our staff deploy a breadth of technical expertise to solve complex problems with structures before, during and after construction. Durability Engineers’ services include:
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Pre-Bid and Bid Stage Engineering and Consulting
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Defining durability objectives
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Bid stage durability planning
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Bid stage durability assessment, design, and assurance
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Design
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Durability assessment
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Durability plan/report
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Materials selection/optimization
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Construction
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Review material testing
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Quality assurance for durability
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Operation and Maintenance
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Existing Structures
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Asset Evaluation
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Nondestructive and Destructive Testing
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Service Life Modeling
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Structural Evaluation
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DURABILITY PLANNING
Concrete infrastructure projects require substantial time and capital investments. To recognize the value of these structures, our engineers and consultants can assist with the selection of cost-effective materials combined with design process, construction methods and detailing to help achieve the intended service life. Durability planning is intended for large complex structures that are exposed to aggressive environmental conditions; examples of these structures may include:
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Energy and Resources
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Industrial sites where elements or structures might exposed to contaminated ground or air
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Mining and industrial structures, including material processing and handling
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Power plants, stations and transmission lines
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Property and Buildings
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Buildings for commercial, industrial government, residential, etc.
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Buildings with applications that lead to unusual exposures
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Structures of cultural, heritage, national or world significance
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Transportation
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Airport infrastructure
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Bridges and culverts
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Elevated viaducts
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Tunnels
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Wharfs, piers, and jetties
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Water Retaining or Excluding Structures
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Dams
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Desalination plants
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Pipelines
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Pump stations
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Water tanks
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Water treatment plants
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Wastewater treatment plants
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DURABILITY ASSESSMENT
During the design phase, Durability Engineers provide succinct durability design reports which outline durability risk to an asset. The durability risks are identified, the durability design solutions are determined, critical construction processed identified, operation inspection and monitoring requirements outlined and maintenance recommendations provided. The objectives of the durability assessment report are to:
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Identify the critical concrete elements at risk of long-term deterioration,
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Identify critical construction processes, and
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Provide consulting services to mitigate these risks to help achieve the intended service life.
DURABILITY INTERVENTION
During the life of an asset, maintenance inspections or visual surveys may indicate that a durability intervention, action taken to preserve the future performance of a structure or its components, is required. The severity of the damage can be assessed by Durability Engineers by performing:
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Destructive Testing and Exploratory Openings
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Specialized Laboratory Testing
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Structural Evaluations
