Talbot Street

Talbot Street

HCM completed the design-build shoring for the Azure condominium project in downtown London. Due to the soil conditions encountered during initial drilling, a full depth caisson wall was installed for the construction of a two storey underground parking structure.

A combination of tiebacks and internal struts were used to support the 12.0m deep excavation. After piling was complete tieback encroachment became no longer possible along the west wall and had to be converted to a double rakered system. As the foundation structure was entirely precast this presented unique challenges when using rakers. RWH worked together with HCM and the Developer to make the internal bracing system work around the precast panels and designed the system to allow for removals to help facilitate the constriction process.

The shoring was constructed next to an existing church sensitive to movements. Excavation procedures were modified and extra considerations were taken in both the design and construction to reduce any movements and vibrations. Further, RWH completed target, inclinometer and vibration monitoring to verify the shoring performance throughout construction and ensure minimal impact to the church structure.

Client: The Tricar Group

Location: London, Ontario

Aligning with the HCM group’s core value of sustainability, the Azure project became the first LEEDS condominium project in London’s history.

Midtown Lofts

Midtown Lofts

On this project, HCM in conjunction with RWH Engineering Inc. (RWH), provided the owner with a complete design-build package and precision monitoring services for an 8.5m deep temporary shoring system.

RWH produced a tailored piles and lagging shoring design. As tiebacks were not feasible on the project due to encroachment limitations, RWH provided a waler and raker design that minimized interference as construction progressed.

HCM worked closely with the general contractor during pile installation and lagging to ensure that excavation proceeded safely and on schedule. Precision monitoring was implemented and reviewed by RWH throughout the project to confirm the integrity of the shoring system and surrounding infrastructure.

Client: GUPM Construction Managers

Location: Kitchener, Ontario

Telus Sky tower

Telus Sky tower - HC Matcon

Telus Sky tower

The Telus Sky tower will be the 3rd tallest building in Calgary with the deepest basement excavation in western Canada. HCM Group took on the challenge of creating a shoring system suitable for the 30m excavation. RWH designed the shoring system with an 11m deep perched secant wall and shotcrete was used in the bedrock to stabilize the rest of the excavation. HCM contractors were responsible for the installation of the perched secant wall and the shotcrete.

The project was not without its challenges. These challenges included neighboring structures, the LRT system that ran adjacent to the site, existing Telus utilities and limited working space within the excavation. An extremely sensitive Telus duct bank ran adjacent to the excavation and the movement of the bank had to be kept to a minimum. RWH had to take this into consideration when designing the wall. The footprint of the excavation was only 2,100m2. HCM contractors were able to work strategically with other sub-contractors to ensure work could be carried out seamlessly in the small area. RWH provided precision monitoring of the shoring, neighboring structures and the LRT line. Monitoring reports were provided twice a week until the excavation reached sound bedrock and it was then reduced to weekly.

HCM Group were able to use their experience with similar past projects to design and construct a shoring system that was suitable for the 30m excavation. The shoring moved 75% of what was originally predicted, proving it was more than adequate.

Client: Icon West Construction

Location: Calgary, Alberta

HC Group - Telus Sky Shoring Clean Wall
Telus Sky tower - HC Matcon
Telus Sky tower - HC Matcon
Telus Sky tower - HC Matcon

Spray River Bridge

Spray River Bridge

During the 2013 flooding in Southern Alberta, the Spray River undermined the foundation of a 24m long all season bridge causing the bridge to collapse.   As the bridge was located on a non-motorized pathway in Banff National Park – 10km from the nearest road – the project required a solution that took into account the remote location. 

The existing bridge was able to be reused, but required a new alignment and redesigned footings.  RWH worked in conjunction with Parks Canada to design a piling solution for the new foundation.  A major consideration was designing for future scour depths and therefore pipe micropiles were selected. The design included eight micropiles, each extending 12m deep. The equipment was trammed to the location using existing fire roads and a cable tram was used to access the far side as protection of the surrounding natural environment was a key priority on this project. 

HCM’s versatile team worked together to handle this small, yet challenging job and successfully met the client’s unique project requirements.

Client: Parks Canada

Location: Banff National Park, Alberta

Herald Block

Herald Block

HCM was chosen to provide a comprehensive design-build shoring solution for Phase 1 of Brookfield Place development, which will become the tallest building in Western Canada. The excavation spanned a city block and extended 22 meters deep. The shoring system, designed by RWH Engineering Inc. (RWH), was comprised of an 11 meter deep perched caisson wall above shotcrete, which continued into the rock for the remaining depth of the excavation. 

The challenges faced on this project included old foundations encountered during drilling, surrounding tightly clustered utilities, vulnerable neighbouring structures, and the adjacent light rail transit (LRT) system. HCM met these challenges with close attention to detail and meticulous planning to prevent any utility conflicts and structural damage. RWH completed the precision monitoring of the shoring and adjacent structures providing weekly reports to all stakeholders for the duration of the project. 

Client: EllisDon Corporation

Location: Calgary, Alberta

HCM was able to use their experience on past projects to design and construct a shoring solution that worked with the varying soil conditions at depth. This solution resulted in a more sustainable project as the perched wall required less material than a traditional full depth caisson wall, and provided project cost and schedule savings. Brookfield Place is an example of the ability of the HC Group to work together and overcome challenges in complex projects.

The Osterberg Cell

The Osterberg Cell

HCM was contracted to provide supply & installation of O-Cell load test on the New Calgary Library project located in downtown core of the city, in close proximity to the City Hall. The outcome of the load test was to determine the actual soil parameters for the foundation pile design on the project.

The O-cell is a hydraulically driven, high capacity, sacrificial loading device installed within the foundation unit. As the load is applied to the O cell, it begins working in two directions; upward against upper side shear and downward against base resistance and lower side shear (if applicable). Each O-cell is specially instrumented to allow for direct measurement of the O-cell’s expansion. O-cells range in capacities from 800 kN to 26,000 kN.

The scope of work consisted in installation of single test pile (1070mm diam. x 8.0 meters top liner casing, 910mm diam. x 8.0 meters rock socket). The overall length of test pile was approx.16 meters. O-cell was attached to the bottom of the steel frame c/w instrumentation connections, gauges, wiring etc.

Steel frame was manufactured in HCM’s shop, the O-cell was supplied by Loadtest Inc. HCM installed the pile in one day according to the timeline and specification requirements.

Client: Tetra Tech EBA

Location: Calgary, Alberta

Sarcee Trail

Sarcee Trail

The foundation of an existing residential apartment building in Southwest Calgary was compromised and required remedial measures to be completed. 

RWH designed a micropile underpinning system based on the initial geotechnical investigation. Together, HCM and RWH developed a testing strategy to confirm the soil bond strength and the design parameters obtained from the report. This involved installing and loading a sacrificial micropile to 250% of the design load. The test was successful and the remaining production micropiles were installed as designed.   

The challenging aspect of this project was working within the confined space beneath the building.  Initially having only a 1.2m headroom restriction, the installation areas were excavated to 2.3m below the bottom floor in a series of trenches and ventilation openings were constructed.  A low headroom? TEI rock drill was brought into the confined space in pieces and reassembled at the drilling locations.  Furthermore, the compressor for the drill had to be located outside the building.

These challenges were met with efficient and safe solutions by HCM.

Client: Madden Matthews Eng. Ltd.

Location: Calgary, Alberta

Maxwell Bates

Maxwell Bates

This project, located on Fourth Street in the downtown core of Calgary, consisted of a tied-back continuous caisson wall.  The caisson wall provided zero ground loss and minimal water infiltration, an important feature in the high density area of downtown.  HCM was able to call upon experience from similar successful past projects, such as the installation of a tied-back continuous caisson wall for the new Mustard Seed Building on Tenth Avenue and Centre Street S.E., to ensure a successful project.

The system was designed for a maximum excavation of approximately 8.5 meters below grade at the north portion of the site and 10 meters below grade at the south portion of the site.  This resulted in an approximate total area of 13,100 square feet of shoring required.

This project is another example of HCM’s ability to work with a General Contractor to execute a successful shoring project with a tight schedule and budget.

Client: Ledcor Construction Ltd.

Location: Calgary, Alberta

Pixel by Battistella

Pixel by Battistella

HCM was contracted to provide the design and installation of shoring system for a 110 unit building consisting of town homes, studios and condos. This development was located at 1037 Second Avenue N. W. Calgary, Alberta. HCM, in conjunction with RWH Engineering, designed, supplied and installed a tied-back continuous caisson wall.

The shoring was designed for a maximum excavation depth of 10 meters below grade for a total of approximately 18,900 square feet of shoring area. The soil conditions consisted of gravels with the presence of ground water, making the continuous caisson wall the superior solution due to the zero ground loss and minimal water infiltration advantages.

This project had strict timeline requirements and called for the shoring to be completed in 28 days. In order to finish the project on time, HCM had to use double shifts and injection anchors to double the anchor production. The steps taken by HCM were successful and the project was finished within the given deadline.

Client: Battistella Developments

Location: Calgary, Alberta

Burke Residence

Burke Residence

The site topography presented the challenging task of installing shoring on steep slopes which impeded the accessibility of conventional equipment to the residential lot at the back alley portion of the site. The site was located in the Elboya Park region of SW Calgary. The purpose of the shoring was to protect the adjacent neighbouring property and utilities along the east, west and back sides of the site.

The east and the west sides of the property were shored with a cantilever steel pipe and timber lagging system. The shoring on these sides extended to 11 feet below grade, and approximately 70 feet long for a total area of 1,800 square feet.

The back side of the property presented the greatest challenge as it was along the steepest slope of the site with a designed depth of 15 feet below grade. Due to the site conditions, shotcrete was an ideal shoring solution. The total area of the shotcrete shoring covered 350 square feet.

Due to the residential nature of the site special emphasis was put on the impact of the project to the surrounding area. The disruption to neighbouring properties, along with noise and vibration and existing structures was carefully monitored and managed.

HCM finished the project on schedule completing in two planned stages according to the progress requirements of the general contractor.

Client: Hillson Homes

Location: Calgary, Alberta