Parkside Dr. Slope Stabilization

Parkside Dr. Slope Stabilization

The City of Toronto tendered a slope stabilization project that required the installation of helical piles in the embankment of a failed slope on Parkside Drive in Toronto, Ontario.

HC Matcon was procured to install 39 helical piles using ECP square shaft helicals with a 8-10-12 inch helix configuration in lieu of the equivalent 1.5” square bar (SS150).  Upon HC Matcon’s arrival on site, current ground conditions had changed as the existing slope was unstable and eroded creating a challenging work site.  The slope was found to be 5 degrees steeper than expected and posed a problem to the stability of the excavators and to the installation of the helicals.  HC Matcon stabilized the excavator on the slope to allow for a flexible control for the hydraulic motor to allow the required vertical helical        installation angle under the roadway.  The final problem encountered was the alignment of the helical pile with the hydraulic motor which was resolved with minor adjustments to the equipment.  HC Matcon installed all 39 helicals at their 30 degree inclination to depths ranging between 36 and 45 feet and preloaded all helicals to 90 KN on oversized steel bearing pads.

This project reveals that HC Matcon is able to adapt to develop systems that allow for proper mobility and stability of the installation equipment.  While HC Matcon did start later than scheduled, all problems were overcome and the schedule was still completed on time.  Today, the slope is covered with natural vegetation and is performing as intended.

Client: NEI Construction Corp.

Location: 421 Parkside Dr., Toronto, Ontario

Dufferin Jog Elimination

Dufferin Jog Elimination

This project involved the extension of Duffering Street under an existing CN rail line and through the abutment wall of a century old CN bridge at Queen Street in Toronto. HCM performed a design-build tied back caisson wall solution for the main staging effort.

The geology of the soils was a combination of fills and wak silts over rock. The old bridge was jacked onto tower frames supported by cased micropiles. Low headroom caissons were installed by churn drilling with permanent liners. Further innovation included a tieback connection through abutments which avoided damage to the future surface of the structure.

HCM met scheduling requirements while performing several services throughout multiple phases, facilitating overall project success.

Client: Dufferin Construction

Location: Toronto, Ontario

Lakeview Water Treatment Plant

Lakeview Water Treatment Plant

This project was part of the second phase of an expansion program to the region of Peel’s Lakeview Water Treatment Plant. Given the information provided at the time of tender, HCM proposed the use of shotcrete shoring for the site’s earth retention system. Later, due to an unforeseen influx of water into the excavation from a problematic sand lense and the resulting saturated soil conditions, shotcrete was found to no longer be a suitable solution for the site’s shoring. To address the issue, HCM devised a perched caisson wall system to cut off the flow of groundwater.

As fieldwork progressed, other fill soil conditions were encountered that were different from the geotechnical report issued at the time of tender. A change of the soil conditions, as encountered at Lakeview, would typically impact the project’s schedule because of the need for a redesign of the shoring system. HCM was able to respond with practical solutions to keep the project moving while updating the drawings to represent the design changes.

HCM can overcome most problems or restrictions to produce a final product that is desirable to all parties.

Client: North America Constructors Ltd.

Location: Mississauga, Ontario

8 Ida Street

8 Ida Street

HC Matcon was retained to install panel underpinning for a custom home built by Laureden Inc. in 2007 in one of Markham’s prestigious neighbourhoods.  Due to lack of real-estate and property, the home owners decided to build an in ground pool inside of their newly completed residence.  The residence consisted of an existing crawl space in which the pool was requested.  It should be noted that the interior finishes consisted of sensitive glass and marble which were sensitive to movement below.

The project involved deepening the crawl space for the swimming pool addition.  Innovation was required due to a unique underpinning design which included two layers of continuous rebar within the panel in order for it to be used as a permanent foundation wall.  This created constructability issues due to the required three panel sequences of installation.  To allow for unobstructed panel excavation, HC Matcon and RWH, an HC Group company, special bulkhead steel embedments were fabricated from mesh and anchor couplers (provided by Williams Form Engineering) in the HC Matcon shop. These were used in place of rebar to allow for all threading of the bars satisfying the engineer.

The work was successfully completed on time and on budget.  Underpinning systems are a specialty of HC Matcon.

Client: Laureden Inc.

Location: Toronto, Ontario

George Street Bridge

George Street Bridge

This bridge replacement project required the drilling of two abutments consisting of a total of 32 drilled caissons in the existing creek bed. In addition to the environmental concerns related to work being completed in an existing creek bed, access restrictions and overhead lines required the use of a versatile machine capable of drilling the 10-14 foot caissons. The use of an excavator mounted drill enabled the precision drilling required with minimal impact on the surrounding landscape. The equipment’s low headroom capabilities make it ideally suited to projects with headroom constraints and uneven terrain.

Client: Montague Construction Limited

Location: Ingersoll, Ontario