2006 Eminent Conceptor | 2006 Honor | 2006 Special Achievment | 2006 Merit

SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS are given for those projects worthy of special recognition of the engineer and the owner/client for achieving engineering excellence. This year, 10 Special Achievement Awards were given in six categories, as follows:

STUDIES, RESEARCH, CONSULTING ENGINEERING SERVICES

URS assisted the City of Chicago as their Engineering and Technical Advisor in the historic Concession Lease Sale of the Chicago Skyway Toll Bridge System. The Transaction represented the first occurrence in U.S. history in which an entire highway system was divested to a private enterprise. The Transaction process commenced when the consortium of Cintra Concessions and Macquarie Securities wired the City $1.82 billion to operate the Skyway for the next 99 years. The fee provided the City the ability to defease all Skyway bonds; eliminate operational and maintenance responsibilities; and reduce City debt while retaining ownership.

The merging of talents of government, engineering, legal and financial representatives to act in the City's best interest was the highlight of the Transaction. It was the responsibility of this working group to create a transparent, fair, and attractive plan worthy of support and confidence by the citizens of the City of Chicago.

BUILDING / TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS

The Christopher Center for Library and Information Resources reinvents the traditional library. The $33-million center features hard-wired and wireless classrooms with the latest audio-visual equipment, study lounges with fireplaces, a café, writing center, media center, archives and a community room.

The building's true marvel is an automated retrieval system-one of a handful in operation nationwide-that delivers books in seconds. Unique ceiling structures required inventive placement of ductwork, lighting, audio-visual and other high-tech features. Servicing twice as much space, the new, energy-efficient HVAC system costs the same to operate as the old library's. A unique concrete lattice shades the building and protects the books from sunlight. User-friendly features were a priority, including available light, natural views, movable and comfortable furniture, and community-use space. The owners wanted "to let our imagination go" and build a space for today's and tomorrow's students. They succeeded, and set a new standard for library engineering.

BUILDING/TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS

The Old Chicago Main Post Office was built on air rights over the Chicago Union Station (CUS) during the 1920s and 1930s. An exhaust plenum ceiling under the post office building, above the platforms and tracks, provides ventilation for locomotive smoke. Over time, the plenum ceiling and supporting structures have deteriorated, necessitating detailed investigation and repairs to ensure safety to the commuters below.

The United States Postal Service (USPS) retained Parsons Brinckerhoff Construction Services (PBCS) to investigate the condition of the plenum ceiling. Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas (PBQD) provided initial investigation/inspection, detailed survey, and detailed design. PBCS provided construction management for the rehabilitation, with ongoing support from PBQD. The project involved overhead hydro-demolition, shotcreting, flue repairs and hanger replacement.

The project has extensive restrictions on hours of work, access and effects on the commuting public, requiring an approach that is simple to construct, durable, flexible, and responsive to last minute track operations changes.

BUILDING/TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS

As part of a capital expansion program at O'Hare International Airport, STV provided engineering design services for the demolition and replacement of 46 air-handling units in Terminals 2 and 3. The air handling units, which were originally installed in the 1960s, were outdated and difficult to maintain. This complex project was completed one month ahead of schedule, without interrupting services at the country's busiest airport.

The outdated equipment was replaced and the congested equipment room redesigned to ensure a safe and efficient operation of the new air handling units. The conditions of the existing mechanical room were problematic-it was congested, poorly illuminated and did not allow adequate access for equipment and systems maintenance.

During the project's construction phase, STV met the Chicago Department of Aviation requirement that airlines and airport operations remain unaffected, and that airport users remain unaware of the renovations taking place.

WATER AND WASTEWATER

With a deadline looming to comply with EPA radium standards for drinking water, the City of West Chicago retained Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc. to design and permit a new water treatment plant. In under three years, residents began "tapping" into radium-free, soft water that springs from the city's wells.

The 9 MGD lime-softening treatment facility is fed by seven miles of new raw water mains with treatment based on the ClariCone™ system. A unique self-backwashing system that doesn't require pumps was designed for the filters. In addition, the architecture team designed a building that gives the appearance of brick masonry and creates a long-lasting, durable structure at significantly reduced cost.

It's estimated that the new water plant will save the city about $1.3M per year when compared to costs for connecting to Lake Michigan water. The largest pubic works project in the city's history was completed on budget and on schedule.

WATER RESOURCES

On 5 acres of an island in the middle of a river in northeastern Arkansas, The Jim Hinkle / Spring River State Fish Hatchery is a one-of-a-kind facility that utilize in-ground silos for fish rearing. Called upon to increase production by approximately 35 percent for stocking trout throughout Arkansas, this 30-plus-year-old facility required major improvements. With the recently completed improvements, the facility now produces 680,000 trout annually, weighing around 525,000 pounds.

Two elements were key to the successful modernization of this facility: all construction had to be performed while the facility was in total and full production, and specialized processes needed to be combined during construction, as well as required critical coordination of construction and delivery and storage of construction materials.

WATER RESOURCES

SCI Engineering, Inc. (SCI) served as primary consultant to Richland Creek Mitigation, L.L.C., in developing Richland Creek Mitigation Bank (RCMB) as a mitigation alternative for both wetland and stream impacts. While there are more than 150 wetland mitigation banks in the U.S., the RCMB - as the first to offer both stream and wetland mitigation credits - is an innovative application of the existing technique.

The RCMB project site is located approximately 2 miles south of Smithton, Illinois, on the West Fork of Richland Creek, a tributary of the Kaskaskia River.

The RCMB's primary functions are to improve water quality and flood control, stabilize eroded streambanks, improve aesthetics, and provide habitat for species, including some listed as threatened and endangered. In addressing multiple objectives and balancing environmental, social, engineering, and economic considerations, the RCMB has been a success and continues to provide a valuable resource to the St. Louis Metro East region.

TRANSPORTATION

The Chicago Union Station (CUS) north end station platform tracks transition to main line tracks through an eight city block interlocking, completely under buildings, referred to as the Lake Street Interlocking (LSI). The $80 million Lake Street Interlocking rehabilitation project consisted of the reconstruction of 1920's railroad technology, which had outlived its useful life, with state of the art track, subgrade and signal systems to provide Union Station with the infrastructure to carry its operation into the next century. The entire project was constructed under traffic in stages over a five year period.

The project provides; increased station capacity for Metra's Milwaukee District and North Central Services and for Amtrak's Hiawatha and Empire Builder Services as well as reduced maintenance cost through the application of existing technology in the design and construction material selection. These two main goals of this project were achieved under traffic with no significant impacts to Metra and Amtrak riders.

TRANSPORTATION

The existing bridge carrying 127th Street over the Iowa Interstate Railroad and METRA Metropolitan Rail was determined by the Illinois Department of Transportation to be structurally deficient. As the corridor was designated a high accident location and the approach roadway was in poor condition, complete reconstruction of the roadway was included to enhance the corridor.

Several goals were established for this project: Limit disruption; Enhance safety and traffic capacity; Accommodate bicyclists; Limit land acquisition; Enhance aesthetics Reduce maintenance; and Improve utilities.

Improvements included: roadway reconstruction with new curb and gutter and sidewalks for the entire project area; new sewers, watermain, lighting, and signals. Bridge improvements include wider lanes and sidewalks, complete superstructure replacement, pier repairs, and abutment replacement. Creative design measures resulted in accomplishing all project goals.

SPECIAL PROJECTS

Wacker Drive was designed by Edward H. Bennett and initially completed in 1926. By the 1990s the two-level riverfront street was aged and in poor condition. Its reconstruction in the early 2000s restored this Chicago wonder to meet modern transportation needs. In 2002, as part of the plan to revitalize Chicago's waterway, Collins Engineers, Inc. was retained by the Chicago Department of Transportation to design a continuous ribbon of improvements along the south edge of the Chicago River at the dock level, including promenade decks and plazas.

The first and largest plaza to be constructed is located between Wabash Avenue and State Street. Working with sub-consultant Ross Barney + Jankowski Architects, Collins developed a tiered plaza to provide improved accessibility for pedestrians from the upper level of Wacker Drive to the river's edge. Collins worked with City engineers and planners, and various Vietnam veterans' organizations to develop a permanent Vietnam memorial for the plaza.

A memorial plaza design was developed to serve as a tribute to those who gave their lives in Vietnam and to all men and women who served in Vietnam. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial at Wabash Plaza will be dedicated on Veterans Day, November 11, 2005.