In December 2009, the USD268 million contract for the final phase of work on the Pacific Access Channel was awarded to an international consortium comprising Spain’s Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas, SA (FCC), Mexico’s Empresas ICA and Costa Rica’s Constructora MECO. The consortium subcontracted the cofferdam work to a joint venture of Richard Goettle Inc, USA, and Ingenieria Continental, SA (ICONSA), Panama. The cofferdam is 1,336 m long; an additional 462m consists of a sheet-pile cut-off wall. The 15,000 tonnes of sheet piling – supplied by LB Foster Inc., Pittsburgh – were purchased in advance by the Panama Canal Authority. Twenty-four of the cells measure 21.64m in diameter, and 34 are 17.83m in diameter. Each of the 58 cells is built using a large circular template, surrounded by the sheet piling and welded. Crews dredge silt inside the cells and place underwater tremie concrete where necessary. Then, cells are filled with granular backfill. The entire cofferdam requires a total of 250,000 cu m of aggregate. To keep the project on schedule, the consortium is using three marine and two land crews; a sixth crew has completed the sheet piling. If the cofferdam is completed on schedule, ACP engineers aim to begin work on the Borinquen Dam this fall. That effort is scheduled to be completed in March 2013.
Tuesday, December 24, 2024
