Syracuse VA Hospital

The VA decided (after a large asbestos removal project in the crawl space) they needed better access to the utilities in that area.  A western New York engineering firm designed, in essence, a sub-basement with concrete hallways throughout, which required significant excavation under the hospital, below the floor of the crawl space.  It was essentially a mining project, followed by the cast-in-place concrete floor and walls.

 

The project was bid and won by VET4U, Inc, a certified disabled veteran-owned construction management firm.  VET4U in turn hired Plumley Engineering to assist them in the geotechnical and structural aspects of the project.  Plumley then teamed with Stopen Engineering, due to their structural concrete expertise.

 

Part of Plumley’s responsibility was “value engineering” this interior excavation for the contractor.

 

When we checked the soil conditions, we found the excavation was in either glacial (lodgement) till or shale bedrock, both of which could be excavated leaving vertical sidewalls, which were perfectly stable and safe for the workers.  Since the original design called for excavated side-walls to be cut back on a 1.5 to 1 slope, our findings cut the volume of excavated material significantly, saving the contractor excavation expenditures.

 

 

We were also tasked with bracing the caissons, which were being exposed up to 10 feet of their length by the excavation.  Since the caissons were unreinforced concrete, there was concern they might fail in a strong wind or a seismic event.

 

Plumley devised a system of horizontal bracing using struts and cables in order to secure the caissons until they were integrated into the new concrete floors and walls.

 

In 2016, the project won a “gold” award from the American Concrete Institute for excellence in concrete design and installation.