Heavy Construction Studio
Colorado School of Mines
Heavy Construction
Large-scale projects are supported by systems from many disciplines. Mechanical equipment transports equipment, prepares construction material, and modifies landscapes. Electrical equipment provides power for devices and comfort to construction workers. Material systems optimize properties of construction materials. This industry requires coordination between many engineering disciplines.
As the heavy construction industry has started to embrace new technologies, engineers familiar with automation, robotics, and data science are needed. This industry provides young engineers with the opportunity to get away from a desk, work on dynamic problems, and have lots of responsibility. An internship or full-time job in the heavy construction industry is a ticket to an exciting career.
Projects
I-70 Floyd Hill Project – Kraemer North America
Contractor: Kraemer NA
Cost: $700 Million
Timeline: July 2023 to late 2028
Description: Anyone who has driven I-70 to the mountains is well acquainted with the traffic of Floyd Hill. The two-lane bottleneck and steep grade can lead to hours of delay. The $700 million dollar I-70 Floyd Hill Project plans to address this. From 2023 to 2028, contractor Kraemer will add a third westbound travel lane, rebuild bridges, improve traffic flow at interchanges, increase site distance, and restore the surrounding environment.
To increase the width of the interstate, the contractor expands into the mountain side with rock blasting. Additionally, a flyover bridge with 120-foot-high columns will take motorists to the “wrong side” of the road. At the end of the project area, a significant portion of the mountain side will be removed.
Gross Reservoir Expansion Project – Kiewit + Barnard Construction
Contractor: Kiewit & Barnard Construction
Cost: $531 Million
Timeline: 2023 to 2027
Description: As population grows in the Denver Metro Area, the demand of water will increase. In addition, Denver Water has nearly 90% of its water storage in the southern side of Denver. The Gross Reservoir Expansion Project will mitigate the risk of drought by increasing thestorage capacity of the reservoir.
The project will raise the existing dam by 131 feet and almost triple the reservoir’s capacity. The dam will be raised from the bottom by extending the base of the dam. With limited access to the dam, a lot of work has been done on extending access for cranes, excavators, and other heavy equipment. Rock blasting has been utilized to make room for construction. To prepare the surface of the dam for new concrete, hydrodemolition will be used. An ultrahigh pressure pump will shoot water and an abrasive material to remove the top three inches of the dam. This willprovide a rough surface for new concrete to adhere to.
Photo Credit: Denver Water
Chimney Hollow Reservoir Project – Barnard Construction
Contractor: Barnard Construction
Cost: $650 million
Timeline: 2021 to 2025
Description: Funded by 12 northeastern Colorado water providers, Chimney Hollow Reservoir will add resilience to the water supply for more than 500,000 residents. To build the reservoir, Barnard is constructing a zoned rockfill main dam, zoned rockfill saddle dam, reinforced concrete inlet/outlet structure, concrete-lined tunnel, concrete spillway, and water distribution facilities.
Typically, a rockfill dam has a clay core, but due to a lack of available onsite clay, the main dam was designed with an asphalt core. Dams with asphalt cores are common in Europe and Canada, but less common in the United States–the Chimney Hollow main dam will be the second of its kind in the country. To supply rockfill, the onsite quarry can produce up to 63,000 tons of aggregate per day, claiming the title of Colorado’s largest mining operation. When construction wraps up in 2025, the reservoir will provide critical water supply and recreational opportunities to the communities it serves.
Hampton Roads Bridge – Tunnel Expansion Project – Dragados
Contractor: Dragados, Flatiron Construction, Vinci Construction, and Dodin Campenon Bernard
Cost: $3.9 billion
Timeline: 2023 to 2027
Description: Extreme congestion on the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel has influenced the Virginia Department of Transportation to start the largest transportation project in the state. This project will widen a 10-mile corridor, replace 24 bridges, and include a pair of bored tunnels.Construction in Chesapeake Bay requires the use of cofferdams, gantry cranes, and other heavy equipment. Tunneling with tunnel boring machines (TBMs) requires site support with a launch shaft, slurry plant, grout plant, water filtration plant, and many other utilities. The contractors even need to extend the current islands along the alignment to accommodate the widened roadways. Demolition of the existing structure must be accomplished without affecting the surrounding environment and waterway.
Photo Credit: Virginia Department of Transportation
Denver International Airport (DEN) Gate Expansion Program – Flatiron Construction
Contractor: Flatiron Construction
Cost: $940 million
Timeline: 2018 – 2022
Description: Denver International Airport (DEN), which saw nearly 65 million travelers in 2018, is putting in 39 new gates across its concourses, to increase airline capacity by 30 percent.
Flatiron, alongside partner and sister company Turner, is working on expansion at Concourse A-West and Concourse B-West, where 16 of those new gates will be located. In total this joint venture will build or renovate an impressive 620,000 gross square feet of facility.
Concourse A-West will offer five levels including a full-length basement, apron, concourse, mezzanine (including a sterile corridor for incoming passengers to the five new international gates), and a mechanical level. The Concourse B-West project features three levels including the apron, concourse, and mechanical levels. Both concourses add extensive upgrades to the de-icing facilities as well as in-ground jet fuel pits.
The concourse expansions will provide views of Colorado’s famed mountains from new exterior west facing terraces.
With this large facilities expansion, DEN hopes to bring in new domestic and international carriers to Colorado’s Front Range region.
D Line Subway Extension Project – Traylor Brothers
Contractor: Traylor Brothers, Tutor Perini, Skanska, J.F. Shea Construction, Inc., Parsons Corporation, O&G Industries, Frontier-Kemper
Cost: $9.5 billion
Timeline: 2019 to 2027
Description: In preparation for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, the Biden Administration awarded the Los Angeles region with $900 million dollars for transportation infrastructure improvements. The D Line Subway Extension Project will provide transportation between downtown Los Angeles to Westwood. As the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) will serve as the Olympic and Paralympic Village, visiting tourists will have the opportunity to travel underground efficiently in the area. Tunneling beneath a densely urban area poses many risks for the contractor. Two tunnel boring machines (TBMs) will be used through ground with gas pockets, tar sands, and unmapped oil wells.
Photo Credit: LA Metro
Resources for Students
Internship and full-time positions
Mechanical engineering in construction
Career path in Heavy Construction
Upcoming Events
August 23, 2024
Celebration of Mines Club Fair
Details: 4-6 pm booth F5
August 26, 2024
Heavy Construction Volleyball Tournament
Details: 6pm at Kafadar Commons
Play on a team with an engineer from the construction industry
September 10, 2024
Heavy Construction Mixer I
Details: 6-8 pm at the Labriola Innovation Hub
Network with construction companies hiring for internships and full-time positions
October 16, 2024
Tunneling Fundamentals Short Course Reception
Details: 5:30-7 pm at CoorsTek Atrium
Network with underground construction professionals at Mines to attend the Tunneling Fundamentals, Practice & Innovations course.
November 7, 2024
Heavy Construction Mixer II
Details: 6-8 pm at CoorsTek Atrium
Network with construction companies hiring for internships and full-time positions
November 11, 2024
“Mechanical Mondays” presentation on Cool Mechanical Engineering in Big Construction
Details: 12-1 pm in MZ 204
Past Events
- Heavy Construction Mixer 11/9/23
- Barnard Lunch & Learn 1/24/24
- Traylor Bros Lunch & Learn 1/29/24
- Keller Lunch & Learn 1/31/24
- Dragados Lunch & Learn 2/14/24
- Shimmick Lunch & Learn 2/22/24
- Kiewit Lunch & Learn 2/26/24
- Kraemer Lunch & Learn 3/4/24
- Flatiron Lunch & Learn 4/10/24
- Granite Lunch & Learn 4/17/24
- Heavy Construction Studio Mini Golf Tournament 5/1/24
Partner Companies
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