North American Aggregates Offshore Material Handling Platforms
As part of their upgrades to the new North American Aggregates (NAA) facility, Weeks Marine made the decision to construct material handling platforms capable of loading and unloading dredge barges and scows. The buildout consisted of two crane platforms, one hopper platform with conveyors extending into the NAA plant, and two breasting dolphins. GEI was engaged by Weeks to provide design services for these new platforms. Working with the owner and other subconsultants, GEI designed the platforms to accommodate all crane loads, breasting and mooring loads, and hopper and conveyor attachments and loadings. The project employed a current marine construction state of practice approach via the extensive use of precast concrete to reduce construction costs. The project was delivered on schedule and on budget and the platforms are now in operation.
Key Challenges
Forming and pouring concrete and working with steel over the water can be very expensive. GEI designed the entire project to make use of precast elements and pre-fabricated steel assemblies which significantly reduced the construction schedule and labor costs for the client. Sizing all of the elements such that they could be trucked to the site and assembled with the minimal amount of work hours possible represented a significant challenge to the design team. Once completed and in operation, the platforms markedly increased the overall efficiency of the operation of the entire aggregate plant which brought significant value to our client.