Waukegan Harbor’s North Pier was built in the 1950s and is currently owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The pier spans 625’ and was significantly deteriorated from age at the project’s inception. The project consisted of resurfacing and reinforcing the spalled and deteriorated concrete by installing steel plates to protect the pier from wave action and a reinforced concrete slab over the existing structure. Three steel plates were installed on the North and South side of each of the 25 monoliths by Barge & Crawler Crane. Formwork was laid out with bulkheads at each monolith, and concrete was poured from shore utilizing the tremie method, by which the concrete was placed by gravity feed below water level.
Foundation Mechanics completed on time, in accordance with contractual obligation, resurfacing the Waukegan Harbor South Pier utilizing concrete, rebar, and metal plates. The Inner Harbor water depth along the South Pier is approximately 23-feet or less in depth. The operation may require the contractor to have barges and tugs to maneuver the equipment necessary since the pier itself extends approximately 3,150′ into the harbor/water in Waukegan
Challenges:
One primary challenge this project presented was when the lake rose to its highest elevation in 35 years after the project was bid. FM and the Government negotiated a change order causing an increase to the contract to extend the height of the steel plates and place an 18″ mud slab on the existing pier prior to the as-bid reinforced slab was constructed.
