Kleinfelder Receives National Recognition at ACEC Engineering Excellence Awards Gala
Photo credit: Risdon Photography
SAN DIEGO, California (June 3, 2022) – The American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) recognized two Kleinfelder projects at the 2022 Engineering Excellence Awards Gala – an event that honors the nation’s top engineering achievements and is known as the “Academy Awards” of the engineering industry. The projects – Miramar Clearwell Improvements Project (San Diego, California) and The Port Flooding Resiliency Project: Parking Lot No. 6 Stormwater Tank (Cambridge, Massachusetts) – both received the prestigious National Recognition Award for achieving exceptional engineering excellence.
The Miramar Clearwell Improvements Project addressed the aging infrastructure of the Miramar Water Treatment Plant. Kleinfelder served as the primary design consultant for the $120 million project that replaced the original 1959 and 1974 finished water clearwells with two new seismically designed 29.5 MG clearwells (59 MG total storage capacity). In addition, the Miramar project included dual-train chlorine contact chambers; 215 MGD low-lift pump station; 6,000-SF operation/maintenance facility; guard house/security system; electrical building; and 1 MW photovoltaic solar system. The project enhances the Miramar Water Treatment Plant’s ability to respond to changing water quality conditions with full redundancy and reliability to its customers.
In addition to the project’s magnitude and technical complexity, Kleinfelder Project Manager Ed Matthews noted the extensive coordination that was required with numerous stakeholders and the height of the COVID-19 pandemic occurring during project construction, startup, and commissioning. “Creativity and communication combined with true partnership between the City of San Diego, the Construction Management team, and Kleinfelder were key,” he said. “Use of 3D animation and modeling helped facilitate project understanding and design acceptance, while innovative uses of technology, mindful scheduling of site work, and a robust health and safety plan helped maintain staff safety while achieving project milestones. Not to mention, the project was completed on schedule with zero unplanned outages of service to over 600,000 customers in northern San Diego.”
“Throughout the U.S., our clients are grappling with growing populations, aging infrastructure, and the effects of climate change – issues that put a tremendous amount of pressure on our water and wastewater systems,” commented Kleinfelder Technical Director Rita Fordiani. “It’s worth noting that projects like the Miramar Clearwell Improvements Project and Parking Lot No. 6 Stormwater Tank are important capital investments that have positive economic and social impacts within our communities – two criteria that were considered by ACEC’s panel of nearly 30 judges.”
As the lead consultant for The Port Flooding Resiliency Project: Parking Lot No. 6 Stormwater Tank, Kleinfelder worked closely with the City of Cambridge to address significant surface flooding and sanitary sewer backups that The Port neighborhood experiences due to extreme wet weather exacerbated by climate change. A 390,000-gallon, 119-foot-by-36-foot cast-in-place underground stormwater tank, located in the City-owned Parking Lot No. 6, was designed to capture the stormwater in The Port neighborhood and redirect it from Massachusetts Water Resources Authority’s overburdened combined sewer system by pumping the stormwater to the Charles River via an existing storm drain in Massachusetts Avenue. Connecting the stormwater tank to the 54-inch storm drain required microtunneling 200 feet of 72-inch steel casing pipe, carrying four force mains within feet beneath the active MBTA Red Line subway.
“With more frequent and intense rain events predicted over time, the Parking Lot No. 6 Stormwater Tank is the first step in a broader flood mitigation plan for the Port neighborhood,” explained Kleinfelder Project Manager Kate Goyette. “Close coordination with Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority and private developers simultaneously completing construction projects surrounding Parking Lot No. 6 was critical to laying the foundation for future infrastructure improvements to further increase the neighborhood’s resiliency.”
The project’s success was demonstrated after the tank went online in May 2021 and proceeded to divert more than 3,480,000 gallons of stormwater to the Charles River in the summer months alone, significantly reducing flooding in The Port neighborhood during the Boston area’s third-wettest summer on record.
Kleinfelder. Bright People. Right Solutions. Founded in 1961, Kleinfelder is a leading engineering, design, construction management, construction materials inspection and testing, and environmental professional services firm. Kleinfelder employs more than 3,000 professionals and operates from over 100 office locations in the United States, Canada, and Australia. The company is headquartered in San Diego, California. Poised for growth, Kleinfelder continues to provide high-quality solutions for our diverse client base. Visit Kleinfelder.com or follow us on LinkedIn/Kleinfelder.
