The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard owns and maintains a temporary steel modular-enclosure system to protect submarines during overhaul, repair, and modernization operations. While a contractor was repairing the modules in a nearby staging area, strong...
Expansion of the Minera Escondida copper mine included constructing a corrugated steel structural plate arch tunnel. The tunnel acts as a buried bridge to carry a haul road over the mine’s conveyor system. During construction of the...
The apartment complex, containing over 300 units in seven interconnected buildings, experienced sagging and settling of elevated walkways and balconies shortly after construction. SGH investigated the causes of distress in the wood-framed...
Concrete drilled shaft foundations, for two electrical utility projects, each support a single steel monopole tower structure for new overhead electrical transmission and generation lines. Surface defects in the concrete were discovered...
Our Lady of Perpetual Help School consists of single-story, brick-clad structure, built in 1958, and a second-story addition constructed in the early 1960s. Following a window replacement project in the 1990s, the exterior walls developed...
In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated St. Bernard Parish, located east of New Orleans, with high winds, heavy rains, and flooding due to failure of levees surrounding the parish. SGH evaluated the parish's schools and municipal...
On 29 October 2012, Hurricane Sandy made landfall along the eastern United States seaboard, bringing high winds and a tidal surge, and causing billions of dollars in damage to our built environment. Some of the worst damage was reported in the...
Steeplechase Pier, located in Coney Island, Brooklyn, was damaged by Hurricane Sandy in late 2012. During reconstruction of the pier in 2013, the mooring “spud” of a construction barge failed and the barge rammed into the pier, seriously damaging it. Their article outlines the response to investigate this damage and develop repairs, details the challenges of completing an investigation that determined the condition of the piles, and discusses how the aggressive schedule to reopen the pier ultimately determined the chosen repair scheme.
Hurricanes bring wind, rain, and flooding that can damage buildings, causing municipalities, asset managers, property owners, and insurance companies to seek information about their buildings’ condition. A post-hurricane assessment can help determine the extent and causes of damage to the building and its enclosure, including roofs, exterior wall cladding/siding, insulation, windows, and curtain walls.
Abstract: Investigation determined whether it was earthquakes, vibrations from nearby construction, or stone deterioration that led to claims of damage to this historic mausoleum.