MIDTOWN TUNNEL/MLK EXPRESSWAY EXPANSION

Clients: Waterfront Marine Construction, Inc. (General Contractor), SKW Constructors (Prime Contractor) and Elizabeth River Crossings/ERC (Owner)
Project Time Period: November 2013 – March 2016
Contract Value: $30 million
MCC Job No.: 13-10

PROJECT SCOPE

The scope of this project consisted of the planning, procurement and erection of over 17,000,000 pounds of structural steel, 13,000 LF of precast 69” Bulb Ts and 500 HLMR (High Load Multi-Rotational) and laminated elastomeric bearings. These superstructure components accounted for nearly a quarter of the cost of construction of the Martin Luther King Expressway extension, as part of the $2.1 billion Elizabeth River Tunnels project which interconnects one of the Hampton Roads’ most heavily travelled commercial routes.

PROJECT CHALLENGES

The short duration of the project as well as the adherence to the project’s strict planning and safety requirements were continuous challenges throughout the performance period. Recognizing this fact, the Martins Construction Corp. team set out to establish outstanding working relationships with a highly qualified and capable team of vendors to ensure fabrication of the components remains on schedule while preserving the budget. Additionally, the careful planning of the single and tandem crane lifts over site constraints such as swamp land, CSX train tracks, etc. constantly kept the project team and crews on their toes as they strived to ensure uncompromised safety and accuracy. Finally, not only was it the largest undertaking of the company by a considerable margin, the contract was also the farthest Martins Construction Corp. had ventured for a project, which introduced new logistical challenges for the team to overcome.

PROJECT SIGNIFICANCE

Though Martins Construction Corp. already had a long history of superstructure erection, all prior projects had been significantly smaller in terms of overall scope, cost and even lift capacities. Having said that, the well-planned, successful execution of a project of this magnitude, positioned the company as a respectable erector capable of procuring, managing and safely performing mega projects typically tackled only by firms highly focused on and specialized in erection services.