Knowles Industrial Services Wins National Award for Major Project Achievement
GORHAM, Maine, Aug. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Knowles Industrial Services Corporation was honored with a national award for a major engineering and construction feat in repairing a large hydroelectric penstock under budget and on time.
The American Shotcrete Association presented the award to Knowles at a ceremony earlier this year in Las Vegas, Nevada. Alongside Knowles to receive the award were instrumental players John Kosar of Quikrete and Ray Schallom of RCS Consulting.
Last year, Knowles Industrial was deployed to the Falls Village Hydro Electric Plant in Canaan, Connecticut to perform a structural shotcrete liner repair within a steel-riveted penstock. First Light Power Resources, Inc. needed major repairs to its Falls Village hydroelectric penstock.
"A penstock is a sluice or floodgate for regulating the flow of a body of water, and this particular penstock consisted of a 9 ft diameter, 360 ft long structure buried in its entire length on a steep bank and crossing underneath a live highway," explains Billy Roy, Knowles engineer and project manager.
Because much of the existing penstock was encased in reinforced concrete beneath a roadway, engineers could not feasibly perform the replacement by excavation without requiring significant demolition and interruption to traffic in this area.
"We knew that we needed to develop a plan to replace the penstock liner without disruption to the hydro operation and highway traffic," said Roy.
After studying various solutions, it was determined that shotcrete (pneumatically-applied concrete), would be the best approach to keep job costs down and to provide the demanding structural integrity required.
"We are highly knowledgeable in shotcrete application," said senior vice president, Andrew Lawson. "We have many years of experience in many situations, and we were confident that we could do the job well."
The project was completed on time in the original 13-week schedule. Knowles crews worked 50+ hour weeks, including several weekends on and around holidays. The project recorded zero injuries with over 5,000 man hours worked and was completed under budget. Strict quality control standards and testing were followed in order to provide a high-quality, long-lasting product.
"We are extremely proud of our employee-owners in their dedication and workmanship on this project," said Lawson.
Knowles Industrial Services have been experts in specialty commercial and industrial repair and restoration since 1924. Due to the company's expertise, knowledge, unique approach, and safe, efficient, and innovative work methods Knowles is often sought out by clients for their knowledge on how to repair and restore their structures.
Contact: Billy Roy – [email protected]
1 800 834 1901
https://www.knowlesindustrial.com/
SOURCE Knowles Industrial
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