Repair of a Water Retention Vault in Chicago, USA

During the construction of a big-box store in the suburbs of Chicago, USA, a water retention vault underneath the parking lot was damaged. The retention system was built according to environmental regulations as a cast in place concrete vault and has a size of approx. 51.2m x 115.8m x 0.76m (168’ x 380’ x 2.5’).

After the vault and parking lot above had been completed, a company performing directional boring accidentally damaged the vault. The exterior vault wall was penetrated by the boring equipment creating a hole, which allowed for further damage to the interior walls.

The contractor engaged DSI to develop a comprehensive plan to repair the damage. An integral component of the repair was the development of an access plan to ensure safe working conditions in such a confined space. The plan included the very important component of implementation of a temporary air moving system to bring in fresh air along with proper equipment for continuous air monitoring. A special challenge during the execution of the repair work was posed by the limited chamber height of only 0.76m (2.5’) and by limited access to the vault.

The damaged vault was holding up the certificate of occupancy for the store. Consequently, the fast rapid implementation of the repair was of paramount importance and this was treated as an emergency project with the requirement of a very quick response time.

Thanks to excellent planning, this project was completed safely, on time, on budget and with the highest degree of quality.