2018 ASA Outstanding Shotcrete Project Awards

The American Shotcrete Association (ASA) is proud to announce the recipients of its 2018 Outstanding Shotcrete Project Awards. The recipients were honored at the 14th Annual ASA Awards Banquet held in conjunction with the Shotcrete Convention & Technology Conference, Feb. 26 in Fernandina Beach, Fla. These awards confirm and demonstrate the exceptional advantages of shotcrete placement of concrete.

“We’re excited to showcase these outstanding 2018 winning projects. They exemplify how shotcrete placement creates high quality, durable concrete construction in a wide variety of applications. The projects demonstrate the inherent benefits of shotcrete, including enhanced sustainability, creativity, efficiency, strength and flexibility,” said Charles Hanskat, ASA Executive Director.

The winners were selected by an awards committee comprised of shotcrete professionals who dedicated their time and invaluable expertise, including Lars Balck, Bill Drakeley, Axel Nitschke, Tait Pirkle, Ryan Poole and Scott Rand.

The 2018 Outstanding Shotcrete Project recipients include:

Outstanding Architecture | New Construction Project
AMMP Geffen Theater, Los Angeles, Calif.

AMMP Geffen Theater, a prominent construction project in Southern California, comprised of over 7,000 cubic yards of 7,000 psi shotcrete for construction of a new basement, a seismic retrofit of the existing May Company Building and “The Bowl,” an elevated theater structure. The “Bowl” structure used precast panels to form its unique shape, but the inside structural concrete required 2-foot thick shotcrete placement to create full-height, three-dimensional complex curved shear-walls, rising to 50 feet in height.

Project credits: Superior Gunite, Shotcrete Contractor; Renzo Piano Building Workshop/M. Arthur Gensler Jr. & Associates, Architect/Engineer; Cemex, Material Supplier/Manufacturer;

Western Shotcrete Equipment, Equipment Manufacturer; Matt Construction, General Contractor and Academy Museum Foundation, Project Owner.

Outstanding Infrastructure Project
Oroville Dam Emergency Recovery Project, Oroville, Calif.

Built in 1957, Oroville Dam is 770 feet high and is the tallest dam in the U.S. It provides water supply, hydroelectric generation and flood control for northern California. In 2017, Oroville

Dam’s main and emergency spillways were damaged, prompting the evacuation of more than

180,000 people living downstream. Temporary 8-inch spillway walls were installed against roller-compacted concrete berms. Concrete strength was 4,000 psi, with welded wire fabric steel reinforcing. A smooth, durable, hard trowel finish with no offsets was paramount to avoid damage during spillway discharge.

Project credits: Superior Gunite, Shotcrete Contractor; State of California, Department of Water Resources, Architect/Engineer; Mathews Readymix, LLC, Material Supplier/Manufacturer; Western Shotcrete Equipment, Equipment Manufacturer; Kiewit Infrastructure West Co., General Contractor and State of California, Department of Water Resources, Project Owner.

The Outstanding International Project
Pampoen Nek Cutting, Hartbeespoort, Gauteng, South Africa

Situated near the Hartbeespoort Dam in the Gauteng province of South Africa, the Pampoen Nek Cutting bisects the landscape into what will become an extension to the highway road network connecting the northern suburbs of Johannesburg with the mining towns of Brits and Rustenburg. Steel fabric was installed, and shotcrete was placed to provide enough space for a four-lane highway through a mountain pass. The sides of the mountains needed to be supported as they were excavated away creating the space for the roads. A rockscape finish was then applied using the wet-mix process and painted to match the colors of the surrounding rock strata and blend in with the environment.

Project credits: Shotcrete Africa SCP, Shotcrete Contractor; Aurecon Consulting Engineers/Aveng, Architect/Engineer; 3Q Ready Mix, Material Supplier/Manufacturer; REED Shotcrete Equipment, Equipment Manufacturer; Aveng Ground Engineering, General Contractor and South African National Roads Agency, Project Owner.

Outstanding Pool & Recreational Project
City of Frisco Texas Northeast Community Skate Park, Frisco, Texas

The 47,000-square-foot destination-sized skatepark within Northeast Community Park

accommodates many skateboarding terrain types. The project used 850 cubic yards of wet-mix shotcrete work with a Class-A steel trowel finish. Shotcrete placement accounts for almost 50 percent of the 1800 cubic yards of concrete on the project. Shotcrete was the natural choice because it is the most controlled and productive method to produce the tight tolerances for the intricate shapes and contours required of the skateboarding surface. Shotcrete was used throughout the project for banks, quarter pipes, skateable art and various transitional elements.

Project credits: SPA Skateparks, Shotcrete Contractor; New Line Skateparks, Architect/Engineer; Redi-Mix Concrete, Material Supplier/Manufacturer; Putzmeister, Equipment Manufacturer; CORE Construction, General Contractor and City of Frisco, Project Owner. 

Outstanding Repair & Rehabilitation Project
Queens Midtown Tunnel Rehabilitation, Queens, N.Y.

The Queens Midtown Tunnel (QMT) is a twin-tube, tolled, four-lane highway that serves over 90,000 vehicles each day. The QMT suffered catastrophic damage from hurricane Sandy in 2012. Long-term permanent repairs and upgrades included a new fireproof ceiling with new wall tiles, duct banks, curbs and gutters, LED lighting, traffic signals and improved evacuation signage. Shotcrete was the primary method of structural strengthening, as well as vertical, overhead and large leak repairs.

Project credits: Cruz Concrete & Guniting Repair Inc., Shotcrete Contractor; URS, Architect/Engineer; US Concrete Products, Material Supplier/Manufacturer; Putzmeister, Equipment Manufacturer; Judlau-OHL North America, General Contractor and Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), Project Owner.

Outstanding Underground Project
Tiber Creek Sewer Rehabilitation, Washington D.C.

As part of the DC Clean Rivers Project – Division 1 Main Pumping Station Diversions, the Tiber

Creek trunk sewer was designated to receive a new structural liner in a 122-foot portion nearby the intersection of New Jersey Avenue and Tingey Street in southeast Washington D.C. The rehabilitation involved creating new supporting arch structures using shotcrete placement between previously installed steel bents. Once the shotcrete arches reached the required strength, the steel bents were removed, a new mat of reinforcing steel was installed and the entire length of repair fitted with a new continuous 6-inch thick shotcrete liner.

Project credits: Coastal Gunite Construction Company, Shotcrete Contractor; Greeley & Hansen/Jacobs Associates, Architect/Engineer; King Packaged Materials, Material Supplier/Manufacturer; Putzmeister/Cemen Tech, Equipment Manufacturer; Corman Construction, General Contractor and DC Water and Sewer Authority, Project Owner. 

Honorable Mentions
I-91 Brattleboro Bridge, Brattleboro, Vt.

Precast sculpted rock form panels were placed going up the piers of the I-91 Brattleboro Bridge. However, it wasn’t possible to place the panels at the arched and inverted section near the top of the piers. Shotcrete was used for this architectural application, providing ready access for placement as well as the ability to carve the wet concrete to match the look of previously placed precast panels.

Project credits: Superior Gunite, Shotcrete Contractor; Sebago Technics, Architect/Engineer; Carroll Concrete Co., Material Supplier/Manufacturer; Western Shotcrete Equipment, Equipment Manufacturer; PCL, General Contractor and Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTRANS), Project Owner. 

Pier 10 Prestressed Concrete Girder Repairs, Brooklyn, N.Y.

The versatility of shotcrete was vital to the success of this project. The Hudson and East Rivers meet at the face of the pier, resulting in an extremely rough wake and water current under the pier. In addition, the only access point for the crew and tools was a small 4-foot by 6-foot-opening cut through an existing sheet pile wall system that could only be reached by a small boat. After removal of all the deteriorated concrete, the pier was structurally rehabilitated with shotcrete placement of high strength, low permeability concrete providing an economical and durable repair.

Project credits: Eastco Shotcrete LLC, Shotcrete Contractor; Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Architect/Engineer; King Packaged Materials, Material Supplier/Manufacturer;

King Shotcrete Equipment, Equipment Manufacturer; Eastco Shotcrete LLC, General Contractor and Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Project Owner.

Full project details can be found in the Winter 2019 issue of Shotcrete magazine. ASA will accept 2019 ASA Outstanding Shotcrete Project Awards program applications from April to October 2019. For more information, visit www.shotcrete.org or contact us at 248.848.3780.

About The American Shotcrete Association
The American Shotcrete Association (ASA), headquartered in Farmington Hills, Mich., is a non-profit organization of contractors, suppliers, manufacturers, designers, engineers, owners and others with a common interest in advancing the use of shotcrete. Founded in 1998, ASA advocates for the recognition and safe application of the shotcrete process in concrete construction.

Got more questions about your project?

  • Drop files here or
    Accepted file types: jpeg, jpg, gif, png, pdf, Max. file size: 50 MB.
      Allowed formats: jpeg, jpg, gif, png, pdf
    • How would you like us to respond?

    • Note: Some questions will be published anonymously with their answers at the end of this story to share with other readers.