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offers clients architectural and structural design services, civil, transportation and environmental engineering expertise, consulting and communications technology solutions Blog Home LRKimball.comBlog Authors Contact Us Careers November 12, 2013 Wildlife Hazard Assessment is currently conducting wildlife hazard assessments on two (2) airports, which include monthly surveys, as well as quarterly surveys. The monthly surveys consist of time counts and runway crossing counts at established observation points within the Aircraft Operations Area (AOA) to document wildlife activity on-site, as well as time counts of wildlife activity at established observation points that are outside of the AOA but within the regular flight paths of the airports. In addition, supplemental monthly data is provided through incidental wildlife observations, wildlife camera deployments, operations staff observations, etc. Quarterly survey s are utilized to further document wildlife usage and potential wildlife attractants. Small mammal trapping assists in identifying the presence and abundance of small mammal species within the AOA, which could attract larger predator species. Nighttime spotlight surveys of the AOA are utilized to identify the presence, movement, and entrance/egress points of nocturnal species. In addition, potential wildlife attractants (i.e. parks, golf courses, waterways, Important Bird Areas, water treatment facilities, etc.) are examined within two (2) miles of the AOA through a preliminary desktop review, then individually through an on-the-ground assessment of the existing conditions, interviews with staff, etc. Lastly, a review of the perimeter fencing of the AOA is investigated for any potential issues that may allow wildlife to gain access to the AOA. Upon completion of the year-long wildlife hazard assessment, a report will be prepared to summarize the observations from the monthly and quarterly surveys, as well as provide wildlife and wildlife attractant management recommendations for the operations staff to improve the operational safety of aircraft within the AOA. Posted at 10:18 AM in Transportation | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Digg This | Save to del.icio.us | | August 27, 2013 Hires New Senior Bridge Engineer – CDI-Infrastructure, LLC is pleased to announce that Owen Trickey, P.E. has joined us as a Senior Bridge Engineer in our Philadelphia, Pennsylvania office. Mr. Trickey will focus on expanding our presence in southeastern Pennsylvania and in New Jersey. Mr. Trickey has over twenty-three years of design and project management experience with short and medium-span bridges. He is experienced with a wide variety of transportation structures for government clients including the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, the New Jersey Department of Transportation, New Jersey Transit, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, and Massachusetts Department of Transportation. His work includes single-span bridges, multi-span bridges, and viaducts consisting of steel, reinforced concrete, and prestressed concrete structural elements as well as retaining walls, noise barrier walls, culverts, and sign support structures. He is also experienced in accelerated bridge construction (ABC) techniques, fiber-reinforced concrete (FRP) bridge repair strategies, design-build construction, and private-public partnership (P3) projects. Mr. Trickey has been involved in a variety of bridge projects including S.R. 0202 Section 83S, the Dekalb Street Bridge over Norfolk Southern located in Bridgeport, Pennsylvania; S.R. 1013 Section 10S, the Dark Hollow Road Bridge over Tohickon Creek in Bucks County, Pennsylvania; and S.R. 0222, Section 001 in Berks County, Pennsylvania. He was also involved in preparing bid documents for the Travis Spur Rail Bridge over Route I-278 as part of the Goethals Bridge Replacement in Staten Island, New York, a P3 project for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey; the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail Extension, 22nd Street to 8th Street in Bayonne, New Jersey; and the River Road Bridge over Ironstone Brook in Uxbridge, Massachusetts, a folded-plate girder structure which featured accelerated bridge construction techniques prominently. Mr. Trickey earned an M.S. in Civil Engineering from Villanova University and has a B.S. in Civil Engineering and a B.S. in Architectural Engineering from Drexel University. He is a member of American Society of Highway Engineers and the American Society of Civil Engineers. He is a Licensed Professional Engineer in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts. Posted at 01:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBack (0) | Digg This | Save to del.icio.us | | August 15, 2013 Adding Value: The Standardization of Compressor Facilities Midstream companies traditionally have built a few compressor stations a year with periodic upgrades to implement new instrumentation technology, increase compression horsepower or improve control systems. New and upgraded facilities were few and relatively easy to complete with a minimum of skilled in-house design and engineering personnel. With the recent boom in the natural gas industry through the development of high-tech horizontal drilling into the gas shale plays in the Northeast, Midwest and Southwest areas of the U.S., companies now need multiple compressor stations to keep up with increased natural gas supply. Instead of a few new compressor stations every year or two, multiple compressor stations have become the new norm for many companies. With the growing demand for new compressor stations, it is no longer economically feasible to provide an individual design for each new compressor station. Schedules have been shortened and consistent quality has sometimes been sacrificed due to a lack of qualified construction crews. Construction schedules have been extended, and as experienced and qualified contractors become busier, the development of complete, high-quality compressor station design packages critical for consistent quality compressor station installations have become more difficult to achieve. Clearly, standardization is becoming the new norm for a very good reason: It adds value. Specifically, it creates value in three ways: First, capital expense reduction, mainly due to repeat engineering, volume contracts with preferred suppliers, discounts for material, and services and integration efficiency. Second, standardization enables project engineers to use proven designs and avoid "re-inventing the wheel." Standardization results in reduced FEED effort requirements, fewer mistakes and increased productivity, which in turn results in reduced cycle time, which in turn helps accelerate cash flow from operations. Third, value is created through reduced operating expenses for subsequent projects. This is mainly due to increased start-up efficiency, improved uptime, and commonality of equipment and training. CDI Corporation’s Oil, Gas & Chemicals business currently is in the process of helping a large natural gas midstream company to develop compressor station facility standards. As we develop standardized facilities for any of our clients, we establish a few key goals at the outset: Quick preparation of construction bid packages. Process and instrumentation drawings, piping standards, equipment packages, layout drawings, foundation details, control panel hook-ups, automation and electrical loops, and bill of materials are pre-prepared and pre-approved, resulting in a minimum of preparation time from the initial bid package to commissioning of the system. Timely proposal responses from qualified construction companies . Layout and construction schedules are reviewed, pre-checked and approved by qualified construction personnel to take into account the scope of work, schedule, construction sequencing and layout. Consistent construction and installation quality. Standardized materials, complete bill...