Terminal Expansion Project

Description: 5 Tank Expansion Project

Type: Large Diameter, EFR External Floating Roof (Open Top)

Duration: 10 Months

Project details

TIW was subcontracted to engineer, supply, fabricate and field erect five (5), 272-ft diameter, 500,000 barrel oil storage tanks. This expansion and similar projects are planned between six to eight months in advance to ensure all details are carefully organized and professionally managed. Working at a record-setting pace, we completed the project within 10 months, from the day we received the first foundation in February to the day we hydrotested the last tank in December. To meet the aggressive timeline, we ran two shifts of workers starting in July.

TIW played an integral role in maintaining a zero incident, accident-free site, an accomplishment that earned the principal contractor (the company that hired us to complete the project) a safety flag award.

What we learned

Many of the lessons we learned during the expansion project have proven valuable on projects with tight timelines and multiple phases of construction. The multi-phase project presented many challenges, and required communication and cooperation between contractors working in the same vicinity simultaneously, as one set of tanks were constructed, and the foundations for another set were laid. These circumstances required the use of additional infrastructure and supervision support from the client.

Other challenges included a packed itinerary, coordinating tank radiography as well as maintaining and transporting equipment and material to the site. We worked simultaneous night shifts with subcontractors, who supplied and installed pontoon seals, and hired another subcontractor to complete false work on floating decks. We accounted for limited access to onsite roadways and the congested traffic of a site located in an inner city by busing workers to and from the site from off-site parking areas.

As on-site roadways were heavily used by other contractors, our access to them was limited. We also planned our routes and timelines to accommodate the congested inner city traffic. Once hydro testing was complete, we worked closely with a representative of the client to transport a welder and welding rig back to the area to do the required touch-ups without holding up the coater, who was scheduled to complete blasting. Though continuous snow removal from decks was another challenge, the mild winter weather of the year worked in our favour and factored into our ability to complete the project in record time.