Civil Engineering Senior Projects 2009
Atwater Medical Facility
Carus Lake Sustainable Development
2010 Concrete Canoe
Highway Haven
Huron Charter Township Civic Center
Hybrid Vehicle Battery Research & Development Center
LEED Certified Parking Structure
Linden County Park Reconstruction
Michigan Central Depot Rehabilitation
Open Air Shopping Mall
River Cross Development
2009 Steel Bridge
Stony Creek Metropark Nature Center
Sustainability Is Elementary
Twin Lakes Plaza
Volunteer Park Redevelopment
Waterfront Development
Atwater Medical Facility
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Project Description
The student team, named the KGML Group, designed the Atwater Medical Facility, a 48,000-square-foot medical office building located in the historic Eastern Market in Detroit, Michigan. The facility provides a medical clinic, daycare, pharmacy, and rentable office space to an underserved community. To attain Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, the students performed their engineering roles in accordance with specific criteria set forth by the U.S. Green Building Council. The building’s design is comprised of steel construction and composite floors, with a moment frame lateral system. The team’s geotechnical engineer designed a full basement along with a shallow foundation system. The water resources engineer utilized low impact development best management practices to design a bio-retention cell, cisterns, and a green roof. The construction engineer, performing project management services, developed a conceptual estimate, critical path schedule, and logistics plan. The team employed elements of Building Information Modeling to provide the effective and efficient review of the various design and construction components.
Carus Lake Sustainable Development
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Project Description
The Carus Lake Sustainable Development, located in Commerce Township, Michigan, north of M-5 and Pontiac Trail and adjacent to a restored conservation area, consists of a timber-framed nature center, a steel-framed open-air farmers’ market, and community gardens. The project also includes new roads and a supporting stormwater management system. The student team, named WTLL, designed the Carus Lake complex using sustainable design strategies. The nature center meets Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) gold certification specifications and the stormwater management system employs low impact design best management practices. Portions of the parking lots are pervious pavement, and the construction process was developed to minimize site impact.
The complex is intended to provide residents a place to enjoy the natural environment, shop for locally grown produce, and tend a garden while creating an exemplary sustainable development that plants the seed for a sustainable community.
2010 Concrete Canoe
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Project Description
The concrete canoe team created the USS Lawrence, a lightweight concrete canoe featuring 50 percent recycled aggregates and the latest innovations in aggregate use, design, construction, and display. The canoe conforms to the competition specifications determined by the North Central Regional Conference. The canoe’s hull is 20 feet long and the craft’s design focused on recycled aggregate and sustainable practices. The competition also considered the canoe’s weight versus strength statistics; the quality of the team’s display, reports, and presentations; and the times it earned in the water in a series of five races. The team participated in the 2010 North Central Regional Conference competition, March 26–28, and placed in all but one category. The team earned second place in final product, second place in design paper, and third place in oral presentation, achieving third place overall with no deductions in any category.
Highway Haven
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Project Description
Highway Haven is a conceptual design for a rest area and welcome center located on I-75 one mile north of the Michigan/Ohio border in Monroe County, Michigan. Designed by student team High Top Civil Consultants (HTCC), Highway Haven is unique to Michigan in that the structure bridges over the freeway. This design allows access to facilities on both sides of the freeway, thereby increasing the potential number of people who visit the rest area. This higher density makes the site more inviting for corporations to lease space for fast food restaurants or coffee shops. By allowing chains to operate in Highway Haven, the Michigan Department of Transportation could potentially offset a large portion of the operation and maintenance costs associated with typical highway facilities, as well create new
sources of property and sales tax revenues for the state.
The Highway Haven project presented several real-world challenges to the HTCC team. The project’s location is adjacent to a 100-year flood plain and sits on a high water table with poorly draining soils, creating difficulties for the geotechnical, water resources, and construction engineers. The structural engineer was faced with designing a very complex structure that included two bridges that spanned about 90 feet of highway and were able to withstand a multitude of loads.
The Highway Haven project is an opportunity to change a visitor’s perspective of Michigan during difficult times. In this first Michigan experience, the visitor would get the impression that Michigan is an innovative and exciting state that cares about its past but looks toward the future.
Huron Charter Township Civic Center
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Project Description
Student team Premier Engineers, Inc. provided design and project management services for the Huron Charter Township Civic Center. Located in New Boston, Michigan, in Huron Charter Township, the civic center includes a recreational facility with a small retail development and a professional day care center. The recreational facility offers multiple activities: a gymnasium, swimming pool, auditorium, computer lab, lounge, and more. The retail development encompasses both shopping and food services. The main building is a 15-foot-high single-story structure with a total area of about 73,000 square feet. The glass-enclosed gymnasium is 30 feet high, with a total area of approximately 19,200 square feet.
Hybrid Vehicle Battery Research & Development Center
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Project Description
Student team Innovative Design Solutions designed a Hybrid Vehicle Battery Research & Development Center, a steel structure that serves as both laboratory and office space. The site plan includes a test track and parking lots. The test track varies in pavement roughness to provide different vehicle driving conditions. The storm and sanitary sewer system was designed to incorporate low impact development features such as green roofs, bioswales, bioretention ponds, and rain gardens to reduce the environmental impact of the site. The team developed a detailed construction plan that included project cost estimates, network schedule, permit plan, and site logistics plan.
LEED Certified Parking Structure
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Project Description
Student team LEED Parking Structures Inc. designed a safe and secure parking structure in downtown Detroit that provides visitor parking not only for events at Comerica Park and Ford Field, but also for area restaurants and businesses. Situated on a one-block parcel of land located at 2495 Woodward Ave. between Vernor Highway and Henry Street, the structure serves as a model of sustainable urban design, employing materials and design practices that minimize pollution and the building’s environmental footprint. The six-story concrete parking structure was designed to meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification and has a green roof that will minimize stormwater runoff and reduce the heat island effect by up to 50 percent. The structure is 46,000 square feet in size with a parking capacity of 672 cars.
Linden County Park Reconstruction
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Project Description
The 14-acre Linden County Park is located in Genesee County, Michigan, and borders Byram Lake. Currently owned by Genesee County and maintained by the Genesee County Parks and Recreation, the park features a beach area, 930 feet of water frontage, a gravel parking lot, and a gravel trail. The objective of the reconstruction project was to provide an attractive and functional recreation area while conforming to the best practices of sustainability and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) guidelines. Its scope encompassed the design and construction of several structures, including a pavilion, maintenance building, and a multi-use recreation building. Also involved was the design and construction of several retaining walls, a parking lot, stormwater retention, boat launch, and hiking/bike paths.
The site’s unique topography created many design challenges. Because of a 55-foot change in elevation from the high end at the road to the low end at the water, particular attention had to be paid to soil
erosion and sedimentation control efforts. This elevation change also made it difficult to achieve ADA accessibility. Additionally, the site’s location on the lake and within the influence of a flood plan impacted the team’s design decisions.
Michigan Central Depot Rehabilitation
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Project Description
Student team Navta Engineering, Inc. designed a renovation of the Michigan Central Depot that rehabilitates a vacant historic structure and brings much needed business to the Detroit area. Navta selected the structure for its rich history and beauty and to address the need to rehabilitate pre-existing structures rather than building on undeveloped land. The students’ plan was to transform the building into a multi-purpose commercial and residential complex that would aid in bringing residents and businesses back to Detroit. The transportation engineering portion of the project included redesigning the surrounding road network to accommodate the increase in traffic and address the parking needs of the facility. The construction engineering portion entailed the coordination and documentation of all design and construction efforts. The geotechnical engineer utilized innovative design technologies to create a micropiling system to reinforce the existing building foundation. The structural engineer used current design standards and practices to establish requirements for the updated use of the building. The students endeavored to produce a structure whose long history and detailed aesthetics coexist with the modern-day design and construction methods used to rehabilitate it.
Open Air Shopping Mall
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Project Description
The Open Air Shopping Mall designed by student team MC Development is an outdoor shopping experience located in Canton, Michigan. The students focused on creating a low impact development to provide building tenants with an attractive location that would amplify sales. The structural engineer designed safe and cost-effective building structures. The transportation engineer redesigned the adjacent Lotz Road into a boulevard to sustain increased traffic. The water resources engineer incorporated bioretention cells, pervious pavements, and green roofs for stormwater management. The geotechnical engineer designed trench and column footings to sustain building loads. The construction engineer created the project management plan, including all subsidiary plans. The project management plan included a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification plan demonstrating MC Development’s commitment to sustainability.
River Cross Development
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Project Description
River Cross is a planned urban development project that incorporates several mixed-use buildings, condominiums, and apartment buildings. Located in Novi, Michigan, near the southeast corner of the 10 Mile Road and Novi Road intersection, this 64-acre development incorporates a new urbanism that allows residents to work in the shops, restaurants, and businesses; live in private residences with scenic rooftop terraces; and park cars in a garage – all in a three-story building with a mat foundation. The design includes wide sidewalks to encourage pedestrian traffic, store front vending operations, and small green areas with scenic walkways.
This small community incorporates modern structural design, several safe, low-speed roundabouts, and an efficient water distribution network and sewer collection system. The location allows for low impact development, reducing the construction footprint on the natural environment, and includes the aesthetic beauty of a flood plain. The plan encourages the reduction of gas consumption by local residents, allows business owners to live close to their shops, and creates a pedestrian-friendly environment.
2009 Steel Bridge
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Project Description
The student team designed, tested, and fabricated a bridge for the 2009 Student Steel Bridge Competition sponsored by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). The bridge, built for a theoretical Department of Transportation client, had to be built to competition specifications: 2.5 feet tall and 20 feet long with support chords below the decking structure. During competition, the bridges had to be erected under simulated field conditions and then load tested for 2,500 pounds. The team that designed their bridge to weigh the least, hold the required load with minimal deflection, and built it the fastest won the competition. The Lawrence Tech Steel Bridge Team participated in the Regional Conference in April 2009 and placed in all seven categories and placed first overall in the competition. As a result the Steel Bridge team participated in the National Competition in Las Vegas in May 2009, where they finished ninth on display, 14th in construction speed, and 19th overall (out of 47 teams).
Stony Creek Metropark Nature Center
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Project Description
Student team IAW Engineering was tasked by the Huron-Clinton Metropolitan Authority and the Senior Design Venture Fund to develop an educational nature center in the Stony Creek Metropark that would be used to educate the public about the local natural environment and the wildlife that inhabits it. Their solution, the Stony Creek Nature Center, is a two-story, 10,000-square-foot structure built to serve as an example of sustainable design and provide a multifunctional space for classrooms, conference rooms, exhibition areas, and office spaces. Additional components include a two-lane access road to the site, a porous pavement parking lot, and alternative energy instillations. IAW Engineering also oversaw the design of all environmental and structural components of the facility, as well as its construction.
Sustainability Is Elementary
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Project Description
Sustainability Is Elementary, by student team RD Design/Build, is an elementary school located west of US-23 on Torrey Road, just south of Hill Road in Mundy Township, Michigan. The project concept was to create a sustainable facility that reduces material and increases energy efficiency, thereby reducing the school’s carbon footprint. All engineering disciplines involved in the project followed specific criteria set forth by the U.S. Green Building Council to attain Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) platinum certification. The structural engineer utilized a sustainable concrete mixture specifically tailored for this region of Michigan to maximize concrete usage. The geotechnical and environmental engineers collaborated to design an open-looped geothermal HVAC system, and the environmental engineer focused on designing air delivery and water filtration systems. The water resources engineer designed several environmentally friendly components, including a green roof, a storm/sanitary sewer system, and dry wells. The construction engineer developed a logistics plan, critical path schedule, and a conceptual estimate of several building systems. The team employed elements of Building Information Modeling to provide the effective and efficient review of the various design components. After the design was complete, Green Building Studio was utilized to analyze and measure the carbon footprint of the structure as if it were a functioning elementary school.
Twin Lakes Plaza
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Project Description
Student team DMC Design-Build proposed the development of the Twin Lakes Plaza, a commercial retail complex located in Shelby Township, Michigan, on the west side of Van Dyke between 25 and 26 Mile Roads. Twin Lakes Plaza would have a positive effect on the economic and social growth of the surrounding area, which has already begun to thrive. Capturing the potential growth and increasing the community’s employment opportunities will ensure the success of the proposed multi-use complex. The plaza’s single building, offering an estimated 20,000 square feet of leasing space, would allow for a variety of small businesses, restaurants, and offices. The building’s architectural features will conform to the aesthetic quality of the surrounding area.
Volunteer Park Redevelopment
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Project Description
Student team EEE Consultants, Inc. developed a plan to upgrade and expand facilities in the 130-acre Volunteer Park between Eight and Nine Mile Roads off of Dixboro Road, for the community of South Lyon, Michigan. The township needed more recreational facilities for its growing youth baseball, softball, and soccer teams. Based on the projected future growth of the community, the team recommended that two baseball diamonds and four soccer fields be constructed and that the adjacent subdivisions be connected to the park by pedestrian pathways. The team also recommended that Eight Mile and Dixboro Roads, which border the park, be paved and expanded to accept higher traffic volumes.
Approximately 30 acres of the park are regulated wetlands. These wetlands would remain undisturbed and protected throughout construction. In accordance with the team’s low impact development goals, stormwater runoff from the parking lot and roads would be collected using bioswales and a constructed wetland area. The restroom facility for the park would include a rainwater harvesting system that would use stored rainwater to supplement water use. The team’s design decisions ensured that the Volunteer Park Redevelopment would qualify for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.
Waterfront Development Project
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Project Description
The team, Platinum Associates, selected the former Uniroyal Tire Factory site, located in downtown Detroit, as the subject for their senior project. The students’ goal was to analyze and remediate the contaminants present on the 44-acre site to allow for redevelopment, which would include a mid-rise residential housing unit and continuation of the Detroit RiverWalk. The team’s design incorporated site excavation, vapor mitigation system, post-tensioned concrete slabs, drilled shaft foundations, and a detailed construction analysis.