Description
Connect Cité is a general partnership between Aecon and EBC delivering the Réseau Express Métropolitain (REM) station at YUL Montréal-Trudeau International Airport. The Montreal-Trudeau International Airport REM Station is a significant addition to the city’s transit system and will be a critical hub for the REM network, guaranteeing reliable, frequent service to and from the airport, connecting to REM lines in Montreal.
Concrete monitoring is in place on the project to enable the team to deliver concrete walls efficiently, managing productivity, safety and quality.
Challenges
PERI / Vemaventuri approached the project to provide an overview of the concrete monitoring solutions as part of an on site lunch and learn. Initially pressure monitoring was being delivered by the team using tie bar load cells, but these eventually failed and the Connect Cité team sought out an alternative pressure monitoring solution.
The project features tall, single sided walls where pressure monitoring is critical. Pressure sensors enable the team to monitor the actual concrete behaviour under ambient conditions, and adjust the concrete placement speed. Algorithms typically used to calculate horizontal formwork pressure loads assume concrete remains hydrostatic for an initial setting period. Using pressure monitoring, we can observe the actual concrete behaviour as it solidifies and the loading transfers into the structure.
Solution and results
The direct observation of pressure development enables the team to increase pouring speeds while staying within safe pressure limits. This can reduce overall pour times by 10-30% for every pour. For larger pours, particularly those where the pour continues into overtime hours, is a significant time and therefore cost saving for the project.
The Vemaventuri web application provides data visualisation and management for the team to carry out detailed analysis, as well as set notification and warnings for pressure limits. This analysis means that future pours can be carried out quicker, optimising before the concrete is placed, and informing programme and procedures on site.
