Box drain contractor standards are not for a public bridge

[cornfused]

THE entire decking of the spanking new $15.4 million St Joseph bridge is set to be demolished to avert a major disaster. Sunday Express Anika Gumbs Sunday 7th June 2015

Sunday Express investigations have revealed works at the construction site ground to a halt earlier this month after it was found the contractor—KJS Enterprises Ltd—used an inferior concrete mixture on the deck of the bridge, located along the Eastern Main Road.

The bridge failed the test after it was discovered the strength of the concrete mixture was ten newton millimetres.

The specifications for the bridge stipulated the concrete mixture must be 30 newton millimetres to sustain the weight and capacity of vehicles, in order to avoid the bridge collapsing.

However, for reasons unknown, KJS Enterprises Ltd deviated from the specifications.

The company refused to give an explanation when contacted by the Sunday Express last Friday, asking why the rules relating to the construction of the bridge were not followed.

Founder and chairman of KJS Ltd Kamaljeet Singh said only: “I have no information.”

The St Joseph bridge forms part of the Bridges, Land and Traffic Management (BLT) Reconstruction Programme, under the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure.

The National Infrastructure Development Company (Nidco) is the project manager for the job.

Companies were invited to submit bids for the jobs in October and November 2012.

Ministry officials told the Sunday Express the St Joseph bridge was set to be opened this month but its failure has caused a delay of approximately seven weeks.

Nidco chairman Dr Carson Charles minced no words when contacted by the Sunday Express on the matter last Thursday.

Indicating he had received a demolition schedule for the bridge, Charles placed the blame squarely on the contractor and said: “Our information which we received this week is that the contractor's work failed the test.

“The contractor is responsible for its work. He has his own concrete plan and he is responsible for delivering concrete on his project. Once he meets the specification for the concrete strength, we cannot tell him where to get the concrete from.

“The contractor chose to use concrete from his plant and our information is that his concrete failed the strength test that was conducted last week.”

Charles said the entire decking for the bridge has to be removed at the expense of the contractor.

“The contractor has to start over. After the contractors pour the concrete, our consultants conduct tests and if they fail, it has to be redone.

If the concrete does not meet the strength standard of 30 newton millimetres, it is failed,” Charles said.

Charles said the advice of the engineer was ignored.

“If the contractor was listening to the consultant engineer, the demolition could have been avoided. He was supposed to follow the advice of the engineer, but contractors are sometimes stubborn and they prefer to take risk.

The contractor wasted our time because Nidco was preparing to open the bridge soon, but we now have to wait a longer time for it to be opened.

He has also wasted a tremendous amount of his own money by having to remove all that amount of concrete. If the concrete is not removed carefully, it can also damage the underlying structure. It is really something when a contractor does not want to take advice from the engineer supervising a job; but that's how some contractors are—they want to take risk.”

Charles said the contractor was following the guidelines up until the decking was constructed.

“The contractor was going quite well. He had some early difficulties in starting up because of design plans. It was found that where the water lines were was shallow and this needed to be rectified.

The contractor started the job and now, coming to the end, he did foolishness.It will take months because all the steel works would be destroyed because it is embedded in the concrete. Removing the decking takes a lot of time. It has to be jackhammered and then the steel work has to be redone.

The engineer would also have to inspect the underlying steel work to see if it is damaged.”

Asked if any action is taken against the contractor for violating the rules, Charles said: “It goes on his record because we have a progress report of the job. It may affect him when other evaluations are being done.”

As to whether KJS Enterprises Ltd had the experience for the job, Charles said the company was selected by the evaluation committee.

“There is an evaluation committee and if the price is good, they are awarded the contract.

Nidco took the additional precaution and only awarded one or two contracts per contractor. Even if contractors had good prices, we took a decision not to award contractors more than two to avoid them from getting into trouble.

I don't know contractors' business, but I know some of them have financial issues.

After they get the advance payment from us, they put up a bond and, then, they basically have to finance the work for themselves so some of them get into difficulty along the way. The contractors need to understand that the standards are upheld.

I think part of the problem with this job is the distance of the concrete plant.

The plant is in South Trinidad so by the time the concrete arrives in the North, it must be used immediately because it could deteriorate,” Charles said.

Charles said Brazilian firm Construtora OAS Ltd, which is building the Point Fortin Highway, also underwent a similar problem.

I just want to state that all should be happy that QC inspections were done to ratify this scope . I am a bit confused not surprised as to why a safety specification such as this for a high traffic bridge would be overlooked . We need not look to other bridge projects of recent history to show the poor construction, specification and PM that has allowed sub standard works to be delivered using the public's purse .

West bound on the UBH over the Caroni River

West bound on the bridge opposite Trincity mall , poor culvert construction and expansion joints choice .


Speaking of expansion joints for concrete pavement surfaces , the Aranguez overpass uses a interlocking finger type expansion joint system verses the poorly constructed or maintained straight line modular system . This system is ubiquitous but has abysmal performance in these parts .

In public procurement it usually comes down to price but I know that experience can also be a factor . It also up to the procurement lead to address the necessary weighting factors to try and ensure that while price is the ultimate consideration , other needed factor also come into play in coming up with the award .

That said, this is interesting and we await to see if this is a watershed event in recent public works projects . QC is paramount

[Crackpot]

*awaits commission of inquiry* las alturas style

[hustla_ambition101]

St Helena bridge has a drop.........wonder if any testing was done there

[1UZFE]

Well done authorities....!!
Finally a stance against sub standard work....

[shotta 20]

Thing is.....there's not that great price difference between 10n and 30n concrete. Esp since the SC has his own batch plant.

[EFFECTIC DESIGNS]

St Helena bridge has a drop.........wonder if any testing was done there

Yes I told my father the same thing yesterday when we passed over it. How are they going to fix that?

[Toyopet]

St Helena bridge has a drop.........wonder if any testing was done there

Yes I told my father the same thing yesterday when we passed over it. How are they going to fix that?

On the St Helena bridge, that drop would most likely be a result of either sub-grade, sub-base or base material failure, possibly due to poor quality material, inadequate compaction etc. The concrete bridge structure is a rigid structure, having very limited displacement whereas the sub-grade, sub-base or base course are flexible pavements and can settle or displace considerably, causing the drop off that occurred.

Thing is.....there's not that great price difference between 10n and 30n concrete. Esp since the SC has his own batch plant.

The article rightly (for once) described the contractor as stubborn. The approved mix for this site was to be supplied by Alescon. But due to the way contracts according to FIDIC are set up, once the contract has been handed over to the contractor, the site is now his and he is able to deviate from what is approved, doing so at his own risk against the advice of the employer, client and engineer. KJS, for some baffling reason insisted on using their own concrete, said they were confident in it's strength and insisted on using it,saying in writing that they would take the risk. Well the risk backfired and they now have to stand the cost of demolition and reconstruction and I am very sure they will be hit with liquidated damages for the time overrun.

This contractor is closely associated with the present government and those charged with the responsibility of awarding the contracts, knowing fully well the situation at the St Joseph bridge saw it fit to award KJS with a second bridge. This while other contractors, such as Eastern Engineering who completed a bridge recently and used materials of higher than required quality but within budget, were not awarded second bridges.

[EFFECTIC DESIGNS]

^ I passed over the bridge again, when coming from the airport side and you cross the last point on the bridge the car drops.

This means the bridge is higher than the road, sooo I guess the bridge didn't drop? but how is that possible for the road to be lower? surely the bridge didn't raise?

[TurboSingh12]

Them paved our trace and in 3months time it stared to cave!

[Rory Phoulorie]

. . . This contractor is closely associated with the present government and those charged with the responsibility of awarding the contracts, knowing fully well the situation at the St Joseph bridge saw it fit to award KJS with a second bridge. . .

This is the main problem right here.

Kallco is worse off than KJS and they got a second bridge contract from the same state enterprise. Right now they tearing down more mountain in Toco than building bridge.

[zoom rader]

^^^ How many contracts have you been refused under PP

[BRZ]

Things like this tend to Happen when Awarding of contracts go out to Favored companies that appeared out of nowhere vs companies that have been around for years with Great reputations but are not connected to any particular Government.

[zoom rader]

Things like this tend to Happen when Awarding of contracts go out to Favored companies that appeared out of nowhere vs companies that have been around for years with Great reputations but are not connected to any particular Government.

Guess that's how SIS started out under PNM In the early 1980s

[src1983]

At least they showing them up now, long ago crap work like this would have been passed.

Just a few months ago, a contractor had to rebuild a road due to poor construction.

[src1983]

Things like this tend to Happen when Awarding of contracts go out to Favored companies that appeared out of nowhere vs companies that have been around for years with Great reputations but are not connected to any particular Government.

Doesn't matter, look at the big contractors

JS, Coosal and Seereram none of them could build a road lasting more than 5 years

[Toyopet]

Things like this tend to Happen when Awarding of contracts go out to Favored companies that appeared out of nowhere vs companies that have been around for years with Great reputations but are not connected to any particular Government.

Doesn't matter, look at the big contractors

JS, Coosal and Seereram none of them could build a road lasting more than 5 years

To be fair, contractors will only do what they are told do di un the contract. Most roads that have been milled and resurfaced tend to fail son after because the initial failure goes deeper than asphalt. The client/enginerr would be the ones to decide what is done in the first place.

EFFECTIC, the bridge wood not raise, at least not that quickly. The material used to build up the roadway at the approach and exits of the bridge wood settle considerably if it eave compacted properly. That downward movement of the fill material is what would cause the drop.

[src1983]

Things like this tend to Happen when Awarding of contracts go out to Favored companies that appeared out of nowhere vs companies that have been around for years with Great reputations but are not connected to any particular Government.

Doesn't matter, look at the big contractors

JS, Coosal and Seereram none of them could build a road lasting more than 5 years

To be fair, contractors will only do what they are told do di un the contract. Most roads that have been milled and resurfaced tend to fail son after because the initial failure goes deeper than asphalt. The client/enginerr would be the ones to decide what is done in the first place.

EFFECTIC, the bridge wood not raise, at least not that quickly. The material used to build up the roadway at the approach and exits of the bridge wood settle considerably if it eave compacted properly. That downward movement of the fill material is what would cause the drop.

1 example of what I am taking about is the Tabaquite Road.

There are many more, I was passing somewhere in south where I saw a recently constructed retaining wall fail

[Slartibartfast]

Things like this tend to Happen when Awarding of contracts go out to Favored companies that appeared out of nowhere vs companies that have been around for years with Great reputations but are not connected to any particular Government.

Doesn't matter, look at the big contractors

JS, Coosal and Seereram none of them could build a road lasting more than 5 years

To be fair, contractors will only do what they are told do di un the contract. Most roads that have been milled and resurfaced tend to fail son after because the initial failure goes deeper than asphalt. The client/enginerr would be the ones to decide what is done in the first place.

EFFECTIC, the bridge wood not raise, at least not that quickly. The material used to build up the roadway at the approach and exits of the bridge wood settle considerably if it eave compacted properly. That downward movement of the fill material is what would cause the drop.

Even properly built approaches can settle a little bit at the beginning. In these cases resurfacing of the roadway can solve the problem. However, if the approach was not constructed properly then there is almost no way to get away from that problem other than digging it up and putting in the proper sub base materials and compacting it properly.

[pete]

I think the bridge by caroni had that same problem a while after it was completed. Just needs to be resurfaced and should be good to go.

[Toyopet]

Things like this tend to Happen when Awarding of contracts go out to Favored companies that appeared out of nowhere vs companies that have been around for years with Great reputations but are not connected to any particular Government.

Doesn't matter, look at the big contractors

JS, Coosal and Seereram none of them could build a road lasting more than 5 years

To be fair, contractors will only do what they are told do di un the contract. Most roads that have been milled and resurfaced tend to fail son after because the initial failure goes deeper than asphalt. The client/enginerr would be the ones to decide what is done in the first place.

EFFECTIC, the bridge wood not raise, at least not that quickly. The material used to build up the roadway at the approach and exits of the bridge wood settle considerably if it eave compacted properly. That downward movement of the fill material is what would cause the drop.

1 example of what I am taking about is the Tabaquite Road.

There are many more, I was passing somewhere in south where I saw a recently constructed retaining wall fail

I live Piparo and I've heard they paved the roads in tabaquite but i don't go up that side. What chupidness they do?

Retain walls, bridges, roads etc will continue failing under this government because they are all about giving people something in order to win votes. Don't get me wrong, I unfortunately support the PP. But if work is done without proper planning and investigation of the root cause of failures in the first place, they will continue fixing improperly, but I guess that's how they ensure there will be more work in the future.

Take the retaining wall you saw for example, no engineer want to design a structure that will fail, but in most circumstances, a proper wall will be expensive. It has to resist overturning, rotation and sliding as well as be strong enough as a structure to not break. Government now, wants to build it to look like they working for the people and will tell the engineer to design a cheaper wall.

We need to change our mentality about winning votes and filling our own pockets for things to go right. Ensure proper planning takes place, stop wasting money and let proper construction take place.

On another note, if that was a PURE project, this would have been overlooked.

[zoom rader]

shoddy worksmanship is everyday life in trini from car washers to Brian Lara stadium.
Trinis are programmed to accept this level of work. Complain and is level cuss or law suit.
Things like these should be highlighted everyday and names called out.

Under PNM you never hear about these things, so i guess they did a good job.

[Slartibartfast]

I think the bridge by caroni had that same problem a while after it was completed. Just needs to be resurfaced and should be good to go.

Nah the caroni bridge problem was far more complex than that. Basically the soil near the top of the piles were completely saturated and uncompressed (due to being on the bank of the river) and offered no lateral support and the piles flexed by a fraction of a degree. However, a fraction of a degree flexure over the 40ft length of the pile (not sure of the length) would translate into a few inches movement at the surface. This allowed the abutments to slip towards the river and damage some members in the bridge. This slippage would then open up a small void near the edge of the bridge that would allow the soil there to settle into that void causing that drop.

I believe that piles had to be driven diagonally and the abutments were jacked back into place before fixing the diagonal piles to the abutments to avoid further slippage. That Caroni bridge was actually an extremely complex design due to unforeseen circumstances like the pore water pressure being higher than the water table.

[Slartibartfast]

.....

[Toyopet]

shoddy worksmanship is everyday life in trini from car washers to Brian Lara stadium.
Trinis are programmed to accept this level of work. Complain and is level cuss or law suit.
Things like these should be highlighted everyday and names called out.

Under PNM you never hear about these things, so i guess they did a good job.

Under the PNM sub-standard work was also the norm, but no one knew about it. The MOWI's BLT (Bridges, Landslips and Traffic Management) program started with the goal or setting a new standard for construction in Trinidad and Tobago. This is why they work closely with NIDCO and the engineers to ensure that all tests are done properly and unacceptable work be rectified immediately. As I said, the norm before would have been to ignore it, pay the contractor and then pay another contractor to fix/redo when it fails.

[Redman]

We should try to execute a job by different procurement methods..

reverse auction a job...put the specs up in the public domain.
Let the companies bid for the job and let the market set the price of the job.
The cost of the job will come down

One requirement is a bond for a sufficient time frame to insure against failure of said job. Insurance Companies will take the risk and also help ensure that its on the up and up.
SO we now have a time line for the job to stand up..and financial risk on shoddy work-The insurance co will have to pay up if there is a failure...and they are sure to deal with the contractor.

Contractor black listed as a Co and individual on failed work.

Third party QA/QC to certify specs before completion cert and payment.
Have them bonded as well....If they sign off on work that was poorly done-they pay.

On the flipside the GORTT guarantees payment in a specific time or binds itself to to pay penalties for late payment.

[src1983]

We should try to execute a job by different procurement methods..

reverse auction a job...put the specs up in the public domain.
Let the companies bid for the job and let the market set the price of the job.
The cost of the job will come down

One requirement is a bond for a sufficient time frame to insure against failure of said job. Insurance Companies will take the risk and also help ensure that its on the up and up.
SO we now have a time line for the job to stand up..and financial risk on shoddy work-The insurance co will have to pay up if there is a failure...and they are sure to deal with the contractor.

Contractor black listed as a Co and individual on failed work.

Third party QA/QC to certify specs before completion cert and payment.
Have them bonded as well....If they sign off on work that was poorly done-they pay.

On the flipside the GORTT guarantees payment in a specific time or binds itself to to pay penalties for late payment.

They should go further, and state who approved the work etc. Thus if fails all parties are known

From company to qc

[cornfused]

I was lucky that in my embryonic stages in PM many years ago that two of my best friend were civil engineers that allowed me onto to their projects. Some of these were bridge projects in the late 1990 and early 2000 period . Properly built that stand today .

The bridge on the EMR at Valencia , that spans the river nears the Valencia Visitors center . Along with bridges on the east coast that span the Ortoire and other rivers that you would cross from Sangre Grande to Mayaro .

At most bridge landing or connecting sites there would be some level of soil saturation . The Ortoire river is larger than the Caroni in both volume and general width and depth .

[zoom rader]

shoddy worksmanship is everyday life in trini from car washers to Brian Lara stadium.
Trinis are programmed to accept this level of work. Complain and is level cuss or law suit.
Things like these should be highlighted everyday and names called out.

Under PNM you never hear about these things, so i guess they did a good job.

Under the PNM sub-standard work was also the norm, but no one knew about it. The MOWI's BLT (Bridges, Landslips and Traffic Management) program started with the goal or setting a new standard for construction in Trinidad and Tobago. This is why they work closely with NIDCO and the engineers to ensure that all tests are done properly and unacceptable work be rectified immediately. As I said, the norm before would have been to ignore it, pay the contractor and then pay another contractor to fix/redo when it fails.

Thats why I said PNM did a good Job and doing a better job by exposing the ill work. Only a theif will know a theif

[EFFECTIC DESIGNS]

^^^ How many contracts have you been refused under PP

ZR you sure these people on this forum who are Anti Kamla are contractors who not benefiting under UNC?
If what you saying is indeed true, then it may help to explain a lot that is taking place on this forum. Because feedback on the streets are nothing like what goes on, on tuner.

Though I admit, UNC does not have support now like it did in 2010. But its nowhere near as bad as the forum makes it out to be. The feeling you get on tuner is a lot of doom and gloom about the PPG.
What surprises me is why are there so little UNC members on this site? Its only ZR, Pete, (UML though some have said he is a paid UNC blogger)

UNC supporters just either don't want to or simply does not have the time to come on these sites to respond to the PNM supporters and their allegations.

[Rory Phoulorie]

Effectic Designs, because someone calls out the PPG on their wrongdoings, does that automatically make them a PNM supporter?