Calgary Cancer Centre – Design and Construction Challenges for a Deep Excavation and Building Foundations within Lacustrine Clay

David A. Field, Mathew Stenhouse

In the proceedings of: GeoSt. John's 2019: 72nd Canadian Geotechnical Conference

Session: Lateral Earth Pressure

ABSTRACT: The Calgary Cancer Centre, currently under construction within the Foothills Hospital Campus in Calgary, Alberta, presented challenges for design and construction of an effective shoring system and building foundations. The building has 13 stories above grade and extends 5 levels (18 m) below existing grades and occupies a tight footprint surrounded closely by major roadways and sensitive utilities. Weak and saturated lacustrine soils extend beneath the site to a depth of approximately 13 m, presenting concerns for maintaining adequate excavation support to allow for a deep excavation without damaging adjacent roadways or utilities servicing the hospital facility. This paper discusses the methods used to characterize the engineering properties of the site soils, the associated shoring and foundation design challenges and the selected designs. This paper discusses site monitoring methodology and adjustments to shoring design that were necessary to maintain excavation stability and to facilitate foundation installation in response to localized variations in soil strength and groundwater. Given the aggressive design-build schedule, the success of the shoring installation and completion of foundations required effective communication and coordination between the geotechnical engineer, the contractor, the shoring designer, the shoring installation contractor and the structural engineer.

RÉSUMÉ: e Calgary Cancer Centre, p13 étages au-dessus du niveau du sol ainsi que 5 niveaux souterrains (18 m de profondeur) et occupe une empreinte restreinte à excavations profondes sans endommager les rencontrés lors de la conception des systèmes de fondation conception-e et la complétion des fondations reposaient sur

Please include this code when submitting a data update: GEO2019_266

Access this article:
Canadian Geotechnical Society members can access to this article, along with all other Canadian Geotechnical Conference proceedings, in the Member Area. Conference proceedings are also available in many libraries.

Cite this article: