Large hub airports – typically international airports handling over 1% of a country's annual passenger volumes – usually have an elevated road for departures and a ground-level one for arrivals. But what happens when you need to tear down and replace the aging concrete infrastructure that connects passengers to the departures area, all while keeping the airport operational even during a harsh Canadian winter?

When Edmonton International Airport (YEG) faced that situation in 2023, airport officials awarded PCL and its partner RJC Engineers the opportunity to take on the critical modernization of the roadway through a competitive bidding process.

Edmonton’s airport is Canada's largest airport by total land mass, covering almost 28 square kilometers and serving upwards of eight million passengers annually, so keeping it fully operational during construction was critical.

The twist? PCL had to deliver the roadway and ramp in one construction season. Here’s how it all came together. 

The first order of business was getting stakeholders aligned on the right approach. Under a construction manager-at risk (CMAR) delivery model, PCL consulted and collaborated with its service partners early to find ways to shorten the construction schedule.

Unlike traditional design-bid-build procurement that typically engages contractors at the end of design development or even after IFC drawings have gone to tender, the CMAR framework enables contractors to be involved early in preconstruction and, ideally, as early as the schematic design phase.

“Collaboration has always been PCL’s strong suit. It is critically important to have a construction partner that has complex construction experience to inform constructability, design and value optimization,” says structural consultant RJC Engineers Managing Principal, Frank Cavaliere. “We trust PCL’s expertise to help inform our design decisions, and PCL respects our design expertise.”

With early contractor engagement in preconstruction, the CMAR model benefits the owner by having PCL drive value and efficiency through all phases of design development. and by having PCL commit to a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) for the project. Once the GMP and schedule are set, the contractor assumes the risk and must deliver on time and on budget or face financial penalties. On the YEG project, PCL was able to make a change to the construction sequence that shaved months off the construction schedule to get it down to just 13 months.

To achieve the ambitious new completion targets, strategic collaboration and constant communication between partners was critical. It helped that PCL had previously worked with YEG and with the structural engineering experts at RJC Engineers, so trust and understanding between the parties was established at the earliest stages of the project.

Bringing solution provider thinking to the challenge, PCL proposed waterproofing the roadway over the winter. Before demolition began, PCL Project Manager Dallas Fraser and Superintendent Kyle Russell brought in both the waterproofing supplier and contractor to assure the client that critical work could be completed during winter without compromising quality.

“One of PCL’s strengths is its relationship with its trade partners,” says PCL Project Manager Dallas Fraser.  “We had the right waterproofing partner who was able to do the work during winter so we could begin placing concrete as soon as it warmed up. We wouldn’t have completed this project in such a short time without that crucial component.”

“The closure of the departures level is disruptive work,” adds PCL Superintendent Kyle Russell. “We saw an opportunity to provide value to the client by completing the project in one season’s work.”

The team found another way to mitigate disruption and speed up the site installation by fabricating the formwork off-site. Working with limited staging space on airport lands, the team recognized that constructing formwork in situ would incur logistical challenges. Deferring work on the deck or on civil work weren’t options given the aggressive project schedule. Instead, PCL engaged supplier Doka to fabricate off-site, transport the formwork to site and complete the installation.

The off-site-prefabrication approach led to a safer work environment for crews on the ground by reducing work-at-height risks. It also ensured the formwork was fabricated in a controlled environment, enhancing quality control.

In mid-January, the airport set new record lows with temperatures dropping to -45°C (-49°F). However, with contingencies in place, the team was able to minimize temperature delays.

Since demolition had removed insulation, the sprinkler lines, located above existing airport vendor businesses, were now at greater risk of freezing. To prevent that, PCL installed JSI® sensors, a PCL-developed technology that provides real-time monitoring and threshold alerting, to water lines throughout the project. These smart sensors allowed automatic monitoring of temperatures without the need for workers to take readings on each water line. At one point during the deep freeze, sensors notified workers that a sprinkler line was nearing its freezing point. PCL crews worked with airport maintenance staff to improve airflows and change air handlers to direct heat to the area in question, preventing a potentially costly freezing incident.

When dealing with aging infrastructure, it's not uncommon to find surprises that can lead to schedule disruptions. Case in point: the team discovered that sections of the structural ceiling slab below departures needed to be replaced. This discovery could have set the project back by a couple of months, but the team was able to design scaffolding that safely supported the ceiling. That enabled the temporary relocation of existing mechanical ducting without requiring any demolition.

“Our experience on both the building and civil sides helped us find a solution that mitigated circulation detours and disruption to passengers,” said Russell.

No matter how aggressive the schedule, safety is always the priority for PCL. Safety signage and temporary barriers restricted access to construction zones to keep travelers safe. YEG provided directional signage to help passengers safely and efficiently navigate the changes. PCL crews also kept the more disruptive work to times when the airport was experiencing lower passenger volumes.

“At Edmonton International Airport (YEG), there is no downtime. It is important to have a partner who understands our 24/7 operations.” says Peter Agnew, VP Infrastructure Facilities and Airside Operations for Edmonton International Airport. “The ability to work closely with PCL and jointly mitigate the impact on our passengers was very important.”

PCL’s sustainability strategy focuses on providing clients and partners with sustainable solutions that add value without compromising budget or schedule. PCL also works to minimize environmental impacts of our construction methods.

At YEG, crews poured 2,300 cubic meters of low carbon concrete for the new roadway. PCL sourced EvoBuild™ Bronze Low Carbon Concrete from Heidelberg Materials. Using Portland limestone cement reduces the carbon intensity of cement by increasing the limestone content. It also reduces the amount of a binding ingredient called clinker, which is the most carbon-intensive portion of cement manufacturing.

Even demolished materials from the airport will be repurposed. More than 2,000 tonnes of material were transported to an aggregate yard to be crushed and reused in future projects. This translates to less mining of sand and aggregates in future work.

By working to reduce impact and waste, PCL delivers significant CO2 reductions while helping our clients achieve their sustainability goals.

Just 13 months after construction began, the roadway opened to the public with new accessibility features, added security measures and a widened exit ramp featuring two exit lanes. The early completion ensured that YEG and passengers alike would benefit from the improvements ahead of the busy 2024 holiday season, making everyone’s experience merrier!

“We were thrilled to work with YEG on this infrastructure project. We had an owner who was extremely helpful and went out of their way to ensure we had what we needed to keep on track and meet the aggressive schedule,” adds Fraser.

PCL has successfully delivered nearly 700 aviation projects across the United States and Canada, with values ranging from $10,000 to more than $2 billion. That extensive experience makes PCL a world-class contractor for airport infrastructure work, large and small.