EBA was recognized with a Grand Award for design in the American Council of Engineering Companies of Metropolitan Washington (ACEC/MW) 2023 Engineering Excellence Awards competition for the firm’s work on a water main pipe rehabilitation project in Bowie, Maryland. EBA’s Rizwan Siddiqi, PE; Khalid Qadwai, PE, PMP; and Joseph Danquah, PE, accepted the award at ACEC/MW’s annual awards gala held at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC, on Thursday, December 14, 2023.

“We’re honored to see our project team recognized with one of the highest awards for this innovative project, which offered a first-of-its-kind solution for water main rehabilitation in the area,” said EBA President and CEO Rizwan Siddiqi, PE. “The team was committed to finding a sustainable solution that would save our client time and money and deliver safe drinking water to the citizens of Bowie.”

ACEC’s annual Engineering Excellence Awards competition recognizes engineering firms for projects that demonstrate an exceptional degree of innovation, complexity, achievement, and value. The top project entries receive the ACEC/MW Grand Award.

The City of Bowie needed to resolve significant water main pipe corrosion issues along 14 streets in the city’s Kenilworth neighborhood. After researching and carefully evaluating all available rehabilitation options, EBA recommended installing cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) liner for its cost effectiveness, ease of installation, and minimal impacts to the surroundings.

This innovative trenchless pipe technology solution saved more than 50 trees and more than $800,000 in construction costs while reducing permitting requirements, public disturbance, and survey and geotechnical investigation needs.

Because the use of CIPP lining is generally limited to gravity sewer lines, this project is unique in the local area for water main rehabilitation.

The City of Bowie is now able to provide safe, clear, odorless, and colorless drinking water through fully restored pipes that will serve residents for decades.