EBA Engineering is the winner of the 2015 Outstanding Project of the Year Award, presented by the American Council of Engineering Companies of Maryland (ACEC/MD). Headquartered in Baltimore, ACEC/MD is the nonprofit association representing more than 80 multi-sized consulting engineering firms throughout the state of Maryland.

EBA was honored for its work in providing geotechnical engineering services for the Elmer A. Henderson-Johns Hopkins Partnership School. The Henderson-Hopkins School, a $42 million, 90,000-square-foot facility located on a seven-acre campus in East Baltimore, provides world-class education for hundreds of city students.

Led by Project Manager, Jason Kolenda, EBA began work on the Henderson-Hopkins School in November 2011, performing a geotechnical investigation for the massive project. The investigation “revealed the presence of existing fill containing miscellaneous materials, unsuitable for foundation support” according to EBA President Rizwan Siddiqi, PE. As a result, EBA recommended aggregate piers be installed to improved soil conditions for support of the building foundations. In addition, EBA identified the potential impacts to a 100-year-old concrete arch sewer under the site along Collington Street. City officials were concerned about the age of the sewer and recognized the importance of maintaining access.

During construction, EBA’s investigation revealed that the sewer to be in questionable structural condition, and must be protected. EBA solved this unusual challenge by designing an auger-assisted, press-in sheet pile shoring system and developed a vibration monitoring program to shield this piece of critical infrastructure from the construction operations. The innovative approach allowed for access to the sewer line during and after construction while ensuring the safety of the public in the event of a sewer collapse.

Due to a tight schedule and a required delivery deadline of August 2013, the project required expedited engineering services “EBA’s geotechnical engineering department, with the assistance of EBA’s structural and water systems engineering departments, met the challenges and completed the project in a timely manner, while remaining within the allotted budget,” Siddiqi concludes.