Hingeneering Consulting works with SAIT Polytecnic in Calgary, Alberta
During the last four months, Hingeneering Consulting was privileged to work with SAIT in Calgary, Alberta to be the Structural Engineering Industrial Mentor for a capstone graduation project for civil engineering technology students within the School of Construction at SAIT Polytechnic.
The capstone project was about the remediation of foundation walls for a historic house, built in 1912 within the city of Calgary as shown in the picture below.
The purpose of this project is to provide technical research methods for remediating the basement walls of the house built in 1912. This house is located in SW of Calgary. This report defines the main goal of preserving the historic value of the house. To reach this goal, the report describes the importance of preserving and restoration of old buildings as of their great value and significance to the beauty of the nation. In addition, designating old buildings as a heritage property for their uniqueness in the country.
To determine problems and additional details of the house, a visual inspection was done. The resulted problems that were identified are:
• Deterioration of concrete, where stones are exposed and fine sand is falling apart. • Signs of mold and efflorescence resulting from the moisture problem. To offer remediation options, this project includes the history of cement industry that gives an idea about the material used in the past centuries in concrete manufacture. Further, the research report involves analysis processes such as analysis of the condition of the wall, Schmidt hammer testing for the strength of the concrete, collecting samples for the SEM (Scanning electron microscopy) test for chemical composition of the old concrete, and compressive strength test for batched concrete cylinders.
All these analyses test resulted in the limiting the remediation options to include: 1. Designing and improvements of proper drainage system. 2. Concrete patching for repairing of spalling concrete 3. Permanent wood foundation that will support loads of the house in case of failure of the existing foundation wall.
Moreover, the report also considers planning and cost analysis for the remediation options within the timeline and budget required by the client.
On Friday, April 21st, 2017, the public presentation of the capstone project was carried out by the civil engineering technology students. Dr. Ahmed Mostafa Farag, a principal structural engineer with Hingeneering Consulting, attended the presentation and met the course instructor Dr. Taher Hassan as well as Dr. Penelope Shrive, the Faculty member in charge of the project supervision.
From Right to Left, Dr. Taher Hassan, Faculty member at SAIT polytechnic. Then the students; Ramandeep Kaur, Byeongoh Jin, Noha Mohammad, Colin Stein and Dr. Ahmed Mostafa Farag, from Hingeneering Consulting, on the far left hand side.