Georgia 14, July 1, 2020

State Supplement sponsored by:

441

59

75

Cornella 19

Rome 85 27

Athens

GEORGIA STATE EDITION

A Supplement to:

441

Atlanta

20

Madison Augusta

85

20

Griffin 1

129

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75

La Grange

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301

185 19

16

Dublin

Swainsboro Oak Park

Columbus

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341 441 16

Lyons Americus

Savannah

McRae

301

1

Cordele

27 82

Dorchester

341

Cuthbert

75

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84

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82

95

82

Blakely

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19 319

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84

Valdosta Thomasville

Waycross Brunswick 82

441

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Crews Confront ‘Very Challenging Job’ on $500M Project

The $63 million, phase one of the $500 million interchange reconstruction project got underway in the spring of 2017.

By Lori Tobias CEG CORRESPONDENT

The bridges range from 18-to-29 ft. above the ground and cross both rivers and roads.

A little more than three years into a projected eight-year interchange project in Macon, the contractor can’t seem to buy a break. Environmental issues, flooding and unmarked utilities have added at least a year and a half to the project to improve the I-16/I-75 interchange. But, Dane Nelson, general supervisor for contractor C.W. Matthews, says the company is up for the challenge.

“This is a very challenging job,” Nelson said.

“C.W. Matthews thrives on challenging projects.

Nine times out 10, those are more profitable if you approach them in the right way. We specialize in jobs that other contractors turn away from. We self-perform every aspect of the job. We have our own roadway, asphalt, concrete divisions. We

only sub out what we are required to.”

The $63 million, phase one of the $500 million interchange reconstruction project got underway in the spring of 2017. It is designed to improve the safety of the corridor by widening and reconstructing both interstates, as well as adding 11 new bridges and nine retaining walls.

Project Progress They completed work on five retaining walls, but have yet to finish even one bridge, Nelson said. The bridges range from 18-to-29 ft. above the ground and cross both rivers and roads. One issue impacting work is sturgeon season on the Ocmulgee River. Crews are not permitted to work in the river from September to April. They must also work around a particular breed of barn swallow that tends to build nests underneath both new see MACON page 6

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Final Module Placed for Power’s Vogtle Nuclear Expansion A massive water tank, or module, has been placed atop the containment vessel and shield building roof at Georgia Power’s Vogtle 3 & 4 nuclear expansion project near Waynesboro, Ga. The installation represents the final module placement for Unit 3, marking another significant milestone for the project.

The large module, known as CB-20, is a major part of the AP1000 reactor’s advanced passive safety system. Standing 35 ft. tall and weighing more than 720,000 lbs., the large component will hold approximately 750,000 gal. of water ready to flow down to help cool the nuclear reactor in the unlikely event of an emergency. The water also can be directed into the used fuel pool, while the tank itself can be refilled from water stored elsewhere on site.

The modules used for Vogtle units 3 & 4 help streamline the construction process, since they were made in advance of their arrival to the project site and ready to be assembled into larger components that make up the nuclear units. Since 2011, major modules have been delivered to the site by rail and truck, including a range of plant components such as floor and wall sections, and supporting structures that surround the containment buildings and reactor vessels.

The final major module arrived at the construction site in late 2019, meaning all 1,485 key modules required to complete construction had been manufactured and safely delivered.

The placement of the CB-20 module follows the placement of the Unit 3 integrated head package (IHP) atop the reactor vessel. Standing 48 ft. tall, weighing 475,000 lbs. and containing more than 3 mi. of electrical cables, the IHP is an integral component that will eventually be used by highly-

trained nuclear operators to monitor and control the nuclear reaction that will occur inside the Unit 3 reactor vessel.

Additional Units 3 & 4 milestones achieved over the last few months include: • Completion of Open Vessel Testing, which successfully demonstrated how water flows from the key safety systems into the reactor vessel.

Georgia Power Company photo • Placement of the polar crane and containment Placement of the 720,000 lb. large water vessel top for Unit 4. This signifies that all major tank, known as module lifts inside the containment vessels for both units CB-20, for Vogtle are now complete.

Unit 3.

• Operators within the Unit 3 main control room began monitoring and controlling the technology and equipment essential for testing the unit’s systems and safely starting the plant.

• Crews placed the Unit 3 shield building roof, a two-million-pound structure covering the shield building. It provides an additional layer of safety around the containment vessel and nuclear reactor to protect the structure from any potential impacts.

• Final concrete placement inside the Unit 3 containment vessel allowed for the installation of machinery that will be used to load fuel into the unit.

With more than 7,000 workers on site, and more than 800 permanent jobs available once the units begin operating, Vogtle 3 & 4 is currently the largest jobs-producing construction project in the state of Georgia. 

C.W. Matthews to Build 11 Bridges, Reconstruct Interchange MACON from page 1

and existing bridges. During certain times of the year, crews must install netting to discourage the birds. In addition, flooding — caused by 18 in. of rain above normal — have also held up work. But the environment is only part of the problem.

Challenges “Between the flooding and environment

we’re looking at almost a year and a half at extended time,” Nelson said. “I would say our outstanding issues are 60 percent is environmental and 40 percent utilities, which have been a nightmare. Macon, Georgia is an old town and the infrastructure is antiquated. They don’t have records of where utilities are so you don’t know until you find them. There hasn’t been much positive. It’s been a challenge from day one.”

C.W. Matthews is the general contractor for the I-16/I-75 interchange improvements, which has had to overcome a few challenges to complete construction.

C.W. Matthews had about 22 pieces of heavy equipment on site when the work began. That included almost exclusively a Caterpillar fleet with cranes for the bridge crews, dozers, loaders, mini-excavators.

60,000-lb. excavators, front end loaders and soil compactors. That fleet, which is owned by the contractor, has increased since by about 60 percent.

“We could probably hit double by the end

GDOT plans to let out two new phases of the project by the end of the year.

of the year,” Nelson said. “Our company owns over 750 pieces of equipment. We have such a rigid maintenance program that people line up to buy our tractors. We run them 700 hours and then we buy new.

Caterpillar has people requesting to buy anything we sell. We are very proud of that. It’s a bargaining tool when we hire people that we don’t have them operating junk. We have top of the line, state of the art.”

And while the contractor has seen plenty of challenges, the bright side is the Georgia Department of Transportation's willingness to work with them. The contract will likely now extend to 10 years, but even during this COVID-19 pandemic, crews have missed no days of work. And penalties that could cost C.W. Matthews 7 percent daily of the total award for each day beyond the projected completion date, will likely be avoided.

“What’s good for us is that Georgia DOT has issued supplemental agreements (SA),” Nelson said. “The change order allowed us to get additional days. We don’t feel we will suffer any penalties, the amount of time we’ve asked for in these SAs should compensate us. We feel like we’re going to be ok.”

Next up, GDOT plans to let out two new phases of the project by the end of the year.  CEG

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