Geotechnical Engineering
The Geotechnical Group investigates residential, commercial, industrial, heavy civil infrastructure, mining, and natural resource losses on the basis of sound application of science, geotechnical engineering and, most importantly, our expert engineering knowledge and judgment.
Our investigations encompass all sub-disciplines of geotechnical engineering including:
- Soil structures and slopes (embankments, dams, natural slopes and cuts);
- Geo-structural and urban geotechnics (foundations, retaining structures and reinforced earth, excavation and dewatering, tunnels, vibration analyses);
- Geo-environmental (waste repositories, brownfields redevelopment, contaminated land remediation);
- Waterfront and flood protection structures and
- Mining tailings storage facilities design, construction, operation, closure and rehabilitation.
We have a deep knowledge of the factors affecting the behavior of unique geomaterials such as the sensitive clays of Quebec and Eastern Ontario, the liquefiable sediments in the Fraser River Delta in British Columbia, the glacial soils in the Greater Toronto and Vancouver areas with their challenging hydrogeology, the expansive clays of the Great Plains or the oil sand tailings of Alberta.
We investigate all the stages of a project development potentially leading to a loss including inadequate subsurface characterization, limitations in the design approach, challenging construction processes and schedules, or contractual issues other than natural processes and events during the service life of structures.
In many complex cases, we work in multidisciplinary teams with our in-house specialists in water resources, buildings, structures, environment, transportation, and materials to provide an unbiased, technical, and factual analysis of the incident, with a goal of helping our clients make educated decisions to achieve a timely resolution.
Over the years, our team has been retained to investigate some of the largest and most complicated assignments in Canada and internationally. Our diligent, thoughtful, and well-communicated reporting continues to strengthen our reputation. As a result, we continue to be retained for increasingly larger and more complex projects worldwide.
Water Resources Engineering
A growing population, the continuous urbanization and the need for clean water requires solutions to manage surface and groundwater systems in rural and urban watersheds that are environmentally sustainable and economically viable.
Our Water Resources Engineering services include:
- Water Resources Assessment
- Stormwater Design
- Hydrologic modeling and assessment from catchment scale to a river basin scale
- Hydraulic Analysis
- Watershed Modeling
We perform investigation of complex losses in the areas of urban construction and land development, coastal erosion and flood protection infrastructure, environmental remediation and restoration, hydro power projects, mine planning, design, construction, operation, closure and reclamation.
Climate change is a cause of concern for everyone in present time. We hold the strength of understanding the science and applying state-of-the-art climate model data in engineering applications that would assist in adapting the infrastructure to the changing climate.
Timely. Thorough. Thoughtful.