More than one hundred construction workers can be seen each day contributing their skills and labor to the construction progress at the site of the future True North Entertainment Centre. The majority of the construction activity is still foundation work that takes place out of sight below ground level.
Familiar construction industry players such as Wescan Electrical Mechanical Services, Derksen Plumbing and Heating Ltd., Cowin Steel Company Limited, Subterranean (Manitoba) Limited, Lafarge Canada Inc., S & J Construction, Cambrian Excavators Limited and PCL Constructors Canada Limited are carrying out various assignments at this time.
The four construction cranes that do the heavy lifting around the project are now all in place and operating. One crane dominates each corner of the excavation. The different heights of the cranes and the radius of the boom on each of them allows large pallets of building materials and equipment to be placed anywhere on the site with pinpoint accuracy.
At this date, 190 of the 221 caissons that will support to foundation have been drilled and poured and more than 150 of the 277 driven pre-cast concrete piles have been set into the ground. All 498 of the caissons and piles will be in place by the middle of next week.
More than 50% of the concrete foundation walls for the facility have been poured along Hargrave Street, Graham Avenue and Donald Street. Almost all of the concrete columns that will support the main concourse floor and the stadia in the entire south end of structure have been poured and stand in place up to the ground level. The remaining sections of foundation wall will be completed by the first week of August.
A section of the permanent event level floor, termed “slab on grade” in the jargon of the building business, has been poured along the east side of the facility and is growing in size as sections are added each day.
The base of the 300-foot long ramp or tunnel that will start on Carlton Street and slope down under Hargrave Street to the event floor is being readied for the pouring of the concrete floor. When completed later this month, the permanent ramp/tunnel starting on Carlton Street will become one of two entry and exit points to the site. PCL Constructors have added a second temporary ramp on the Donald Street (east) side of the site to speed up the entry and exit of vehicles.
[MTS Centre Construction Archive]
