aging structures structural risk evaluation
In the 2017 timeframe, several aging structures on the Hanford Central Plateau were recognized to have experienced structural degradation. As such, TerraGraphics was contracted to prioritize which aging structures are most prone to risks from structural degradation or collapse. As part of this effort, TerraGraphics assembled a top-quality engineering and technical services team to evaluate the 25+ aging legacy structures. This effort included the following key activities:
· Gather Facility Data: Compile a data file of drawings, sketches, pictures, and any other information on each facility for review and risk evaluation.
· Assess the Likelihood of Failure: Evaluate each facility for its structural design, age, and the anticipated amount of degradation and assign a likelihood of failure.
· Assess the Consequence of Failure: Review each facility for its material inventory and the potential consequences of a failure, considering how the facility might be breached and if it would collapse into a safe configuration and assign a consequence of failure rating.
· Determine the Combined Risk of Failure: Combine the likelihood and consequence of failure to determine the overall combined risk for each facility by combining the relative likelihood and consequence scores in a matrix to develop an overall combined risk score.
· Perform Structural Analysis of High Risk Facilities: For the facilities determined to have the apparent highest combined risk of failure, perform structural calculations and analyses to determine the amount of remaining factor of safety in the designs from collapse.
· Prepare a Recommended Action Plan and Summary Report: Develop recommendations for an action plan as the basis to move forward on for the high-risk facilities considering their structural integrity.
· Prepare Follow On Structural Analysis report for the remaining facilities.
This Firm-Fixed Price contract provided the client with a dedicated expert-level team to complete the structural analysis/risk-ranking in a timely fashion resulting in a strategy plan to reduce future risk associated with aging legacy structures. Ultimately, three high-risk aging legacy structures were filled with grout to reduce their likelihood of failure.