Fehr Graham awarded for Illinois Engineering Excellence

Rockford, Ill. — Fehr Graham was awarded two 2017 ACEC-Illinois Engineering Excellence Awards from the American Council of Engineering Companies of Illinois (ACEC-IL). The firm was awarded a Special Achievement Award in the Waste and Storm Water category for the Second Street Pump Station & Force Main in Champaign, and received a Merit Award in the Small Projects category for the Auburn High School Tennis Court Improvements in Rockford.

The Engineering Excellence Awards Competition recognizes projects of engineering firms. Entries are judged on the basis of engineering excellence, the degree to which the client’s needs are met, and the benefits to the public welfare and private practice of engineering. Special Achievement Awards are given for those projects worthy of special recognition of the engineer and owner/client for achieving engineering excellence. Merit Awards are given for those projects worthy of recognition for the engineer and the client.

Fehr Graham worked with the Urbana & Champaign Sanitary District (UCSD) on its Second Street Pump Station and Force Main Project. UCSD has seen dramatic increases to the population density in areas of downtown Champaign and the University of Illinois campus. These changes have resulted in much higher sanitary flows in sewers mains than originally planned for in 1923 when the sewers were installed. As a result, Fehr Graham was contracted by UCSD to provide all civil and environmental engineering services to shore-up the aged system to meet the needs of the growing population.

“The new Pump Station has reduced surcharging and reestablished capacity in downstream interceptors. This provided an innovative, cost-effective solution to serve Champaign, Urbana and the University of Illinois well into the future,” said Rick Manner, executive director the UCSD. “With help from Fehr Graham, the project was delivered below budget and completed within three months of the original completion date. Our goal is to see no sanitary sewer overflows in downtown and on campus associated with storms.”

Fehr Graham also worked with the Rockford Public Schools (RPS 205) on the Auburn High School Tennis Court Improvements project. RPS 205 faced the challenge of reconstructing or resurfacing the courts to provide a safe, long-term solution. As a result, Fehr Graham was contracted as the prime engineering consultant, providing consultation from the early stages of project development plans and specifications, to assistance in the bidding process, and construction oversight to completion. The solution was to install ProBounce®, a design that created a “floating system” to preserve structural integrity, fill cracks, level off and create a long-lasting surface.

“Fehr Graham has helped RPS 205 complete many successful projects,” said Todd Schmidt, Chief Operations Officer for RPS 205. “The tennis court improvement project was unique. We were looking for a budget-friendly solution with a long useful life, which is difficult with the freeze-thaw cycles associated with the Midwest’s extreme winter conditions. From the very early stages of the project, Fehr Graham provided proactive recommendations and as a result, construction disruptions were minimal and the high school tennis season was not delayed.”

The firm also received two Merit Awards in 2016 for the Ingersoll – Former Machine Factory Revitalized environmental project in Rockford and a Roundabout project in Freeport. They also received two Merit Awards in 2015 for the I-90 Rebuilding and Widening, Western Segment project and the Scout Camp Road Bridge project in Jo Daviess County.

Fehr Graham accepted the two 2017 ACEC-Illinois Engineering Excellence Merit Awards during the ACEC-IL Annual Engineering Excellence Awards Luncheon on February 9 at the Hyatt Hotel in Lisle, Illinois. A complete list of the 2017 ACEC-IL Annual Engineering Excellence Award winners is available at https://acecil.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2017-Awards-List-1.pdf.