Keller completes its first cutter soil mixing project in Canada

Hanover, Md. — Keller completed its first cutter soil mixing (CSM) project for Aragon Properties Ltd. in Port Moody, British Columbia, at a new mid-rise development complex called Platform.

CSM is well-suited for areas in the lower mainland and Pacific regions of Vancouver with deltaic alluvial flow deposits where there are few obstructions. Developed from diaphragm wall technology, CSM uses two sets of counter rotating, vertically mounted cutter wheels that cut the surrounding soil and blend the injected cement slurry with the in-situ soil to form soil cement panels.

Keller performed earth retention and excavation support at 2718 Clarke Street on the approximately 38-meter-tall by 79-meter-wide property to aid in establishment of Aragon’s modern living spaces. A CSM shoring wall was designed as a temporary earth retention structure. Field Engineer Johannes Reinisch explains that construction included the supply and installation of almost 90, 650-mm-thick CSM panels to a depth of up to nearly 16 meters.

Keller then completed the installation of 124 H-piles within the CSM panels. Superintendent Bradley McKay was pleased to report that production finished one week ahead of schedule due to Keller exceeding production targets.

“Working with Keller was a big win for us and we highly recommend them,” said Kris Hellens, EIT, Senior Project Coordinator for Aragon Construction Management Corp. “In addition to the excellent backend support from their office staff, their site crew consisted of some of the most helpful, cooperative, and responsive people I’ve had the pleasure of working with. Keller’s whole team was able to react on the fly to changes in plan without any issues and provided constructive insights on how to get the best possible product.”

Assistant Project Manager Anand Mitchell explains the significance of CSM technology lies in its efficiency and consistency and says if Keller had approached this project with an alternative technique, it would have taken three times as long: “The cutter tool takes about two hours doing the work of three drill rigs to create the panels/walls in the ground.”

Kris added, “Keller’s innovative materials testing solutions allowed us to meet the requirements of our consultants without sacrificing schedule, and their precision drilling saved us valuable square footage within the site. The soil mixing method proved to be fast, efficient, and minimally disruptive, resulting in no complaints from the neighbours and saving Aragon from having to perform repairs to the adjacent properties.”

Keller will return to install two levels of anchors for a separate scope of work, which is anticipated to last a couple of weeks.