Reference and Detailed Design

A good design forms the basis for any engineering project. Not only must a good design describe a structure that efficiently and intelligently fulfills its intended function, but a good set of design documents must clearly and concisely communicate the designer’s intent across all parties. At GZ, we use our extensive experience with NATM/SEM, TBM and Cut-and-Cover construction methods to provide our clients with designs that don’t just look good on the drawing board, but that can be safely and efficiently built using environmentally friendly methods. Design is one of our passions, and with a long history of successfully completed designs for tunnels and underground structures worldwide, we like to think of ourselves as design experts.

Innovative and Sustainable Underground Solutions

At every stage of a project, we develop designs with the necessary level of detail to move a project forward towards its successful completion. We have extensive experience with the development of reference designs to lay a clear foundation for the realization of a project as well as with their transformation into the detailed designs necessary to complete a project. Our design services not only ensure that an underground construction project can be successfully built, but that our client’s vision for their project is realized.

Our team develops innovative and sustainable designs for highway, railroad/transit and airport tunneling projects as well as hydropower, water conveyance, sewerage and mining projects worldwide. Our expertise ranges from hard rock conditions and high alpine environments to soft grounds underlying densely populated urban settings. No matter where a project may be built, we strive to produce environmentally conscious designs that fulfill the environmental requirements of today and that support a more sustainable future.

Risk Management by Design

Mistakes can only be avoided with clear communication, and the development of a robust, clear and concise set of design documents is the first step in controlling and reducing risk in any project. We systematically include risk control tools, such as risk registers and risk assemsents, as well as risk mitigation measures and risk allocation, as an intergral part of our design process. At GZ, we believe that a design is more than a blueprint. A design is the most important document that we can give our clients to ensure they receive a safe, economical and efficient product.

Our Reference and Detailed Design Services encompass all heavy civil aspects of underground projects, from ground condition assessments and initial support systems, to waterproofing designs, to final support including:

• Geotechnical investigation programs
• Ground classification and development of geotechnical baseline reports
• Support of excavation for shafts and deep excavations
• Waterproofing systems and grouting techniques
• Geotechnical & Structural Instrumentation & Monitoring
• Building damage assessment, ground settlement analysis and protection of existing structures
• Tunnel final linings including cast-in-place concrete, shotcrete final lining and precast concrete segmental linings
• Ground improvement techniques including ground freezing, compensation grouting, jet grouting and deep soil mixing
• Tunneling in difficult ground conditions
• Tunnel rehabilitation and leakage remediation
• Structural modifications to existing underground transit structures