RFI - Monongahela River, Lock and Dam 3 Decommissioning

This is a Sources Sought Notice / Request for Information (RFI). This notice is issued solely for informational and planning purposes and does not constitute an Invitation for Bids, Request for Proposals, or Request for Quotes. No solicitation is currently available. This request does not obligate the Government in any contact award. The Government will not pay for the provision of any information, nor will it compensate any respondents for the development of such information. Do not submit cost proposals or cost information. Interested parties must not submit proprietary or competition sensitive information within their response. Responses to this notice is strictly voluntary and will not affect any firm's ability to submit a proposal/bid if and when a solicitation is issued. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pittsburgh District, is seeking information to assist in creating contract documents to remove approximately 640 ft of the fixed crest dam at Monongahela (Mon) 3 while leaving 30 ft for stabilization of the left dam abutment. The driving factor behind the design is to open the new navigable channel after the breach in as quick of a timeframe as possible, minimizing the impact to navigation. The Mon 3 lock will remain open until the breach is blasted. Once the breach commences, navigation cannot be restored until a 300 ft wide opening to draft depth is created. The final debris removal outside the 300 ft channel may be completed after navigation is restored. The debris will be disposed of on site and a portion of it will be processed to create aggregate to fill the flume way and stabilization berms for long term stability of the upper guide wall, land wall, and dam abutment monoliths. Slides with notes from the Industry Days conducted on June 23, 2021 are included as an Attachment to this post for your information and consideration in drafting responses to the below questions. Questions (1-16) 1. What flow conditions in the Braddock and Mon 3 pools are needed to safely remove the sheet pile wall, install the demolition materials, and conduct the demolition and debris removal? 2. From your perspective, given time is the driving factor, is blasting or mechanical removal preferred? 3. From your experience, what is the general difference in production rate between blasting and mechanical removal? 4. How may you choose to drill, load, and blast the navigable channel? All 300 ft of the new navigation channel footprint at once to full depth or sequentially in shorter, shallower sections? If in sections, what may the interval be between them and why? 5. What is your estimate as to the amount of time required from the initial breach to remove 300 ft of the fixed crest dam to at least 12 ft below the water surface? What conditions are required for this estimate to be feasible? Can this be accomplished in 30 days? 6. What are the time constraints to open the channel: Equipment, personnel, permitting, dredging, debris removal, surveying, other? 7. What are concerns prior to the breach? 8. What are concerns after the breach? 9. Are there concerns with keeping the navigation channel open while charges are being loaded in the vicinity? 10. What is the safety limit on flow rate/pool elevation for Contractors to approach and work on the dam? Will you need to approach the dam from downstream, upstream, or both? 11. Is a cofferdam, or other means of flow alteration, required for blasting of the dam in general or for blasting of the submerged portions of the dam on the downstream end? 12. What is the anticipated swell factor of demoed concrete for removal from the river? Is this dependent most on the blast pattern used, the method of mechanical removal, or composition of the concrete? 13. What is the typical amount of slump/debris fallout in concrete after the blast and what factors impact the slump value the most? 14. How much time is required to remove approximately 350 ft of sheet pile wall on the downstream face of the dam? The sheet pile is approximately 30 ft tall and embedded approximately 25 ft with about 5 ft exposed above the surface. 15. What type of lock access is needed to support the demolition and debris removal? 16. Will you be able to work safely multiple shifts and at night? -End of Questions- The Government may use the responses to this RFI for information and planning purposes. Information Submission Instructions All responses to this RFI shall be emailed to Jane Roney at contact@example.gov by 1:00 pm ET on July 16, 2021. TELEPHONE INQUIRES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. Attachment to the RFI Slides Presented at Industry Day, June 23, 2021