May 2008

Mead & Hunt receives four top industry awards

The American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) of Wisconsin recognized Mead & Hunt with four awards in April 2008 — Dane County Regional Airport and the Lac Courte Oreille hydroelectric project won Wonders of Wisconsin Engineering awards, and the Portage Canal Rehabilitation and Pedestrian / Bicycle Trail and the Dane County Regional Airport Runway 14/32 Safety Area Improvements won Excellence in Engineering awards.

ACEC Wisconsin is the business voice of the Wisconsin consulting engineering industry whose mission is to enhance business opportunities for member firms.  ACEC Wisconsin celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2007–08 with a series of celebrations that culminated in a special award program, Wonders of Engineering in addition to their annual Excellence in Engineering award competition in April 2008.  Both awards are designed to highlight and celebrate achievements in engineering.

Mead & Hunt’s 50 years of work developing Dane County Regional Airport won ACEC Wisconsin’s top Wonders of Wisconsin Engineering award for the southwest area.  Over the past 50 years Mead & Hunt has been involved in almost every major project completed at the airport including designing airfield pavements and airfield lighting systems, environmental mitigation projects, and architectural projects. This long history of engineering feats has included more than two–million square yards of pavement work, a complete modernization of airfield lighting and navigation aids, and numerous building and terminal developments. The result is a safe transportation facility that has proved to be a huge economic generator for the state.  The airport has also been innovative in reducing environmental impacts throughout its growth and development.  This is significant because a 2000 economic impact study revealed that the airport:

Mead & Hunt won another ACEC Wisconsin 50th anniversary Wonders of Wisconsin Engineering award for the Lac Courte Oreille hydroelectric project.  What began as a mitigation effort for lost tribal lands resulted in clean, renewable energy, and enhanced economic stability for the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians.  Mead & Hunt prepared a feasibility study for the Lac Courte Oreilles hydroelectric plant at the Winter Dam near Hayward and then designed the plant, which began commercial operation in 1986.  The design met the challenge of delivering water to the plant without compromising the dam’s integrity.  The final solution provided flow using a siphon system to power more than three megawatts of installed capacity and included two 9–foot–diameter penstocks totaling 280 feet long.

The Portage Canal Rehabilitation and Pedestrian / Bicycle Trail and the Dane County Regional Airport Runway 14/32 Safety Area Improvements both won Excellence in Engineering awards.

The Portage Canal is a historic transportation facility of statewide significance, having been listed in the National Register of Historic Places for its contribution to transportation during the 19th century heyday of steamboat travel.  Mead & Hunt completed the design for the first phase of canal rehabilitation and trail construction, and a conceptual plan to guide future construction of the trail and improvements to the historic canal.  Rehabilitating the Portage Canal exemplifies how engineers can develop a context sensitive design that balances the needs and interests of diverse groups to reach a common goal and create a functional resource.  This project restored the canal’s scenic beauty and essential features of its historic appearance.  The canal is a focal point of the downtown area and is expected to enhance economic development.

Mead & Hunt was hired to bring the Runway Safety Area (RSA) for Runway 14/32 at the Dane County Regional Airport (DCRA) into compliance with FAA standards.  This project corrected operational deficiencies with the runway safety area and improved safety at DCRA, which serves over 1.6 million passengers annually.  It not only brought the airport into compliance with FAA safety standards, but included a comprehensive mitigation plan that is anticipated to result in an overall enhancement of water resources in the vicinity.  It is estimated that the mitigation plan, which was achieved on–site with local and federal stakeholder participation, realized a $2.3 million cost savings, which equates to over an eight percent savings.  Mead & Hunt saw this complicated project through to final design and overall construction management. Finding a solution was difficult due to site constraints of the Cherokee Marsh, State Highway 51, County Trunk CV, the Canadian Pacific Roadway, and the Starkweather Creek.