Bulkhead Wall Reconstruction under Active Transit Shed with Ongoing Cargo Operations

Ports increasingly have ageing bulkhead walls supporting waterfront facilities. At the Port of Lake Charles, Berth 9 supports a transit shed for storage of palleted, bagged rice. The existing bulkhead wall had a failed tieback system with significant section loss of the steel sheets. Conventional repair or replacement would have been expensive and disruptive to cargo operations, requiring significant demolition and removal of the shed roof. An innovative repair was installed consisting of 24-in.-diameter helical piles providing lateral and axial support for a new concrete wall installed in front of the existing wall. This repair reduced demolition of the shed slab and kept the shed roof intact to maintain dry storage operations during construction. By completing this project, the service life of the terminal was extended, thereby deferring investment in a full wharf and shed reconstruction project. This paper describes the design, procurement, and construction challenges.