Bayshore Concrete Barge Slip Improvements

Cape Charles, Virginia

McPherson Design Group provided the structural design for the barge slip for Bayshore Precast Concrete in Cape Charles, Virginia. Bayshore Concrete provides large scale bridge components all along the East Coast of the United States and these materials are shipped out by way of their barge slip on the Cape Charles Harbor. The existing barge slip needed to be widened and the supporting elements along each side needed to be reinforced to accommodate a much larger travel lift. The new travel lift has a working capacity of 150 tons and weighs 100 tons.

The existing crane rails were demolished and the basin was enlarged in one direction by adding a new tied back, steel sheet pile wall inland of the existing. The existing concrete bulkhead was then demolished and the earth excavated to the required dredge depth. This widened the basin by approximately 10 feet. The large wheel loads were carried by new concrete beams supported on a system of precast concrete piles. New mooring bollards were designed to restrain the barge during loading.