Cultec Chambers Provide Underground Detention, Space for Reinhart Foodservice Facility Expansion
BROOKFIELD, CT/June 11, 2010 - When planning began for the expansion of Reinhart FoodService's NATCO distribution center in New Bedford, Mass., the engineers from Tibbetts Engineering Corp. met with a challenge of space constraints. They had little choice but to place a 27,600 sq. ft. addition in place of the existing parking lot. The remaining area that had to accommodate a new parking lot was mostly occupied by a detention pond.
The CULTEC underground chamber system offered a solution to the limited space issue. About three quarters of the detention pond was replaced with 442 units of the company's Recharger® 330XL, providing 58,000 cu. ft. of storage. The system's ability to handle a large amount of runoff was an additional benefit because the expanded warehouse and new parking lot increased the number of impervious surfaces.
Additionally, the CULTEC system accommodated such on-site challenges as high seasonal groundwater and the glacial till soil with poor infiltration rate. Engineers added a shallow trench to the detention system to meet the infiltration requirements.
"An underground chamber system is a good option when a site comes with so many challenges, land availability being a major one," said Robert J. Rogers, Project Engineer with Tibbetts Engineering Corp. "CULTEC products have a good reputation, and we used them successfully on a number of previous projects."
The installation of the CULTEC system began with excavating an 18,000-square-foot bed, laying the CULTEC non-woven polypropylene filter fabric along the sides and the bottom of the bed and then adding a six-inch layer of crushed stone. The chambers were arranged in the bed and fed using the company's HVLV 180 manifold system.
"We installed the system quickly and easily," said Sheamus Kelleher, Operations Manager with Emerald Excavating. "When properly installed, the units are very strong. That allows the installation crew to drive a skid steer over the top of the units during backfill operations. This saves a lot of time."
The entire installation of the CULTEC system took about two weeks. The HDPE units are light, do not require heavy installation equipment and are made with interlocking connections for a fast and straightforward installation. The maintenance of the CULTEC system is minimal, required only of the preliminary collection system prior to feeding the bed.
For more information about CULTEC and its products, visit www.cultec.com.
About CULTEC
In 1986, CULTEC introduced its Contactor® and Recharger® HDPE septic and stormwater chambers and helped begin a revolution toward the use of plastic construction products. Since then, several product developments and strategic alliances have made CULTEC a cutting-edge R&D-based manufacturer. CULTEC chambers can be used as subsurface retention or detention systems and as replacements for ponds, concrete structures or pipe and stone installations.
CULTEC manufactures nine different chamber sizes ranging from 8.5" - 32" to accommodate almost any site parameter. The chambers' perforated sidewalls and fully open bottoms promote maximum infiltration capability and allow for the transfer of high volumes of water at a low velocity. The units can be installed singularly or in series in single- or multi-layer beds.
In addition, CULTEC developed its own in-line side portal manifold system, which eliminates the need for a conventional pipe header system, and water quality unit for maintaining CULTEC chamber systems. CULTEC products meet H-25 wheel load requirements, have a 10-year warranty and are currently modeled in HydroCAD®, Bentley Systems, Inc.'s PondPack®, BOSS International's StormNET®, and Streamline Technologies' ICPR®.
CULTEC's technical staff offers free design assistance including preliminary calculations and job-specific CAD details. A free CULTEC StormGenie(TM) -- AutoCAD® Plug-In for designing CULTEC systems and a free HydroCAD CULTEC custom edition are also available from the company. In addition, CULTEC products can contribute to the U.S. Green Building Council's credits, under the LEED rating system, when the project is designed per LEED requirements.
