Seabees complete boat ramp on NASNI

CORONADO, CA, UNITED STATES

05.27.2015

Courtesy Story

Underwater Construction Team 2

CORONADO, Calif. - Seabees, assigned to Underwater Construction Team (UCT) 2, completed the conversion of an old seaplane ramp to create a new boat ramp at Naval Air Station North Island (NASNI), May 27.

The old Seaplane ramp, dating back to World War II, had been in use by various expeditionary and special operations units in Coronado but was unable to safely handle the weight of the Navy’s newest boats.

There were no original plans or drawings for the seaplane ramp, according to Chief Builder Jason Cortez, project officer in charge. “We’re estimating that the original ramp was roughly 80 to 100 years old.”

The Navy began researching a replacement for the ramp. The cost for a contractor to do the project was estimated to be $2.6 million, according to Dave Watts, facilities manager at Navy Expeditionary Combat Command Pacific.

UCT 2 was able to work with Naval Air Station North Island to reduce the cost to $1.2 million, saving the Navy $1.4 million.

During the initial phase of the project, the Seabees determined that the majority of the old seaplane ramp was not structurally sound. This made the original renovation plan untenable, and forced the engineering design firm to go back to the drawing board. The new design added significantly more work to the project, but the Seabees pressed on.

“We ripped out about 240 cubic yards of concrete and placed or poured 300 cubic yards,” said Cortez. “It’s a significant project for us. We laid an estimated 16,000 feet of steel and added a floating dock.”

This is the only boat ramp on NASNI and will be used for riverine craft, special boat teams and port operations among other uses.

“This ramp was designed for daily port operations and special watercraft,” said Cortez. “We specifically designed it for the Mark V and new Mark VI patrol boats. A Mark VI boat, fully loaded with the truck and trailer will weigh an upwards of 110,000 pounds. We built the ramp at an angle that will hold that weight.”

The Seabees were able to use part of the old ramp and interweave the original foundation with the new design, which increased the overall load capacity.

“We used mechanical couplers to join the old piles to the new piles,” said Builder 2nd Class (SCW/DV) Chris Farmer. “Anti-corrosive inhibitors were mixed into the concrete so it will last longer than the previous ramp.”

Overall, the project took less than a year to complete.

“Construction took four and a half months [of] actively swinging a hammer,” said Cortez. “But we’ve been at it closer to eight months; including site visits and the project package that was put together.”

The boat ramp was completed in conjunction with Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 3, NMCB 4, and Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit (CBMU) 303.

Navy Underwater Construction Teams provide a capability for construction, inspection, repair, and maintenance of ocean facilities in support of Navy and Marine Corps operations, to include battle damage repair. The Teams also maintain a capability to support a Fleet Marine Force (FMF) amphibious assault, combat service support ashore, and self-defense for their camp and facilities under construction, as well as emergency and disaster response and recovery operations.

• Date Taken: 05.27.2015
• Date Posted: 06.04.2015 16:38
• Story ID: 165522
• Location: CORONADO, CA, US