Tekla 2019 North America BIM Awards Small Projects Winner: Top of the World Summit, Whistler Mountain

For those who have dreamt of walking in the clouds, there is a new attraction at the Top of the World Summit of Whistler Mountain, located in the Coast Mountains of British Columbia. The Cloudraker SkyBridge and Raven’s Eye Cliffwalk is a new 130 meter-long steel pedestrian suspension bridge leading to a cantilevered viewing platform, anchored into rock and projecting 12.5 meters out from the mountain’s edge. At more than 2,100 meters above sea level, it is thought to be the highest pedestrian bridge in North America and offers access to spectacular 360-degree views of the Whistler Valley and surrounding mountain peaks.

Whistler Mountain Suspension Bridge

This design-build project was an impressive feat of engineering and construction that won the Tekla 2019 North American BIM Awards Small Projects competition. The structures are designed for year-round operation for pedestrian, snow, ice, wind and seismic loading. The SkyBridge is supported and stabilized by four steel cables, each with an ultimate capacity of over 2250 kN (500,000 pounds) and fixed to the mountain at each end by 14 steel grouted bedrock anchors. Both structures have open grate steel decking and the main bridge has 101 removable deck modules to allow for decommissioning and maintenance in the off-season. The Cliffwalk is supported on 4 main steel beams that are held in place with six vertical rock anchors. The beams each weigh over 2300 kg (5,000 pounds) and were flown into place with a Kaman K-Max dual rotor helicopter until the anchor nuts were installed.

AECCafe Voice spoke with Jason Peck, Vice President, Apex Structural Design Ltd. and Tekla 2019 North America BIM Awards Small Projects Winner, about the challenges of designing and building the Whistler Mountain Skybridge and Cliffwalk.

Whistler Blackcomb Suspension Bridge

What was the primary challenge?

The primary challenge was the project’s short construction window due to unpredictable weather at almost 7000 feet above sea level. With the potential for heavy snow and ice in the winter months, the Sky Bridge and Cliffwalk viewing platform had to be erected quickly and efficiently. There was no room for error or rework.

What were the tools used prior to the Tekla BIM solution and how were they not sufficient?

We used to use another software that was not good for curved structures. This project has a cantilevered walkway with a curved radius and compound bevels in the geometry that are difficult to model. Tekla Structures is the best solution for modeling this type of geometry. In addition, the drawings are automatically generated from the Tekla constructible model, which helps avoid errors.

What process led to the selection of the chosen products and why were they chosen?

We’ve used Tekla Structures for nearly 20 years and it was the only choice for this project. We don’t look at a job and think, “what other software can we us?” We use Tekla Structures for everything. Tekla was able to handle the complex sloping geometry required by A-frames on each end of the Sky Bridge and curved beam and camber requirements of the Cliffwalk viewing platform.

The bridge is built out of 100 removable deck modules.

What was the outcome? The outcome was a successful opening in the Summer of 2018 and a project that was completed without costly issues during fabrication and construction.

 What was the ROI and/or problems solved by choosing the Tekla solution?

The project was completed without issues. Because the cantilevered deck platform ad to be installed in one shot with a helicopter, it was important that everything lined up properly and the anchors were correct. Tekla Structures gave us the ability to model with full detail and automatic clash checking to ensure that any conflicts were exposed in the model – not on the shop floor or on site. The Tekla Structures constructible model contained everything needed for fabrication and construction, down to the connections, bolts and welds.

In addition, the Tekla Structures model was used to collaborate with other stakeholders on the project so that we could visualize potential problems during the design process. The bridge is built out of 100 removable deck modules and using the Tekla constructible model, we were able to identify opportunities to simplify the design early in the process during stakeholder meetings.

Were there any other contributing technologies that helped the process along? No

Is there anything you would do differently or would add in the future to enhance the outcome for this project? We see an opportunity for more pedestrian bridges to be constructed in this area and are looking forward to using the new tools in Tekla Structures 2019 to help accomplish this.

Tags: 3D, AEC, architects, architecture, BIM, building, building design, building information modeling, CAD, collaboration, construction, design, engineering, engineers, Tekla, Trimble, visualization

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