Delivering a Remote, Large-complex Dam Seismic Retrofit

Tuesday, October 31, 2023

2:45pm – 3:45pm EDT

Location: National Harbor 3

CE: 1

Kenneth J. Kelgard, PE, CCM (he/him/his)

Federal Project Manager
HDR Inc
Longview, TX
Victor Ozuna, PE, CCM (he/him/his)

Resident Engineer
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Wofford Heights, CA
Trevor Fluet, CCM

Construction Control Representative
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Kernville, CA

In this case study session, see how the team for the Lake Isabella Dam Safety Modification Project in Lake Isabella, California collaborated to meet the challenges of a large-complex dam seismic retrofit. The roundtable discussion will highlight ways to successfully embed staff from the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) with project/program teams. Hear the lessons learned from the off-site project manager, on-site team lead, and the USACE resident engineer, including how the team used unconventional methods to overcome staffing challenges in a remote location and meet the project's requirements.

Learning Objectives:

Develop the techniques used to ensure there is constant communication and understanding between the project teams when working in a remote location on a large civil works construction project.
Learn how the government and industry partnered together on this project to resolve different conflicts and solve problems that came up during construction.
Identify the thought process we used in the private industry and the government in order to staff this large project.
Define the importance of delegating authority to the lower levels. This was essential to the success of our project team in the remote location.