The members of western Manitoba’s Tootinaowaziibeeng Treaty Reserve had been waiting 45 years to have a safe bridge replacement to connect the two halves of the community. Newer, larger water trucks and other heavy vehicles were dangerously stressing their old bridge and it had been condemned. Time was of the essence. A new Modular Bridge with a pedestrian walkway from AIL was the perfect solution.
The Elders viewed their new bridge as a true blessing and they held a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by everyone in the community, including the entire K-12 school. The bridge was blessed with a traditional sweetgrass smudging ceremony and a drum group led a procession over the old and new bridges forming a circle of completion.
Our modular off-site fabrication and design-build experience were key factors in completing this project on time, scope and budget.
Modular design ensured remote project’s success
Several contractors were initially hesitant to bid on the project due to the remote build location. However, AIL quickly mitigated Canada Bridge’s concerns with our demonstrated ability to engineer, manufacture and deliver the modular structure on two trailer loads from our Algonquin Bridge facility.
Design-build partnership
The owner, Tootinaowaziibeeng Treaty Reserve, insisted on no debt financing as the Federal Government’s First Nation Infrastructure Funds (FNIF) move carefully and under considerable scrutiny. AIL entered into a lump sum, design-build agreement with the First Nation, which provided sufficient cost control comfort to Aboriginal And Northern Development Canada (AANDC) to allow the work to proceed.
This also allowed us to get an early start and complete the project in a timely manner. Our diligent project management, combined with our aggressive fabrication schedule, allowed the project to be completed within the environmental restrictions of a fish-spawning window.
