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projectsWatermain Replacement -City of Toronto

projectsThere were several components of this project that were assigned to Randy Ambalavanar. Site supervision of installation of up to 300mm diameter watermain, and enforcement of design standards and Ontario Provincial Standards Specifications including specialized services for concrete and asphalt. All deficiencies had to be identified and rectified in a timely manner. He reviewed traffic plans, enforced the Ontario Traffic Manual—Book 7, assisted with public notification plans, and supervised lane closures and traffic restrictions.

Quality assurance and inspection of electrical components including traffic signals, cable installation, lighting installations, conduits and ducts were also Ambalavanar’s responsibilities. Additional responsibilities included maintenance of a complete project file for construction records, including inspection records, test results, certificates of conformance, grading reports, traffic accident reports, payment certificates, site meeting summaries, record drawings, and final quantities.

projectsRabcon Construction Head Office -City of Toronto

projectsRandy Ambalavanar of Consult Ranjan was retained by Rabcon Construction to divide two acres from their 4-acre holding to provide the site for The M&N Building at 2751 Markham Road in Scarborough. Before the successful severance and zoning bylaw amendment, Rabcon had spent two years with a consulting engineer and architectural team trying to get the required severance. Following the successful severance and a minor variance obtained in a matter of months, Ambalavanar was able to acquire site plan approval to allow Rabcon to clear conditions to obtain the necessary permits for construction.

projectsStormwater Treatment Facilities -City of Toronto

projects The purpose of the project was to construct methods for control and use of stormwater runoff at six separate outfalls to minimize negative environmental effects and enhance the quality of stormwater in the natural and built environments. The City of Toronto retained GENIVAR (MacViro Consultants Inc.) to undertake detailed design, tendering and construction services for stormwater treatment facilities which included four stormwater wetlands, one oil/grit separator and one screening device. The wetlands were designed with sediment forebays to remove the heavier particles first and permanent pools with vegetations to uptake contaminants such as heavy metals. The oil/grit separator was installed to capture grit, oil and grease from an existing outfall draining to the West Pond. The screening device was designed to remove floatables from an outfall discharging directly into Lake Ontario.

The main challenges faced during construction of the facilities included construction at six separate site locations, physical constraints in the urban environment, fisheries impacts, integration with the park system, porous soils which required the application of clay liners, dewatering near Lake Ontario, construction in or near bodies of water (Grenadier Pond and West Pond) and competing interests among various agencies and city departments.

In March 2006 at an emergency meeting, Randy Ambalavanar was assigned to the project to take over the project management of construction of the multi-million dollar contracts, including directional drilling across Lake Shore Boulevard. During construction, various problems had been encountered relating to the removal of a significant amount of organic material from the West Pond, microtunneling beneath the westbound lane of Lake Shore Boulevard, dewatering near the Humber River and several rainstorms. Work required extensive project co-ordination with sub contractors, manufacturers, and environmental and geotechnical consultants. Randy Ambalavanar’s communications skills, and project management experience, that employed the use of work shifts on the project, contributed to delivering the project on schedule

Hoover park Drive Extension, Country Walk Subdivision -Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville

projectsRandy Ambalavanar (formerly with URS Canada Inc.), supervised the installation of a large precast concrete arch structure in July 2003 for the crossing of Stouffville Creek and associated environmentally sensitive area by Hoover Park Drive in the Country Walk Subdivision – Phase III. Ambalavanar was brought into the project as senior inspector to resolve onsite environmental issues, and several project design and management challenges. Overall, 23 precast footing units were delivered along with 17 (10975mm span x 3050mm rise) and 17 (8535mm span x 3355mm rise) CON/SPAN units.

The 10975mm span units were used to enclose the existing waterway, and the 8535mm span units were used to create the overflow cell. The units had offset obverts to maximize the 2.5 metre clear space in the regional storm overflow cell. This provided the required headroom for pedestrians in the event a trail system is built by the Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville through the valley lands and adjacent to the creek. The culvert cells included skewed end treatments to match the road alignment.

projectsJohn Street Sanitary Sewer and Watermain -Town of Vaughan

projectsThe Town of Markham required a new sanitary sewer to service the redevelopment of the Thornhill Square Mall located north-east of John Street and Bayview Avenue. MacViro Consultants Inc. was retained to design the sewer, prepare the contract documents and provide site inspection services during construction. Randy Ambalavanar of MacViro (now with Consult Ranjan) supervised the construction of the 375mm and 450mm diameter DR11 high density polyethylene (HDPE) sewer by horizontal directional drilling. The contract called for the installation of 246 metres of HDPE sanitary sewer in addition to 59 metres of 250mm diameter PVC sanitary sewer in open cut. Along with the sanitary sewer, the contractor was required to install eight precast concrete maintenance holes, a connection to an existing York Region sanitary maintenance hole, and two connections to a Markham maintenance hole.

Included with the supervision responsibilities of the sanitary sewer installation were site engineering surveys, dewatering of excavation within Pomona Mills Park, restoration of disturbed areas in the park, ground water monitoring, two watermain connections installed to the property line of Thornhill Square Mall and decommissioning of the existing sanitary sewer on Baywood Gate.

Site supervision also included public relations to deal with complaints from the public with regard to safety, protection of traffic, condition of the road surface along the alignment of the work, and work-related nuisances. Remedial actions to resolve nuisances had to be addressed promptly to prevent further complaints.

Work required extensive project co-ordination with the contractor, York Region and Town of Markham, other consultants and senior staffs of MacViro. Randy Ambalavanar’s communications skills, and project management experience, contributed to delivering the project on schedule.

projectsCornell Community-Town of Markham

projectsThe New Urbanist Community of Cornell in Markham falls within the “Smart Growth” or “Sustainable Community” design that addresses the issues of public transit, roads, the environment, and infrastructure. Markham expects to have 375,000 people by 2030. Cornell’s target of10,000 houses will grow as fast as the Region and Town allocates water permits. In many phases of the development of the community, Randy Ambalavanar was responsible for co-ordination of the construction of the infrastructure and the mediator between the public, Municipality or Region, and the developer.

projectsFire Hall 79/EMS Facility - Islington Avenue -City of Vaughan

projectsIn 2006 MacViro Consultants Inc. was retained as the contractor administrator for the site servicing of Fire Hall 79/EMS Paramedic Response Station on Islington Avenue at Canada Company Avenue in the City of Vaughan. At the time, Randy Ambalavanar was employed by MacViro, and was assigned to the project as Construction Co-ordinator. Prior to construction, the exact location of utilities had to be determined by the utility companies. The contractor was responsible for undertaking this activity for review by the construction co-ordinator. The project included the installation of sanitary and storm sewers, and a watermain. Although Islington Avenue had to be kept open at all times, there were lane closures for installation of services with horizontal directional drilling for a 200mm diameter PVC sewer pipeline.

Open cut installation of sections of the sanitary storm and sewer and 200mm PVC watermain required the use of trench boxes that had to be monitored for compliance with health and safety regulations and pipe installation specifications. Excavation for coring the new sewers into an existing sanitary and storm sewer structure required careful construction to mitigate the potential for leaks. The contract required excavated material to be transported from the site and manufactured products delivered. The movement of the contractor’s equipment into and away from the site had to be monitored according to schedules.

Installation of a manhole, catch basins, ditch inlet frames, and covers and gratings required supervision on behalf of the City of Vaughan. Restoration of the site following construction included grading, roadway restoration, fences and guide rails, topsoil, shrub and tree planting, sodding and seeding, and conIt was Randy Ambalavanar’s responsibility to review the work of the contractor and document any problems that occurred, while assisting the servicing contractor (KAPP Contracting), consulting engineer (Chisholm, Fleming and Associates), and client to resolve issues in a cost effective and efficient manner. The contract tender was awarded to general contractor Maystar General Contractors Inc. for approximately $3.9 million.

projectsThe Gore Road Widening -Region of Peel

projectsUMA engineering Ltd. was retained by the City of Brampton in 2004 for consulting engineering services for the rehabilitation and widening of a section of Gore Road north of Highway 7 to a point just north of Castlemore Road. UMA assigned Randy Ambalavanar to the project who was responsible for site review of the work performed by the contractor. The project included new construction of sections of road bed and surfacing, removals and adjustments to entrances to the roadway, pavement markings and new signing, traffic control and shoulder detours, electrical facilities, and signals. Ambalavanar’s communications skills, and project management experience, contributed to delivering the project on schedule.

projectsNinth Line Sanitary Trunk Sewer Extension -York Region

projectsThe Regional Municipality of York required a sanitary trunk sewer comprised of three branches over ten kilometers. The sewer runs 9.5 km from a connection north of the Little Rouge River. A 975mm diameter reinforced concrete sewer extends 5.6 km on the east side of the Ninth Line. The East Branch is comprised of 1.52 km of 675mm reinforced concrete pipe that drains to the Stouffville Water Pollution Control Plant, and the West Branch, comprised of 750mm reinforced concrete pipe runs for 2.38 km over open fields with creek and railway crossings to the West End Pump Station. The project was completed over 18 months beginning in 2003 and concluding in 2004.

Approximately 1.0 km of the sewer was tunneled, including trenchless technology sections for the railway and stream crossings. The remaining 8.5 km was installed by open cut construction. The tendered construction cost was $17.8 million.

The project called for engineering services during construction that included contract administration services, fulltime field inspection, and sub-consulting services (geotechnical, materials testing, environmental inspections and tunneling specialist). URS Canada Inc. provided these services, and Randy Ambalavanar represented the company as a project co-ordinator and senior inspector. At the time, he held eight years of experience in project management and site inspection of municipal infrastructure including sewers, watermains, and roads for several development projects in York Region.

Randy Ambalavanar worked with the project team and contractors to resolve several onsite issues including dewatering, resolution of disruption to clay tile drains in arable land along the alignment of the pipeline, and complaints from residents about noise and activities of the contractor loading and moving earth and heavy equipment. In addition, he was involved in resolving contract issues related to soils and tunneling, sediment control, and on site health and safety. He was responsible for inspection and supervision, as well as liaison between the residents, and representatives of the interests of the Region, and Towns of Whitchurch-Stouffville and Markham.

projectsCanada Sri Ayyapan Hindu Temple- City of Toronto

projectsUntil 2008, the part of the temple (Banquet Hall) has operated with several major outstanding deficiencies identified by inspectors from the City of Toronto. Moisture was a major issue related to the roofing system of the Gopuram, or tower of the temple. In addition, the wet basement for use as a banquet hall, had limited use, and there were several building code violations related to pedestrian access, lighting, safety railings, washroom facilities, and ground floor beam support. A major deficiency was that the sanitary and storm sewers were set at an improper grade that caused basement flooding. The building was set at a grade that could not be properly drained. Consult Ranjan and its team of structural and municipal engineers were retained to catalogue all deficiencies, and work with the City and the Board of Directors of the temple to secure an occupancy permit. Within a few months, the problems had been identified and documented and mitigating measures presented to the City for approval.

Randy Ambalavanar of Consult Ranjan applied his communications skills and project management experience to form the team and enter into liaison with city staffs to resolve all outstanding issues. The knowledge of community, land use planning, and business practice held by Ambalavanar contributed significantly to the support by the temple’s Board of Directors to work with the city to solve existing problems and provide the direction needed to complete all elements of the project through site plan approval. In addition, Ambalavanar had to deal carefully with past architects, consultants and contractors over outstanding payments to avoid going into litigation.

projectsCanada Kanthaswamy Temple - City of Toronto

projectsIn June 2010, Consult Ranjan was retained by the Canada Kanthaswamy Temple at 733 Birchmount Road to complete the preparation of sewer and signal works for access to the site. The City confirmed that there were no agreements for numerous outstanding issues. The prime issues were the requirement of a new site survey, preparation of the final design of the storm sewers, and the resolution of issues concerning the flooding. Consult Ranjan determined that flooding affected all site design and temple considerations with respect to location and elevation.

As the area developed for the existing uses (generally industrial), the municipality designed and constructed both storm and sanitary sewers along with watermains. Local services include a storm sewer across the frontage of the site in an existing easement. The local collector sewers include a large and deep storm sewer that exists in a steel plate culvert under Comstock Road that is routed along the same alignment and under the site in a permanent easement. This is the alignment that traverses Birchmount Road and across the south west corner of the site.

The Temple had operated for 15 to 16 years in the converted-use single story industrial building that had surpassed its design life. A site plan application filed in the mid 2000s was unsuccessful in securing the necessary permits from the City to continue operations as a temple. The plan did not consider the flooding concern, and was not coordinated with City traffic signals design, and review with the City’s Transportation department.

The preliminary architectural concept for the temple showed the structure in a similar location to the existing building. The location was most appropriate because it is located on the highest elevation of the property. The lowest area of the property is the southwest corner where a new entrance was planned at the east leg of the intersection of Birchmount Road and Comstock. The greatest depth of flood water would be at this location where the storm sewer system would be fully inundated and the stormwater runoff along the road system severe in the event of a major storm. When Consult Ranjan conducted its situational analysis, it found that the major civil works for the development were access to the site, engineering of a transition structure for an existing culvert and storm sewer, and reconstruction of an intersection on Birchmount Road. The storm and sanitary sewer services for the new temple would have to be engineered for connection to the City’s collector sewers.

Before construction could begin for the phased temple construction, Consult Ranjan had to complete servicing of the site to accommodate the development. Toronto Transportation required the east leg of the intersection to be constructed and the Temple's new main entrance to be created. To construct the east leg of the intersection and main entrance, the existing storm system on the private site within the existing easements had to be reconstructed by Consult Ranjan’s civil contractor. After all major intersection and storm water management works were completed, then landscaping and construction of the parking lot could be managed through a site plan process.

Given that the existing sewers must remain in place, to achieve maximum use of the site it was necessary to solve the problem that existed at the east side of the intersection with Comstock Road. At this location there is a deep depression resulting from a change in service infrastructure from an open stream to a buried storm sewer. Storm drainage is conveyed in a ditch from the steel culvert to an existing concrete culvert that runs under the earth berm of a hydro corridor, connecting to the collector sewer. Before the intersection entrance could be built, the depression had to be re-engineered and backfilled. A new manhole with customized connections from the existing steel culvert to the existing concrete culvert was required to channel stormwater under the berm. A custom-built 3000mm diameter precast concrete manhole was specified to connect the storm drainage from one culvert to the other, and a second 1200mm manhole replaced an existing one.

After designs for a metal plate culvert extension had been completed and submitted to the City for approval, it was determined that the existing soils were unsuitable for engineering. Consult Ranjan’s tailor-made solution of a poured-in-place footing over engineered soils for the retaining wall needed for the culvert construction, kept the project on schedule to the satisfaction of City departments and the Temple Board of Directors. The solution shaved weeks off the potential approvals period to resolve the retaining wall foundation and onsite soils issues.

projects Nallur Kandhaswamy Kovil & Shivan Kovil Temple - Hindu Temple - City of Toronto

projectsThe proposed Sri Nallur Kandhaswamy Kovil & Shivan Kovil Hindu Temple will be located on a 5.4-acre parcel at the northwest corner of the intersection of Neilson and Morningside Roads in the Morningside Heights area of Scarborough. The Temple is designed by staff at Consult Ranjan in collaboration with architect Sthapathy Kumaresan. It was important for the Consult Ranjan team to understand the functions of a Hindu Temple to ensure compliance with Toronto codes and bylaws to save money and time for all parties, especially the community of Hindu worshipers. To ensure the complete integration of all relevant religious aspects of the temple within the Canadian context, project detail meetings were conducted with the architect, and the City of Toronto Planning, Building, and Engineering Departments – among others.

The main entrance is located on the east side of the building and is accentuated by a highly ornamental and colourful Gopuram (tower) which will be visible and a significant landmark. Inside the temple are numerous shrines for the various deities. Some are part of all Hindu temples, while other shrines are unique to the temple. There are two smaller entrances with their own smaller Gopurams located on the south side, and adjacent to the south east corner. Members of the Consult Ranjan team made trips to India in 2010 and 2011 to participate in the ceremony in preparation of the carvings of granite deities for the shrines inside the temple.

During the planning process for site plan approval, an archaeological review, required by the City of Toronto, determined that an archaeological assessment would be required by the applicant. No civil works involving soil disturbances could take place until Consult Ranjan resolved any archaeological issues of concern to the City. This work continued as other approvals for development were secured.

Previous consultants had not secured approval for access and the City was prepared to permit only a right turn in and right turn out of the site at the intersection on Morningside. There could be no access to Neilson because of anticipated road reconstruction that would drop the grade of the road to a point where access to the site would not be possible. Limited ingress and egress to the site from Morningside was not a viable solution. The tailor-made solution proposed by Consult Ranjan was an internal service road to service the three parcels, including the Temple. There would be one controlled intersection that would be redesigned to accommodate full access to the service road.

Staff of Consult Ranjan, and the local Priest Bala travelled to Chennai, India over the latter part of June and the beginning of July 2011 to continue the design development of the Sri Nallur Kandhaswamy Kovil & Shivan Kovil Temple with renowned Indian temple architect Sthapathy Kumaresan and his staff. The Consult Ranjan team collaborated with Mr. Kumaresan and his staff for design of the temple on the new site at 2710 Morningside Avenue, including access modifications for the adjoining site at 1730 Neilson Road, accommodation of the results of the archaeological site investigation and comments by City of Toronto Planning Department staff.

The temple will be located on a 2.7 acres rear portion within the 5.4-acre parcel, leaving the front 2.4 acres for other uses. Based on a review of the proposed City of Toronto parking standards for places of worship, the number of cars required will be 242. The number of parking spaces exceeds the requirements for banquet halls and community meeting facilities. This is an important consideration, as the banquet hall and community meeting room activities will not occur when the temple is in use.

The temple has been located 10 meters further south as the “pragaram” (street) that surrounds the temple. It will now be fully enclosed with a roof and glazed walls. The parking layout has been designed to provide ease of access for the maximum number of devotees; and will allow ceremonial chariot parades to proceed easily around the temple. The main access to the temple will be from the east with additional secondary access from the south and west. The main entrance will be accessible for people in wheelchairs, as grades will be modified to eliminate all stairs and steps.

The design of the ground floor has not undergone significant changes, as far as the location of the various shrines, but greater detailed design of the shrines has occurred, including more detailed drawings and material specifications. The structure supporting the roof has been designed with a view to allow an attractive layout of decorative columns and arches that will provide a stunning surrounding to the two main shrines. The roof itself will consist of several levels that will allow daylight to enter into the centre of the building, which will not only provide a more traditional Indian atmosphere, but also save energy by reducing the amount of artificial lighting required during the day.

During winter, access will be through a second entrance on the east side. Devotees will remove their coats and shoes, carry out the obligatory washing of their feet in warm water and then they enter the temple via the main entrance without incurring wet, cold floors that are characteristic of Canadian temples. Heated floors will be considered in certain areas in the main entrance to make the visit as comfortable as possible.

The lower level has been designed to contain the main banquet hall (450 people), community meeting space (600 people), gift shop, kitchen, storage rooms, mechanical rooms, washrooms, additional coat rooms and resting space for guests from outside Toronto and Canada. The basement will be accessed via a main stair from the main east entrance and three additional exit safety stairs. The lower level will be served by a passenger elevator that is also wheelchair accessible. Washroom facilities have been revised to provide fixtures in excess of the mandatory Ontario Building Code and health and safety requirements.

projectsEmery (Berzy) Subdivision -Town of Markham
projectsAngus Glen Subdivision -Town of Markham
projectsBaif Westminister Subdivision -City of Vaughan
projectsSummerhill South Subdivision -Town of Newmarket
projectsKing Valley Resort -Township King
projectsClub Link Golf Course -Township King
projectsMontesano Crescent Subdivision -City of Richmond Hill
projectsLoredana Court Subdivision -City of Richmond Hill
projectsLoredana Court Subdivision -City of Richmond Hill
projectsSangamam Banquet Hall - City of Toronto

News Alert

newMajor civil engineering works completed on site of Hindu Temple on Birchmount Road The Kanthaswamy Temple on the 2-acre triangular site at 733 Birchmount Road in Scarborough may move to design and construction following completion of major civil engineering works required for stormwater management and intersection improvements in 2011 that were facilitated by the expertise of Consult Ranjan. The temple had operated for 15 to 16 years in the converted single story industrial building that had surpassed its design life. A site plan application filed in the mid 2000s was unsuccessful in securing the necessary permits from the City of Toronto to continue operations as a temple. The plan did not consider flooding concerns, the signalization of the intersection at Birchmount and Comstock Roads, and the entrance to the site.

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Cornell Community Town of Markham Stormwater Treatment Facilities - City of Toronto