The 960mw natural gas fired Burrard Generating Station is located on the Burrard Inlet 20 km east of Vancouver.
The six units at the station were constructed during the 1960s and early 1970s and BC Hydro implemented a series of projects to upgrade and optimise the operation of the plant.
The structures are steel braced frame buildings with plan dimensions of 95’ 9” by 51’ 0”, including the back-end which supports the pre-heater and stack. The height of the buildings are 120’ 0” At full load, each boiler produces approximately 1,050,000 lb/hr of steam at a pressure of 1,870 psi and a temperature of 1,010° F.
Ausenco, as part of the joint venture Pacific Power Consultants, performed a risk analysis of the six boiler supporting structures:
- Evaluating the seismic load carrying capabilities of existing buildings
- Identifying retrofit upgrade options and estimating costs
- Estimating costs of consequences
- Establishing the option with the least present value cost
Detailed engineering for the upgrade commenced after the analysis and cost estimates were completed.