Port of Philadelphia (PhilaPort), Packer Avenue Marine Terminal Phase II Port Development Improvements

Burns oversees design and construction of new shipping terminal equipment and facilities.

As marine terminals handle increasingly larger ships, the Port of Philadelphia (PhilaPort) is pursuing competitive advantage with major upgrades to a 160-acre Delaware River container facility.

PhilaPort engaged Burns Engineering as the project owner’s representative. On-site construction inspection and engineering review services will ensure the 60-year-old Packer Avenue Marine Terminal can successfully double container capacity by 2021.

The multi-phased project involves:

• Demolition of existing warehouses,
• Modernization of port’s infrastructure systems,
• Achievement of environmental sustainability goals, and
• Coordination to minimize interference with on-going facility operations.

Central to the $188 million project is the addition of five Super post-Panamax container cranes, among the largest in the world at heights of 391 feet, and enhancements to 3,000 feet of terminal shipping berths.

Burns leads stakeholder coordination between design consultants Jacobs Engineering and S.T. Hudson Engineers, tenant Holt Logistics Corp and site contractors.

Three of six berths remain operational throughout construction by timing installations and decommissions according to vessel schedules.

An on-terminal substation will enable replacement of diesel-run cranes with new all-electric equipment, lowering greenhouse gas emissions and preparing PhilaPort for future electrification conversions.

In addition, shore-to-ship power capacity will allow vessels to plug into electricity supplied directly at the terminal, rather than continually burn engine fuel. Burns oversees electrical compatibility studies and systems installation.

Sitework oversight includes troubleshooting stormwater management practices that limit pollution discharge into the Delaware River, as well as timing berth construction activities around the spawning cycle of local fish populations.

This is the second project where Burns serves as an owner’s representative for PhilaPort. Burns previously oversaw renovations of Pier 84, the country’s premier cocoa import facility.