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Zeroes highlight success of Cheecham Corridor Replacement Project

Published: April 25, 2022

Hundreds of workers achieved ‘a common goal of safe work and ensuring quality installation’

The expression “less is more” applies perfectly to Enbridge’s Cheecham Corridor Replacement Project.

The three-year project that saw construction come to a successful end on April 4, 2022 required more than a million person-hours to complete, with between 300 and 400 workers setting to tasks in the field each winter approximately 50 kilometres south of Fort McMurray.

The endeavor, considerable in size, scope and importance for Enbridge and its customers in the oil sands, ended with the following four tiny but gratifying numbers on participants’ minds:

  • zero environmental incidents.
  • zero non-compliance incidents through 10 Alberta Energy Regulator inspections.
  • zero indications (a measurement of the quality of pipeline installation—the lower the better).
  • and a personal safety measure for Total Recordable Incident Frequency (TRIF) of 0.2.

“Those zeroes really tell you everything you need to know about how things were run up there by everyone,” says Al Sawatzky, construction manager with Enbridge. “Great commitment and great communication during the entire three-year duration led to stellar work, so those zeroes are rewarding for everyone.”

The CCR Project required Enbridge and general contractor Ledcor to shift a right-of-way and relocate and replace segments of six crude oil pipelines that run into Enbridge’s Cheecham Terminal from the north. Work began in 2019—with two pipeline segments constructed each winter season.

The 14-km long sections of Enbridge Lines 36, 37, 19, 49, 50 and 75 were moved due west to a more geologically stable area as a way for Enbridge to proactively manage slope stability issues in the former corridor.

Clear communication and familiarity between all participants were key, with seemingly small things like “dial before you pump” stickers located in the right spots setting the tone for what would be dozens upon dozens of highly regulated water discharge tasks.

The one injury in the second season—a slip on ice that led to an arm fracture, but no lost work time—led to a renewed focus, says Bill Pilkington, an Enbridge major projects senior safety advisor.

“Consistency season to season among the teams from Enbridge and Ledcor meant there was a lot of familiarity, which made for great communication,” Pilkington says. “The injury was certainly unfortunate, but folks renewed their attention to detail and moved forward.”

The CCR Project wasn’t without its challenges. Extreme cold, the global pandemic and a tight availability of workers across the industry threw plenty at project planners.

“Everyone pulled together and worked through those challenges,” says Sawatzky. “There was a common goal of safe work and ensuring quality installation.”

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