McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. has completed a $31.5-million upgrade of the Barbours Cut Terminal Container Yards 4 North and 5 North for the Port Houston Authority. The project was part of a modernization program to increase cargo handling efficiency. McCarthy completed rehabilitation of the existing sites in an accelerated 13-month schedule, one month ahead of schedule.
The project scope involved removing old underground utilities and installing new utilities including laying a total of 695 feet of reinforced concrete pipe, laying 3,300 linear feet of four- to five-foot deep trench drains, reworking roadways into the site, and putting in three-and-a-half-feet of base before laying joint enforced pavement and roller compacted pavement, which was self-performed. The total combined area of the two yards is 17 acres.
McCarthy also recently began construction on Wharf 4 and Wharf 5 at Barbours Cut, having already completed Wharves 1, 2 and 3. The project scope includes reconstruction of the ship dock, with a total length of 1,333 feet, adding additional support piles for new, 100-foot-gauge ship-to-shore cranes, updating electrical infrastructure and putting in a new water line, as well as demolishing and rebuilding several support buildings onsite. McCarthy will also self-perform all concrete-related work.
McCarthy completed the Barbours Cut Terminal Container Yard 3 North in April 2022, in addition to Container Yards 1 North and 2 North in 2020. Wharves 4 and 5 are scheduled to be completed in early 2026.
Reprinted from Marine Construction Magazine, Issue II, 2024.
