Cambridge Amazon Fulfillment Centre
Retaining Wall

Cambridge, ON

OWNER: Amazon
GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Broccolini
EXCAVATOR: Roxboro Excavating
NOISE WALL INSTALLER: Powell Fence
RETAINING WALL INSTALLER: In4Structure

Broccolini collaborated with the team at Design Concrete for more than a year to establish the requirements for the new Amazon Fulfillment Centre in Cambridge, ON. Requiring both noise barriers and retaining walls, DCI partnered with sister company, Durisol on the multiple design solutions explored and assessed. A double-sided sound absorptive panel wall system and Retain-A-Rock™ (RAR) for the retaining walls was the best option for Broccolini and the City.

According to the noise study report, the project required noise walls to meet minimum noise requirements due to the truck loading for adjacent residential lands. To address concerns about sound reverberation between the building structure and the noise wall system, double-sided sound absorptive noise walls were recommended for areas parallel to the reflective face of the adjacent fulfillment center. Critical noise walls A and C along Old Mill Street were both ground and structure-mounted on the retaining wall and successfully completed by our installation partners at Powell Fence.

Design Considerations

To gain approval from the City, aesthetics were prioritized in the design. Past projects helped to convey this. The City required prior approval for both types of walls. Durisol provided detailed engineered and stamped SK drawings of the walls and included photographs of similar installations from previous projects.

To increase the usable space for access and parking, retaining walls were necessary for the required grade separations. The project required multiple retaining walls (Walls B & D thru I) which were all constructed as gravity segmental retaining walls using Retain-A-Rock™ (RAR). Wall B (along Old Mill Street) was a critical part of the project and was installed on-site between December 2022 and January 2023. Wall B had sufficient retaining wall requirements that would typically require Geogrid MSE reinforcement. However, Geogrid could not be used due to landscaping requirements. Therefore, a double thickness of base block units was used to design this wall section that was filled with ready-mix concrete and rebar in situ, which eliminated the need for geogrid MSE. Pricing for retaining walls included client design, supply & installation, as well as all backfill and required compaction. The installation of all Retain-A-Rock™ retaining walls for this project was carried out by In4Structure.