3340 Line Upgrade 

South Burlington, Vermont | Private Client

At the Gorge Hydroelectric facility, power transmission lines cross the Winooski River close to the dam spillway presenting a substantial icing issue (from spillway spray) for the conductors. The facility’s staff regularly used a nearby utility bridge to stage ice removal activities, and the client was interested in modifying the transmission line to reduce or eliminate ice accumulation. D&K performed structural evaluations of the facility and used a drone to prepare a 3D model of the project area. Our team developed a range of discrete alternatives to reroute the transmission lines to avoid the icing issue. The solution was to reroute the lines by anchoring a new utility pole at a higher elevation on the adjacent rock face. D&K provided electrical and structural engineering for conduits up the rock face.

Project Elements

• Relocation of electrical transmission lines, steel towers, support structures, and poles at a tight, exposed hydroelectric dam site
• Design of steel lattice structures
• Data collection and modeling using drone/sUAS