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WHAT’S INSIDE: In Colorado, a Mesa® installation takes a hit from a ferocious
summer downpour – and goes on to hit the heights. > In El Salvador, a Mesa
highway project ramps up as one of Latin America’s tallest. > South Carolina’s
General Precast builds its SRW business staying true to its origins – expertise in
utility structures. > Illinois licensee, Country Stone, leverages Mesa products
to enter commercial markets throughout the Midwest. > And, the Mesa Ashford
System deliberately expands for more random pattern possibilities. > All this,
and a new look for The Mesa Connection. Welcome to the Fall 2005 issue!
FALL 2005
MesaRETAINING WALL SYSTEMS
®
mesa connectionthe ™
Rampa Principal del Puente Retorno San MartinPROJECTPROFILE:
Adequate road systems are vital to
any major city – and even more so
when that city is the transportation
hub for an entire country.
That’s certainly true of San Salvador,
the capital city of the Republic of
El Salvador in Central America, and
home to one-third of the country’s
six million residents. So when the
exit ramp for an overpass (RampaPrincipal del Puente Retorno SanMartin – Paquete 2) was the last
scheduled phase of a recent highway
construction project, speedy
completion was a top priority. Like
many highway construction projects,
however, an unforeseen challenge
threatened to slow things down.
Landfill Conditions Force
Design Change
“The ramp’s original design called for
concrete walls, but when we went to the
site and started to excavate, we found a
lot of garbage, like a giant fill. We didn’t
have time to support concrete walls
with pilings. And because the ramp
was so high, the contractor (SBI
International Holdings) proposed
a change to Mesa Retaining Walls,”
explained Ruben Martinez, structural
engineer with international design and
engineering firm Nippon Koe. SBI bid
against precast, panel and competitive
block proposals before being awarded
the project by the Ministerio ObraPublicas El Salvador, the country’s
federal highway administration.
“Following excavation, we had to
increase the height and tier the walls
to ensure global stability,” added
Tensar Earth Technologies’ (TET)
Rodrigo Valencia, project manager
(indeed, the height of the key wall
nearly doubled). Valencia assisted in
the walls’ final design in collaboration
with Nippon Koe’s Martinez.
> To ensure quality, the firm works only with carefully
chosen engineered retaining wall products such as
the Mesa® Retaining Wall Systems.
Mesa Highway Installation Tops Outas One of Latin America’s Tallest >
continued on page 2
The design ultimately included four
smaller walls, each about ten feet in
height, with the key wall exceeding 40
feet. That wall is “our tallest Mesa Wall
ever, and one of the highest in Latin
America,” claims José Pérez, P.E.,
manager of geotechnical systems for
Precon-Guatemala, Mesa Licensee.
Pérez added that the project required
32,000 gray, standard split-face Mesa
Units; Precon had 20,000 units in stock,
quickly manufactured the balance and
supplied the necessary Tensar® Geogrid
for the job.
SBI’s fast-track installation took place
January–February 2004. The site’s
weak foundation soils and the
foundation fill were both stabilized
with a soil-cement mixture, and the
walls were constructed with a 5 degree
batter. The project’s total wall face area
exceeded 18,000 square feet.
Substantial Savings with
Mesa Systems
“The Mesa Systems installation costs
20% less than a reinforced earth
solution and 35% less than cast-in-
place concrete walls,” said TET’s
Reinaldo Vega-Meyer, senior project
manager for the international division’s
Latin American business. Given all the
challenges, “it was a good team effort,”
he added, and an important addition
to a vital city highway project.
Many garden centers and hardware
stores sell pavers and SRW units.
But most don’t sell them in volumes
large enough to justify truckload-sized
shipments of a single product from
their suppliers. It’s a market reality
that Country Stone, Mesa Licensee
headquartered in Rock Island, Illinois,
has been able to exploit with great
success over the last decade.
“We manufacture Mesa Units,
pavers and bagged rock and soils,”
says Todd Johnson, who heads up
the firm’s commercial sales. “This
mix means smaller customers can
get a lot of different products on a
single truck.”
About 25% of those shipments are
delivered by Quad City Express, a
regional trucking company owned
and operated by Country Stone.
Mesa Systems Open Up
Commercial Market
Country Stone operates production
plants in Ft. Wayne, Indiana and Rock
Island, and its sales force covers eight
mid-western states including Illinois,
Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan,
Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin.
The firm mainly serves residential
customers, but it added Mesa
products and Tensar Biaxial (BX)
Geogrids in 2003 to gain more
visibility with architects, engineers
and landscape contractors.
“The addition of the Mesa Systems
and Tensar Geogrid is our step into
making more of an impact in the
commercial side of the business,”
says Johnson.
And it’s working out. Handling the
Mesa line recently helped the firm
secure a contract for a 19,000 square-
foot wall at a new Lowe’s Center in
St. Louis, Missouri. “The Lowe’s store
likes the security of the Mesa Systems
positive mechanical connection,”
notes Johnson. “They contacted us
to put a bid on the project, and we
won it. We hope this is the first of
many projects to come.”
New Molds Broaden
Mesa Lineup
Country Stone is continuing to
broaden its Mesa product line with
the purchase of designated molds for
Mesa Plateau™ units. “We’re the first
licensee in the Great Lakes region to
produce these units,” says Johnson.
“We think its more manageable size
will be popular with our dealers and
contractors.”
Johnson notes that the vast majority
of SRW walls are less than 10 feet tall.
This fact makes the Plateau System a
natural fit for most projects.
Country StoneLICENSEEPROFILE:
2
Mesa Licensee Serves Up Mixed Loads
A 19,000 square foot Mesa wall at the Lowe’s Center in St. Louis, Missouri by Country Stone.
continued from page 1
> “The Mesa Systems proved to be dependable and easy
to install, and they function to the needs of the critical
design required to build this project.”
Powers Peak Retail CenterPROJECTPROFILE:
When home is 6,035 feet above
sea level, and Pikes Peak is in your
backyard, it would take something out
of the ordinary to get your attention.
A Mesa installation at Colorado
Springs’ Powers Peak Center is sure
to get your attention – all three tiers,
30 feet in height and 120,668 square
feet of it. What’s more, its year-long
construction includes an out of the
ordinary rain event that makes
this project even more amazing.
Completed in November 2003, the
massive installation supports truck
delivery lanes and a portion of the
parking lot for a Wal-Mart Supercenter,
one of two anchors (the other being
The Home Depot) at the new big box
regional center on the city’s sprawling
northeast side. And if that weren’t
enough, the center includes a single-
tier wall built between the two retailers
and a two-tiered wall built alongside a
bank. The development also features
restaurants and specialty shops.
Soil conditions at the elevated site
provided challenges from the start.
“Subsurface conditions included a
combination of existing clay fill, loose-
to medium-dense silty sands, natural
clays and claystone-to-sandstone
bedrock,” commented Keith Seaton,
P.E., senior engineer at Denver’s
A. G. Wassenaar, Inc.
“The pre-existing fill was dug out
and new, on-site clay fill was placed,”
Seaton continued. “In addition, the
loose sand was compacted to provide
foundation support for the high
walls. The second and third tiers
were founded on the sand fill placed
in the reinforced zone behind
the lower walls.” In addition to its
geotechnical work, the engineering
firm provided testing services for the
walls, utilities and site grading.
Global Stability a Key Issue
“With those on-site soil conditions,
global stability became a critical issue,”
added Kevin Mahoney, P.E., principal
civil structural engineer at Englewood,
Colorado’s Samuel Engineering, Inc.
For Mahoney and colleague Tim
Harper, structural designer, the project
provided challenges on a new scale:
their previous experience with
segmental retaining walls focused
on smaller projects for residential
developments. Design requirements for
the Powers Peak project incorporated
storm sewers placed behind the walls.
Mesa Walls in Colorado Springs Hit the Heights >
This Mesa Retaining Wall at Colorado Springs’ Powders Peak Center is three tiers, 30 feet high
and 120,668 square feet.
Just when you think it couldn’t
get any better – it does! To more
effectively meet the current design
trends the segmental retaining wall
market is demanding today, the
Mesa product line is proud to
announce a new and improved Mesa
Ashford System.
The enhancement of this system
brings an even more random
aesthetic appeal to the Ashford
System’s natural wall facing. With
four different-sized units, now you
have even more Ashlar, mosaic-like
patterns to choose from.
• Tall Unit – 6"w x 16"h x 11"d nom.
• Short Unit – 18"w x 4"h x 11"d nom.
• Medium Unit – 12"w x 8"h x 11"d nom.
• Standard Unit – 18"w x 8"h x 11"d nom.
The Mesa Ashford System is a single-
source solution that offers the same
structural integrity and reliability as
standard Mesa Walls. Unlike other
mosaic-inspired retaining wall
systems, Ashford Walls feature a
positive, mechanical connection from
the geogrid reinforcement to the wall
face assuring long-term stability on
every project.
With the Mesa Ashford System,
aesthetic appeal and optimum
performance are designed to go
hand in hand. Design options are
limitless, as you can mix and match
different unit sizes and colors to
create wall patterns that are truly
one of a kind. Wall patterning can
even be worked out on site!
For more information on the
Ashford System or any other
Mesa System, please contact us
by filling out and sending in the
enclosed prepaid card or calling
us toll-free at 888-831-8333.
“We looked at two systems and felt that
the Mesa Systems was the better one
for the job,” commented Gary Kiger,
senior project manager at Colorado
Springs’ Colorado Structures, Inc.,
general contractor. Denver’s Basalite
Concrete Products, Inc., the state’s
Mesa Licensee since 1997,
manufactured the standard, straight-
split gray Mesa Units and provided
250,000 square yards of Tensar
Geogrid reinforcement. The geogrid
was specified in several strengths,
based upon tier placement. Summit
Retaining Walls began construction in
December 2002, continuing through
spring 2003.
Summer Downpour Causes
Flood of Reactions
Then along came summer and with it
a summer rain. Only this rain was out
of the ordinary: a 41/2-inch downpour
in 20 minutes.
“That storm blew a 5-foot by 8-foot
hole in the bottom of the third tier
and lowered the grade level by
14 inches to 18 inches,” commented
Marsha Freedman, Basalite’s Mesa
Systems representative (along with
Niecie Banach earlier in the project).
“All three tiers would have collapsed
without the geogrid. Yet it only took
three days to repair the wall.”
Freedman added that a city inspector
attending one of her SRW seminars,
who assessed wall damage around
the town following the storm,
marveled at the Mesa Retaining Wall’s
structural connection integrity.
“We have a great working relationship
with Basalite,” Colorado Structures’
Kiger added. “Following that weather
event, Basalite ramped up to get
us back on track, and they’re well
commended. The Mesa Systems
proved to be dependable and easy to
install, and they function to the needs
of the critical design required to build
this project.” The tiered walls were
completed in November 2003, in time
for the center’s phased opening, and
have since been landscaped.
“It was a large and complex project,
requiring great coordination,” added
TETs’ Bob Barry, SRW manager. A
project whose construction challenges
and impressive results are truly
extraordinary.4
PremierProducts
Mesa Ashford™
System – A BetterSolution With aNatural Style
The success of South Carolina’s
General Precast Manufacturing
Company, now in its nineteenth year,
seems set in concrete. To this day,
the company draws upon its original
expertise – waste water and
stormwater structures for utility
customers – to diversify its product
lines and expand its customer base.
For Charleston-area customers, that’s
meant everything from manholes,
pump stations and catch basins to
pavers, entryways and segmental
retaining walls. The company added
those capabilities with the formation
of its architectural and on-site
divisions and a move to a new facility
in 1998 – conveniently located on
Precast Lane!
“We typically build walls for utility
customers as part of a site package
solution,” explained Chuck Gunter,
company president and founder
along with partners Donny Clayton
and Bob Joyner. Site work still
represents the major share of
business for General Precast and its
35 employees, but the company’s
portfolio of Mesa installations
includes a number of architectural
projects for business centers and
residential subdivisions as well.
Gunter estimates that the company
has completed about 70 Mesa
projects, “big and small,” over the
years. Some include what’s become
a General Precast specialty: signage
that integrates columns made of Mesa
Units with wrought-iron structures
fabricated in-house. The look, popular
in South Carolina’s Low Country region,
has another attractive feature: Gunter
says the installation runs “about one-
fifth the cost of brick.”
Company Builds Solid
Relationships
Over the years, General Precast has
built business relationships as solid as
its wall work and critical to its success.
Two of those relationships feature Mesa
Licensee RMC Metromont Materials and
engineering firm Geotrack Technologies.
“We furnish engineering designs to
customers, and we try to stay with
one block manufacturer,”
Gunter continued. “Our relationship
with Metromont goes back several
years. They’ve worked with us well.”
“General Precast is the leader in the
Charleston area,” said RMC Metromont
Materials’ Lee Adcock, who covers
coastal sales and has worked with
General Precast for the past two years.
“They have long-established
relationships with site contractors,
and early into projects, they always try
to change cast-in-place or timber walls
to segmental retaining walls.”
“We got involved with General Precast
through RMC Metromont Materials,”
added Geotrack Technologies’ David
Wilson, P.E. “Their ability to understand
issues and build walls is clearly evident.
They’re focused on their work, and they
always seem to have a lot of it.”
Daniel Island Project Helps
Protect Beach Area
The three companies’ most recent
collaboration is at Smythe Park, a
mixed-use development on the
upscale Daniel Island, not far from
downtown Charleston. There, General
> Over the years, General Precast has built business
relationships as solid as its wall work.
General PrecastCONTRACTORPROFILE:
General Precast’s Success StorySet in Concrete >
Smythe Park at
Daniel Island is a
6,000-square-foot
Mesa Wall.
Precast installed a 6,000-square-foot
Mesa Wall last fall. The wall encloses
a permanent, landscaped pond that
detains stormwater. Geotrack’s
Wilson explained that with the need
to prevent stormwater drain-off onto
beach areas, self-contained detention
systems have become even more
critical in the region.
General Precast’s Gunter has no
doubts about the Mesa Systems’
ability to do just that. “If you build
it like it’s designed, it will stand.
The acceptance of Mesa Walls
has been very good within the
engineering community.”
To contact General Precast,
call 843-761-7888 or visit
www.generalprecast.com; to
contact RMC Metromont Materials,
call 864-594-4000 or visit
www.metromontmaterials.com;
to contact Geotrack Technologies,
call 864-329-0013 or e-mail
Burleson Contracting, Inc.
Texas – (512) 260-9566
Contour, Inc.
Georgia – (770) 577-9082
Alabama – (205) 682-2013
Hoffman Enterprises
Missouri – (660) 338-2491
Pinnacle Design/Build
Georgia, Florida and Tennessee
(770) 205-4088
www.pinnacledesignbuild.com
Retaining Wall System of NJ
New Jersey – (800) 638-9255
R Walls
Georgia – (678) 581-2345
Roche Bros., Inc.
Maryland – (301) 428-0300
Slaton Bros., Inc.
Colorado – (303) 806-8160
www.slatonbros.com
MSE Systems
Florida – (407) 931-1221
For more information on the preferred contractor for your specific region,
please call Tensar Earth Technologies at 888-831-8333.
Contractors’Corner
Preferred Contractors
If you’re looking for an installer for your next Mesa Retaining Wall project,
please take a look at the following list of some of our “Preferred Contractors.”
• Tuesday, December 6
Salt Lake City, Utah
• Thursday, December 8
Boston, Massachusetts
• Tuesday, January 10, 2006
Orland0, Florida
• Thursday, February 16, 2006
Chicago, Illinois
Contractor Seminars
We would like to invite you to our upcoming Mesa Installation & Construction Seminars. This is a great opportunity for you and your entire crew to receive a full day of educationand training on segmental retaining wall (SRW) design and installation procedures from the National Concrete Masonry Association (NCMA). The NCMA SRW Installer Education & Certification Program (Level I) is valued at $125, and at these seminars, we are offering it to you FREE!
Learn: SRW Design & Analysis, SRW History & Advantages, Standard SRW Installation,Equipment & Tool Selection, Soil Identification & Selection, Principles & Importance of Compaction, Common SRW Failures, and much more!
6
©2005, Tensar Earth Technologies, Inc. Certain products and/or applications described or illustrated herein are protected under one or more U.S. patents. Other U.S. patents are pending, and certain foreign patents and patent applications may also exist. Trademark rights also apply as indicated herein. Final determination of the suitability of any information or material for the use contemplated, and its manner of use, is the sole responsibility of the user. Printed in the U.S.A.
MESA_TMC_05FALL
PRESORT STANDARD
U.S. POSTAGE
PAIDATLANTA, GA
PERMIT #4009
Tensar Earth Technologies, Inc.
5883 Glenridge Drive, Suite 200
Atlanta, Georgia 30328
888-831-8333
www.tensarcorp.com/mco5
UpcomingEventsTo find out more about Tensar Earth Technologies
and the Mesa Systems, please visit our booth at
one of our scheduled trade shows:
APWA
Minneapolis, Minnesota • September 11-13
Booth # 743
ASLA
Ft. Lauderdale, Florida • October 7
Booth # 511
Design/Build
Las Vegas, Nevada • November 8-10
Booth # 306
International Builder’s Show (NAHB)
Orlando, Florida • January 11-14, 2006
Booth # s11496
Visit our Mesa booth at any ofthe upcoming tradeshows andyou can win, or visit our websiteat www.tensarcorp.com/ipod toenter our contest to win yourown Apple iPod!
Apple and iPod are registered trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.
Enter to Win an Apple
®
iPod®
