The South Wilmington Grade Separation Project is a $60 million project that takes place at the Port of Los Angeles. When it is built, the structure will be the longest bridge in the Port—a total of 2160 feet. It will provide a direct access to the Trapac Terminal and relieve traffic delays in the Pier A areas due to train blockage on streets.
Because of the many challenges present in the construction of the South Wilmington Grade Separation Project, and in order to investigate the optimal solutions for the construction, the Port of Los Angeles retained a team to prepare, facilitate, and conduct a Value Analysis (VA) study for the Grade Separation Project. The team was led by Value Management Systems and technical engineering support was led by PacRim Engineering.
The VA study identified and evaluated alternative project solutions and provided recommendations to decision makers, including a cost-benefit analysis. From a technical standpoint, the aspects of the project that are the most challenging include access to the port facilities during construction, utilities, and staging; constructability; and interfacing with the park construction project in the vicinity. After an extensive study, the team recommended alternative solutions that could reduce the project cost by as much as $22 million and provide the critical access to the Trapac Terminal as much as six months sooner.