CLIENT: Chandos Construction / District of Lake Country
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
PRI was hired by our clients, Chandos, the contractor, to perform environmental management and monitoring for Year 1/Phase 1: coffer dam construction and Year 2/Phase 2: dam remediation. We liaised with the environmental auditor, project engineers, Indigenous archaeological monitors, the District of Lake Country, contractors and sub-trades. We assisted the project team with obtaining permits and troubleshooting project issues and incidents.
CHALLENGE:
Wildlife presence on the site was very high and included salvaging 1000s of amphibians, fish and crayfish, for each year of the project. This was something that was not anticipated during project planning and required PRI’s guidance, contractor training and education, increased compliance monitoring, significant adaptation to mitigation designs and additional resourcing to successfully achieve compliance with permits.
APPROACH:
PRI collaborated with all project participants and undertook a high degree of responsive communications so that environmental mitigation measures were performed in a timely manner to avoid impacts to the construction schedule and maintain project compliance.
OUTCOME:
Successful, compliant and on time completion of the dam remediation, while maintaining positive working relationships with project participants and addressing emergent mitigation challenges.
CLIENT: Dominium Inc./Integra Architecture
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Zara at Lakestone is a 6-storey mixed-use development comprising 86 residential units, main-level retail space, and a two-level underground parkade, located in the District of Lake Country. The project commenced in 2020 and progressed through to near construction completion. PRI provided civil engineering services for the project, including site servicing upgrades, road redesign, and construction-phase field review and closeout services.
CHALLENGE:
The urban infill nature of the development created significant complexity around maintaining safe and functional access for both residents and heavy construction traffic throughout the duration of the build. Upgrading existing site services within a constrained corridor, redesigning the road carriageway and sidewalk, and securing approvals for a road closure and detour route from the District of Lake Country proved particularly demanding, with the approval process for the detour and closure alone spanning several months due to the competing interests of the surrounding community and utility providers.
APPROACH:
PRI worked closely with the developer, project consultants, and shallow utility providers to navigate the municipal approvals process with the District of Lake Country. A detailed road closure and detour route design was developed to safely accommodate both residential traffic and heavy construction vehicles for the full duration of the build. Civil works included the upgrading of existing site services and the redesign of the road carriageway and sidewalk to meet current standards and support the scale of the development. PRI also provided field review services for the contractor covering both offsite works and onsite servicing upgrades, and carried the project through to closeout.
OUTCOME:
PRI’s sustained coordination with municipal staff, utility providers, and the project team successfully secured the necessary approvals to allow construction to proceed without significant disruption to the surrounding area. The detailed detour and road closure design ensured safe site access was maintained throughout the build. With field review and closeout services provided through to project completion, PRI delivered consistent civil oversight from design through to the final stages of this complex urban residential development.
CLIENT: Tzeachten First Nation
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Tzeachten First Nation retained PRI for the structural design of a 9,188 sq. ft. Longhouse. The facility comprises a main hall with bleachers, a single-storey side wing housing washroom and kitchen facilities, and a covered entryway — serving as a cultural gathering space for the Tzeachten First Nations Community.
CHALLENGE:
The project required a structural design that could honor the cultural and aesthetic significance of the Longhouse while meeting modern engineering standards. Incorporating traditional cedar log columns and exposed heavy timber elements as both structural and architectural features demanded careful coordination between engineering performance and cultural expression across three distinct building forms.
APPROACH:
PRI designed a mixed heavy timber structural system tailored to each area of the facility. The main hall roof was framed with traditional timber roof joists carried on heavy mass timber glulam beams supported by steel columns, creating an open and dignified gathering space. The single-storey side wing was designed with prefabricated timber roof trusses on timber stud walls for an efficient and functional enclosure. The covered entryway was designed with traditional timber rafters on heavy mass timber beams carried by cedar log columns, directly incorporating Indigenous heritage materials into the structure. Throughout, exposed structural elements were treated as aesthetic features, bringing a warm wood tone atmosphere to the interior.
OUTCOME:
PRI delivered a structurally sound Longhouse that successfully integrates modern engineering with the cultural identity of the Tzeachten First Nation. The completed facility provides a dignified and functional community gathering space where traditional cedar and heavy timber craftsmanship are celebrated as central design elements.
CLIENT: Blueberry River First Nation
PROJECT DECRIPTION:
From 2015 to 2023, PRI delivered a range of GIS and environmental assessment services to Blueberry River First Nation, providing ongoing technical support on an as-needed basis and contributing to the Regional Strategic Environmental Initiative (RSEA) — a collaboration between seven Treaty 8 Nations and the Province of BC aimed at understanding and managing the cumulative impacts of resource development within Treaty 8 territory.
CHALLENGE:
Supporting Blueberry River First Nation required a flexible and responsive engagement model that could address evolving technical needs over an extended multi-year period. The RSEA work demanded rigorous data analysis across a broad range of land and resource categories — including oil and gas infrastructure, old growth management areas, riparian areas, and crown and private land — within a politically and culturally significant context centered on the protection of Indigenous treaty rights.
APPROACH:
PRI provided sustained GIS support to Blueberry River First Nation across multiple years, adapting to the Nation’s priorities as they evolved. In 2022 and 2023, PRI contributed to the RSEA process through comprehensive data summary reviews covering oil and gas infrastructure, old growth management areas, riparian areas, and crown and private land. This work was carried out in alignment with the broader RSEA framework, which seeks to build trusted, evidence-based information on cumulative resource development impacts to inform meaningful recommendations for managing effects on treaty rights.
OUTCOME:
PRI’s long-term technical partnership with Blueberry River First Nation delivered consistent and reliable GIS support across nearly a decade, culminating in substantive contributions to the RSEA process. The data summary reviews provided the Nation with a stronger evidentiary foundation to participate in treaty rights discussions and support the development of culturally and environmentally informed land management recommendations within Treaty 8 territory.
CLIENT: Elemental Energy
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
PRI Engineering provided geotechnical engineering services in support of the Brooks II Solar Project, a 32.8 MWp (26.5 MWac) utility-scale solar farm developed by Elemental Energy in Newell County, Alberta. Located adjacent to the existing Brooks I facility, the project spans 88 hectares and comprises 73,268 bifacial solar panels on a ground-mounted single-axis tracking system, connecting to the local distribution network via two 25 kV Fortis interconnections. PRI’s engineering scope supported the successful delivery of a facility that has been supplying clean, renewable electricity to the Alberta grid since 2022.
CHALLENGE:
Engineering a foundation solution across a 220-acre solar installation in the Alberta prairie environment presented a demanding set of technical challenges. The sheer scale of the project, with nearly 73,000 panel foundations distributed across privately owned agricultural land, required a thorough understanding of subsurface conditions to inform a foundation approach that was both structurally reliable and constructible at volume. Alberta’s climate introduced a further critical constraint: the region’s freeze-thaw cycles and susceptibility to frost heave in native soils posed a direct risk to foundation stability, panel alignment, and long-term structural performance. Any foundation system would need to resist seasonal ground movement across the full footprint and over the operational life of the asset.
APPROACH:
PRI conducted geotechnical investigations to characterize subsurface soil conditions across the project site, providing the data necessary to underpin sound foundation design decisions. Drawing on those findings, PRI developed specialized foundation designs specifically configured to mitigate frost heave risk in Alberta’s native soils, ensuring that the racking and panel support structures would maintain structural integrity and alignment through repeated seasonal freeze-thaw cycles. PRI’s engineering work was closely coordinated with the overall project layout, accounting for the single-axis tracking system’s load and geometry requirements across the full 88-hectare footprint.
OUTCOME:
PRI’s geotechnical and foundation engineering contributed to the successful construction and commissioning of Brooks II, which has been operational since 2022. The frost-resistant foundation solution delivered by PRI provides long-term confidence in structural performance across one of Alberta’s larger utility-scale solar installations. The project builds on PRI’s established expertise in prairie solar development and reinforces the firm’s capacity to deliver practical, site-specific engineering solutions at utility scale in the Canadian prairie context.
CLIENT: Mosaic Forest Management
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Mosaic Forest Management contracted PRI to complete landcover classification and terrain indices for 700,000 ha on their private and crown chart areas Vancouver Island and coastal mainland BC.
Land cover prediction modeling identified treed/non-treed, roads, and more detailed non-treed land cover/land use classes (snow, avalanche chutes, shrub, transmission lines, roads, wetlands, rock, etc.). The was done in a condensed timeframe, in a semi-automated fashion, with machine learning and then reviewed by photo-interpreters. This information was used in a subsequent remote sensing-based forest inventory.
APPROACH & OUTCOME:
A complex set of terrain indices, examining terrain and slope position at a range of scales (5m to 50m kernels) and neighborhood sizes (25m to 2000m neighbourhoods). These were used to make better predictions of site productivity and species compositions.
We also reviewed sample ground plot locations in a 3D environment to ensure that the calls made on the ground were consistent with what we could see in the lidar and imagery – this was done to confirm the GPS positional accuracy of the ground plots and move the plot to a representative location if it looked like there were issues with the GPS coordinates.
CLIENT: PCL Construction Canada Inc.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
PRI Engineering provided supplementary geotechnical investigation, foundation design field investigation, and racking adaptor design services for a 55 MW AC solar project in Claresholm, AB. The scope included an extensive field program, laboratory testing, and full foundation design through to issued-for-tender drawings.
CHALLENGE:
The scale of the project demanded a high-volume geotechnical program to characterize subsurface conditions across a large site. Laboratory analysis revealed corrosive soil conditions, introducing a durability risk that required careful consideration in foundation selection and design. Ensuring the helical pile foundations could reliably handle axial and lateral loads — while resisting long-term deterioration — was critical to the structural integrity of the solar racking system.
APPROACH:
PRI mobilized an extensive field investigation program comprising 40 boreholes, 2,150 helical probes, and the installation and testing of 175 helical foundations. Axial and lateral load testing (175 and 25 tests respectively) provided robust data to validate pile performance. Laboratory results informed corrosion risk mitigation, with protective coatings recommended to ensure long-term durability. Pile depth, load capacity, and stability against bending and shifting were all assessed and optimized through the design process. The foundation design was structured to allow final verification against construction drawings.
OUTCOME:
PRI delivered a comprehensive geotechnical investigation and foundation design package, including issued-for-tender drawings. The design provided a site-specific, corrosion-resistant helical foundation solution validated by one of the most extensive field testing programs on a solar project of this scale in the region.
CLIENT: Mosaic Forest Management
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
PRI supported the collaborative forest planning process for Block 17 (Bonanza Lake), beginning with a review of current forest conditions to understand key ecological, cultural, and land-use factors. The process is guided by the shared values of ‘Namgis First Nation and Mosaic, which inform the desired future conditions for the landscape.
CHALLENGE:
Developing a meaningful and lasting landscape plan required bridging the perspectives of two distinct stakeholders — ‘Namgis First Nation and Mosaic — while ensuring the process honored Indigenous values, cultural priorities, and the principles of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA). Accurately capturing and modeling complex, multi-layered landscape values to inform long-term planning added further technical and relational complexity to the process.
APPROACH:
PRI facilitated regular collaborative meetings between ‘Namgis First Nation and Mosaic to define current landscape values and establish a shared long-term vision for the forest. PRI documented and modeled those values to support the development of a DRIPA-aligned landscape plan, including a preferred management scenario and identification of key sensitivities. Draft materials were subject to review and feedback from both parties to ensure the plan authentically reflected their shared vision.
OUTCOME:
The finalized landscape plan provides a strong and culturally grounded foundation for a future Forest Landscape Plan for Block 17, reflecting the shared values of ‘Namgis First Nation and Mosaic and establishing a clear, collaborative framework for the long-term stewardship of the Bonanza Lake forest.
CLIENT: Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS) engaged PRI to complete a Consequence Classification Assessment (CCA) of Chain Lake Dam, located 36 kilometres northeast of Princeton, BC, along the Princeton-Summerland Road. Building on the findings of the CCA, PRI was subsequently retained to advance the preliminary and detailed design of a new spillway and Low-Level Outlet (LLO), through to Issued for Construction drawings and full tender documentation. Construction engineering services are forthcoming, with the project developed in consultation with the public and Indigenous Communities.
CHALLENGE:
Establishing an accurate and defensible consequence classification for Chain Lake Dam required thorough analysis of potential failure modes and their downstream impacts. Two breach scenarios — a sunny day piping failure and an overtopping failure — needed to be modelled and mapped to understand the extent and severity of potential inundation. The findings of the CCA then directly shaped the design requirements for new dam safety infrastructure, with the spillway and LLO needing to meet updated regulatory standards while reflecting the sensitivities of a project requiring meaningful public and Indigenous consultation.
APPROACH:
PRI conducted a background review and site reconnaissance before completing a dam breach analysis considering both piping and overtopping failure modes. Inundation mapping was completed using FLO-2D software, and an updated consequence classification was provided to the RDOS. Based on the CCA recommendations, PRI proceeded with preliminary and detailed design of the new spillway and LLO. Design development was carried out in consultation with the public and Indigenous Communities throughout the process. PRI prepared Issued for Construction drawings, a schedule of quantities, a Class A cost estimate, and full tender documentation to support the RDOS tendering process. Environmental services were also provided, and PRI will deliver construction-phase engineering services including field reviews and post-construction reporting.
OUTCOME:
PRI’s end-to-end involvement — from consequence classification through design, tendering support, and forthcoming construction oversight — has provided the RDOS with consistent, single-source engineering expertise across all phases of this dam safety project. The dam breach analysis and inundation mapping established a technically defensible basis for updated consequence classification, while the subsequent spillway and LLO design addressed the identified deficiencies in accordance with current regulatory requirements. Meaningful engagement with the public and Indigenous Communities throughout the design process supported an inclusive and well-informed project outcome.
CLIENT: Solvero Wines
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Solvero Wines retained PRI for the structural, civil, geotechnical, and mechanical design and construction services of a new wine production building and tasting room. The facility supports wine production from the adjacent vineyard and includes nine 9,500-litre storage tanks, a barrel storage area, and an outdoor patio for tastings adjacent to the tasting building.
CHALLENGE:
The project involved a sloping site with significant grade changes, requiring tall internal and external walls and architectural retaining walls. The design demanded a mixed construction approach across steel, timber, and concrete systems, while accommodating the functional and aesthetic requirements of both an industrial production facility and a guest-facing tasting room.
APPROACH:
PRI designed a mixed structural system using steel moment frames to provide lateral stability for both buildings, with expressed glue-laminated pitched beams in the tasting building for gravity loading — lending the space an architectural warmth fitting for a guest experience. The production building was engineered to accommodate the operational demands of winemaking, including the weight and layout of the nine large-format storage tanks and barrel storage. Civil, geotechnical, and mechanical design were coordinated alongside the structural work to deliver a fully integrated solution across the sloping site.
OUTCOME:
The production building opened ahead of schedule in July 2023, allowing Solvero Wines to begin operations from the new facility. The full facility, including the tasting room and outdoor patio, reached completion in October 2023, delivering a functional and architecturally distinctive winery that serves both production and hospitality purposes.
