Whale Tail Dike
Henry Foundation Drilling Inc. innovates to
complete unique piling project in Nunavut
By Olive Taylor
When Don Henry, the president of Henry
Foundation Drilling Inc. (HFDI), learned his
team had been awarded the contract to construct
a secant pile wall in the middle of Whale
Tail Lake in Nunavut, he knew the project would be unlike
any other.
HFDI’s winning bid combined innovative design, aggressive
scheduling and competitive pricing. Although the Langleybased
team anticipated the project would be tough due to
the logistics of working in a remote location and the painstaking
measures required to conserve the sensitive terrain and wildlife,
working in temperatures that plunged to -50°C with only two
and a half hours of daylight in the middle of winter is an
experience the crew will never forget.
PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
Project overview
Situated approximately 130 kilometres north of Baker Lake,
a hamlet known for its famous Inuit artists, the project site
was right on Whale Tail Lake, specifically on a dike that split
the lake in half so the lake could be dewatered and mined.
Between August and December 2018, HFDI constructed an
800-metre-long secant pile wall of overlapping piles socketed
into bedrock.
One thousand secant piles, one metre in diameter, were
socketed into bedrock. “Pile deviation was paramount,” said
Henry. “Every pile had to be measured for deviation.”
Due to the remote location in Nunavut, HFDI had to
mobilize an onsite automated grout plant as well as mechanics
and welding shops to complete the job. “Extensive planning
PHOTOS: HENRY FOUNDATION DRILLING INC.
PILING CANADA 45