Blog Post

Preload is currently constructing our tallest ever drinking water storage tank in America’s smallest state. The City of East Providence is located on the eastern shore of the Providence River in Providence County, Rhode Island. Although not as large as Providence, Rhode Island’s largest city, East Providence is an impressive city in its own right with a population of approximately 50,000 people, making it the state’s fifth largest city. In October 2012, the city hired Pare Corporation of Lincoln, Rhode Island to design a 6.0 million gallon water storage tank and associated infrastructure.

Pare Corporation, with input from the City of East Providence, selected an AWWA D110 Type III Prestressed Concrete Tank for several important reasons. Prestressed concrete tanks are typically built with an exterior coating which is primarily decorative; they do not require cathodic protection and expensive exterior and interior coating systems that require cyclical maintenance. This fact will result in significant savings over the long life of the tank. In addition, the superior aesthetic appearance of a prestressed concrete tank was considered ideal for this highly visible location. Competitive bids for general construction were received on March 12, 2015, and Preload was chosen as the tank builder.

The AWWA D110 Type III Tank currently under construction will have an inside diameter of 112’ – 0” and side water depth of 82’ – 0” with a cast-in-place concrete dome roof. The tank wall system consists of thirty-four (34) horizontally cast, precast concrete wall panels of record-setting length. The massive panels required a special design to protect against bending stresses during the panel erection process. The wall panels are over 83’ tall and weigh 38 tons with rigging. Wall panel erection commenced in April 2016 and was completed shortly thereafter. The panel erection process required a 450 ton primary crane equipped with a superlift and a 90 ton assist crane. The project is on schedule and is expected to be completed by the end of 2016.

From the site in the Kent Heights neighborhood, the tank will command the highest elevation in this coastal community. Preload is proud to work with Pare Corporation and our other project partners to construct a lasting landmark for the City of East Providence.

Project Contacts:
Owner:  City of East Providence, Rhode Island – www.eastprovidenceri.net
Engineer:  Pare Corporation, Lincoln, RI – www.parecorp.com
General Contractor and Tank Builder: Preload LLC, Louisville, KY – www.preload.com
Primary Subcontractor: R.P. Iannuccillo & Sons, Inc., Providence, RI – www.rpiannuccillo.com
Preload District Sales Manager: Steven J. Dudle, PE – sdudle@preload.com