2024 Civil, Environmental, Geological and Architectural Engineering Capstone Designs

Opacity Group is completing an adaptive reuse of the Marsland Centre at 20 Erb St W, Waterloo, through an office-to-residential conversion of the existing 13-storey Marsland Centre office. Along with the conversion, we are designing a new 6-storey BMO flagship office on the north end of the site, replacing a current on grade parking lot that measures around 70% of the site. The remaining site will be relandscaped with greenery and pedestrian use space. Our project prioritizes sustainability through low carbon design and operational efficiency. 

Marineland is an aquatic-themed amusement park located in Niagara Falls, Ontario, which has developed an infamous reputation due to the mistreatment of its animals. As the park is currently up for sale, this project proposes a new redevelopment on the Marineland site which would repurpose Marineland's outdoor pools to create an aquaponic farming facility. This design strives to provide a sustainable source of food in the Niagara Region by reusing the existing infrastructure, while additionally providing an integrated educational experience to tourists and the surrounding community.

F.E.N. Consultants are designing an adaptive re-use of the old Rumpel Felt factory building in downtown Kitchener with the goal of turning it into a mixed-use residential building with on-site net-zero operational energy. The three-storey building will feature a ground floor with 5+ commercial spaces and two upper floors of residential apartments featuring rooms of various sizes and occupancies. This ambitious energy retrofit project will also feature a complete rebuild and redesign of the building's simple brick facade.

In a city with plummeting residential and growing commercial vacancy rates, the Purdy’s Wharf towers are in a unique position to keep most of their current commercial tenants while also providing the city of Halifax with new residential units. Utilizing a salt-water fire-protection system, high-performance BIPV facades, efficient HVAC systems, and interior renovations, this project focuses on the adaptive reuse of these iconic buildings while also allowing for a deep energy retrofit to significantly improve the buildings' operational performance. 

Engineering 8 is a proposed building on the main Waterloo campus for the Architecture and Architectural Engineering (AE) programs. The rapid growth of the architecture and AE programs introduced a growing need for additional space in the coming years. This building aims to facilitate collaboration between the two programs, enhance interaction with other campus faculties, and provide adequate facilities for both undergraduate and graduate classes. The design prioritizes compliance with building codes and seeks to achieve net-zero energy emissions through sustainable materials and systems.

Shanghai's food security is threatened by urbanization, fertilizer overuse, and depleted fertile land, reducing farmland and impacting food production. Team XJP introduces SEEDONE: a 4-story vertical farming facility with a ground-floor market. Through innovative design considerations like advanced architecture, passive strategies, and circular economy principles; SEEDONE integrates hydroponics, aquaponics, and mushroom cultivation to optimize space, minimize waste, and promote sustainable food production. The building presents an engineered facility not only to maximize food production but also to be energy-efficient through mechanical and energy offsets with passive strategies.

Embarking on an affordable housing initiative, MCG proudly presents a transformative 8-storey mixed-use residential building. Our innovative design, focused on achieving net-zero goals and utilizing mass timber for swift construction, offers a repeatable solution to the affordable housing crisis. With efficiency in mind, our pre-approved design promises to streamline processes, eliminate red tape, and enable immediate construction upon securing essential land approvals. Join us in addressing the housing challenge, as we present this forward-thinking project to the Government of Canada.

Lincoln Fabrics Adaptive Reuse, located at 63 Lakeport Rd., St. Catharines, addresses the growing need for affordable retirement living in Ontario in a new and creative way. Incorporating concepts from intergenerational and multigenerational living, this project focuses on how to provide affordable housing for seniors while keeping them connected to the community, their families, and multiple different generations. 

In 2022, the Government of Ontario proposed to continue expanding limits of development into the Greenbelt to address the current housing crisis, furthering the issue of urban sprawl. This has since been rescinded, but housing is still needed. Intensification can be a solution. Sean Co. is proposing a community redevelopment for an underutilized property in Kitchener, Ontario, to act as a standard for future building design. Their project is guided by intensification, developing a sense of community, and energy and carbon efficiency. 

The University of Waterloo's School of Architecture is a satellite campus in Cambridge, Ontario. Unlike the main campus in Waterloo, the School of Architecture lacks designated student residences. SWYM Consultants Ltd. has been tasked to design a multi-purpose student residence. The objective of the construction is to create dedicated student housing for students, while also making a community-oriented, sustainable and adaptable building. 

Located in the Mississauga metropolitan area, Ageless Acres consists of a senior friendly neighborhood with a community centre at its core. By providing an area for the seniors to actively engage with the rest of the community members, the community centre plays a crucial role in the process of successfully integrating the seniors into the community. With systems engineered based on the ASHRAE and Rick Hanson Accessibility Standards, the community centre is energy efficient, accessible to the populace, and promotes health and safety. 

The FIFA World Cup occurs every four years, bringing with it newly designed stadiums that impress the world; unfortunately, these stadiums often go unused after the event ends. Home Field Advantage aims to solve this problem by designing AdaptArena, a new stadium for the 2030 World Cup in Morocco that will be converted into housing immediately after the 28-day event. The team accomplishes this goal by using strategies that allow for architectural and structural features to be reused for both building occupancies. 

In response to Canada's growing immigrant population and the overwhelming process of starting a new life, there is a demand for support services and affordable housing, especially in populated regions like the Greater Toronto Area. ArchitUX presents the Zhingwaak Cultural Community Centre - the first building of its kind in Ontario. Combining administrative, educational and social services with short-term housing, the result is a vibrant cultural hub to unite people from across the globe and empower them in their journey as new Canadians.

The Stirling Avenue Mennonite Church community is looking into creating affordable housing to help the Waterloo region's housing crisis. NWK Consulting is proposing that a Net-Zero Energy, 6-storey mixed-use building containing affordable and accessible housing, as well as community building retail space be built on the Church's site. The project is guided by principles of economy and sustainability to design high-performing structural, mechanical, and building enclosure systems. 

8,190 - the number of hours the average child spends in school by the fifth grade. In this time, children are shaped by their teachers, experiences, and the facilities they learn in. Through the redevelopment of Secord Elementary School located in Scarborough, Ontario, DesignED Studios is striving to develop a facility that inspires the generations of tomorrow while maintaining high-performance building standards. Through the integration of net-zero operational energy goals, daylighting, IAQ, and biophilia, DesignED Studios aims to set a precedent for modern school design in Toronto.

Urban Crossings aims to redevelop the University of Waterloo's East Campus. The 15.4-acre site consists of five former BlackBerry buildings. The goal is to convert the under-utilized site into a modern and highly sustainable development that will promote new economic opportunities for UW's growing population with the retrofit of EC-5 and new construction of two buildings. The project will offer new programming for student and staff facilities. The project emphasizes building envelopes, energy and mechanical analysis, planning, architecture, and the project's feasibility of structural systems. 

Northern Ontario is home to 25 remote First Nations communities. Many of them are experiencing a housing crisis. Cat Lake First Nation is calling for the reconstruction of 80 reserve homes, and has been in a state of emergency since 2019. Homes are deteriorating, and the occupants are becoming ill and dying due to mold and bacterial growth. RHVN Design Group is proposing a flat-pack modular incremental housing solution. This design prioritizes comfort, durability, and community involvement, and allows for incremental additions as communities grow.

The Jack Layton Ferry terminal is a landmark quintessential to the historical background of Toronto, serving as a crucial transportation hub between the downtown urban core and the Toronto Islands. The current building has reached its maximum capacity and presents several issues - poor circulation, direct outdoor exposure, no seating, and poor accessibility. TransPort41 proposes a redesign of the Terminal, aiming to unlock the terminal's full economic potential, while increasing its capacity in response to the expected doubling in ridership as Toronto's population continues to grow.

Northern Waterloo is lacking in developing community spaces to encourage social growth and healthy living for the densely populated area. This project aims to improve this issue through the development of an inclusive community centre with various programs and facilities. In addition to benefiting the community, this project will also support the City of Waterloo’s mission in transitioning to low-embodied carbon infrastructure. 

The 4th Avenue crossing over Sixteen Mile Creek in Lincoln, Ontario, is experiencing severe roadway deterioration. Lancaster Consultants introduced a three-pronged design approach to sustainable rehabilitation of the roadway and mitigation of future deterioration. This design consists of a retaining wall along the roadway to prevent further deterioration, a comprehensive roadway redesign and traffic modelling, and the introduction of an innovative photovoltaic energy-generating pavement surface that will power LED road lines and prevent snow and ice accumulation.

Highway 17 is facing the challenge of low-bearing capacity soil in its pavement subgrade, posing a risk of collapse. Flight Consulting is addressing this issue by leading a project exploring innovative pavement and geotechnical design solutions. The pavement team employs Lightweight Concrete (LWC) as the base layer, while the geotechnical team incorporates Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) in the lower section to enhance strength. This comprehensive design targets efficient traffic load distribution, improved strength, and cost reduction. 

Envolved Designs proposes an alternative solution for affordable housing to assist the growing homeless population in the region. Envolved Designs plans to structurally retrofit an existing structure to provide long-term housing for individuals and small families. The design intention is to provide a proof of concept for converting industrial building use to residential building use. The retrofitted design will incorporate solutions such that the completed project would be more cost-effective, require fewer materials, and optimize living space for residents by integrating loft-style apartments.  

The province of British Columbia, Canada, is well known for its frequent seismic activity. With over 2,500 recorded earthquakes annually, particularly in the coastal cities, the need for earthquake-resistant housing solutions is critical. Recognizing urgent needs of the impacted individuals and that traditional construction method may be insufficient and time consuming, Resilient Homes Ltd ensures seamless integration of the modular construction techniques with the primary focus on achieving fast deployments, easy removal, cost-effectiveness, structural performance, structural integrity, sustainability, and recyclability. 

With a steadily growing population in the Waterloo region, the availability of affordable housing has become increasingly scarce over time. In efforts to combat the housing crisis, JEV-C Co. creates a cost effective solution through the innovative structural design of a mid-rise mass timber apartment that incorporates prefabricated, modular construction for low-income residents. The design will comply with building code and provide a functional and comfortable building enclosure.

In response to the energy gap that Ontario will face in the coming years, Insights Consulting Group (ICG) has worked with Ontario Power Generation (OPG) to harness untapped power. Recognizing that OPG owns a plethora of control dams which do not produce power, ICG has identified the Bark Lake Dam suitable for hydroelectric retrofit and completed a design to convert the control dam into a hydroelectric generating station. The innovative design will pave the way for future dam retrofit projects, helping close Ontario's energy gap.

Many structures built for large non-reoccurring sporting events have no use at the end of the occasion, contributing to mass construction and material waste. As a result, MODE Inc. has adopted the method of Design for Deconstruction to create a Fan Village for patrons attending the 2026 World Cup in Toronto. Using prefabricated members and deconstructable connections, the structures will be composed of modular units that can be reused after the event. The structures will then be reconstructed for affordable housing elsewhere in the city. 

The Canadian Red Cross is experiencing challenges while deploying post-hurricane medical support to communities in the Caribbean. The tents currently in use are vulnerable to the environment and offer limited space to perform lifesaving procedures. To address these concerns, Unfolded Solutions is developing fully enclosed, modular medical structures that are durable enough to withstand a Category 1 hurricane. These units will be lightweight and collapsible to facilitate rapid deployment, with a focus on layout customization and energy independence. 

Despite the constant earthquakes that Turkey experiences due to being in an active earthquake zone, there is no permanent post-disaster housing solution in place. BlitzBuild Construction aims to design and construct a two-storey temporary quick-build housing complex for use in post-earthquake Turkey. We aim to design self-sustainable modular housing units using timber that will be resistant to aftershocks, reduce construction times, and provide a clean environment for temporarily displaced people.

During University of Waterloo construction, a stream running through campus was routed into a 1650 mm concrete storm sewer. A lack of quantity and quality treatment provided by the storm sewer system has decreased the water quality flowing into the receiving waterways, such as Laurel Creek. The proposed stream daylighting will increase the water quality, introduce floodplain management on campus and in downstream tributaries, and provide greater climate change preparedness to help UW achieve its 2025 Environmental Sustainability Strategy goals. 

The City of Waterloo's engagement program identified that 78% of participants are concerned about the current state of bike paths/lanes/trails, followed by 60% on safety. To encourage active transportation modes and micromobility users, the City intends to improve existing infrastructure to encourage the use of e-scooters, skateboards, and rollerblades along with cyclists. Always Two-Tired is proposing the use of an elevated trail to provide grade separation for micromobility users along Columbia Street West where a high number of collisions occur. 

The intensity of forest fires around William's Lake B.C. has increased due to climate change, and the need for appropriate resilience measures is now more crucial than ever. TERR Associates presents their design of a natural disaster relief shelter using a sustainable approach. This project aims to provide rapidly deployable temporary housing for displaced residents after a natural disaster. Through innovative design and conscientious construction, this initiative addresses critical disaster recovery.

Major Hurricanes on North America's east and gulf coasts have always resulted in irreversible damage to residential properties, leaving millions without a place to stay. Exigent Shelters Limited proposes a safe, reusable, and transportable solution through the application of a post-disaster unit that incorporates efficient construction methods, exceptional structural integrity, and comfortable living spaces accessible to individuals who have been displaced following a hurricane.

Based on traffic flow analysis and anecdotal reports, the Lower Jarvis Street and Lakeshore West intersection needs a redesign to provide the best experience for pedestrians and drivers alike. JAYA Consulting aims to solve many of these problems using their Civil Engineering knowledge.

Students in Waterloo are facing rising housing cost, and a general concern with global warming is everpresent. The Jeddies presents a solution to alleviate the housing shortages in a manner that considers the environmental impact of the project. The team seeks to create a structural system for a new student housing complex minimizing embodied carbon by considering materials used, mainly utilizing mass timber in the process.

The Hespeler Road corridor is a major transportation artery and commercial corridor in the City of Cambridge. With plans for added population density and commercial spaces on Hespeler Road and the extension of the ION LRT, MCS seeks to conduct a 'complete streets transformation', creating a safe, vibrant, and environmentally sustainable space for commuters and residents, alike. The proposed design emphasizes active modes and transit access, and utilizes innovative approaches to managing vehicle traffic and stormwater. 

Hespeler Road in the City of Cambridge is a major transportation corridor in the Region of Waterloo. With the extension of the ION LRT towards downtown Cambridge along Hespeler Road, Vanilla Consulting Ltd. has been retained by the Region to study the corridor and design an LRT infrastructure solution that will improve a traffic flow compared to the preliminary design.

The City of Greater Sudbury is committed to revitalizing the downtown core. This project resolves the limited parking issues while also fostering economic growth. It entails a new multilevel parking structure with a green roof and conditioned spaces for retail, while integrating sustainable development principles such as the use of Fibre Reinforced Polymer. Strategically situated across from the Sudbury Community Arena, ParkInnovate anticipates this facility serving the city and its residents for years to come.

ReNu Soil Inc. has developed a remediation and support of excavation design for a site in downtown Toronto that has previously been occupied by a gas station. ReNu Soil Inc. uses a combination of innovative solutions which include a soil remediation plan using activated carbon and a support of excavation/permanent foundation wall using a diaphragm wall. ReNu Soil Inc. takes pride in having combined these efforts to achieve a development-ready site, while exceeding current industry standards regarding cost, quantities, environmental impacts, and efficiency.

In recent years, the cost of rent and ownership of houses in Waterloo have increased exponentially due to lack of supply. In response to Waterloo's housing shortage, Microhomes Consulting Limited (MHC) proposes Additional Dwelling Units (ADU) as an innovative and practical solution. These units are small modular structures that can be assembled onto existing properties. With extensive research informing our design, considering strength, cost, and environmental impact, MHC aims to provide a cost effective, structurally sound design that also limits the ADUs global warming potential. 

SHAZAM Consulting is addressing the urgent need for earthquake-resistant housing in rural Haiti's Department of Sud. The design will implement limestone concrete reinforced with bamboo rebar; an approach aimed at enhancing the seismic resilience of rural houses. By integrating locally sourced materials and traditional building techniques with modern engineering codes, SHAZAM Consulting aims to empower communities to withstand future seismic events while promoting environmental sustainability and economic resilience. 

Stage 2 of the ION LRT has a route that requires it crossing over several rivers and roadways. One challenging location is the crossing over Speed River as at this location the elevated guideway must have a curved span. Lightyear Consulting has come up with a tubular truss bridge design that incorporates cost effectiveness, durability, and impact to environment and public to create a guideway for years to come. 

In North York, a particular section of Yonge Street between Finch and Steeles Avenue currently experiences heavy traffic congestion. Despite being an urban core of the city, the area heavily relies on cars as the main mode of transportation. Our firm, BEAVer Boys, is looking to improve traffic safety, accessibility, and connectivity issues for all users in the network. The design of a new right-of-way with infrastructure more inclusive of multi-modal transportation aims to improve the existing conditions. 
 

The design and testing of a system that harnesses energy unutilized stormwater potential. This system will convert stormwater runoff into usable electricity, contributing to the goal of reducing fossil fuel consumption. This project aims to improve existing infrastructure at a cost effective and efficient way.

Our evaluation demonstrates the feasibility, energy generation potential, and innovative edge of developing Floating Photovoltaic Systems (FPVs) in Ontario. The study establishes a design that is resilient to winter conditions, maintains a competitive levelized cost of electricity, and meets social and physical geographic constraints. Results identify feasible host water bodies and their associated electricity generation potential. We demonstrate that FPV can make significant contributions to Ontario's 2050 clean electricity growth plans, minimize PV land demand, and deliver other ecological and social benefits - exemplifying sustainable development. 

Cloud Catchers addresses the issue of potable water access in remote regions of Nepal through fog water harvesting. Recognizing the need for a sustainable and independent household solution that is not reliant on energy-intensive processes, the Cloud Catchers are on a mission to passively harvest water from fog. Drawing inspiration from nature's mechanisms, the team aims to design a cutting-edge biomimicry solution that utilizes the fog harvesting abilities of local organisms to capture drinking water. 

The current annual GHG emissions from the Waterloo Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) are approximately 4000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent. KREM Engineering has taken on the task of reducing the GHG emissions and guiding the WWTP in achieving carbon neutrality by using a Stage A and anammox and partial nitritation system. Its cost-effectiveness and ability to reduce oxygen requirements, thus lowering energy consumption and increasing biogas generation, proves effective for the Waterloo WWTP, ultimately reducing its GHG emissions and aid in achieving carbon neutrality.

The TRCA has identified a failing erosion control structure along the East Humber River that threatens the William Granger Greenway Trail in Kleinburg, Ontario. If left unaddressed, the failing armourstone structure will continue to pose a risk to the public's safety and enjoyment, the TRCA's infrastructure, and endangered fish habitat. MLS3 Consulting is proposing a naturalized engineering approach to mitigate continued erosion along this channel reach through its realignment, while promoting the enhancement of aquatic habitat connectivity and complexity.

The Parkhill Dam in Cambridge is a low-head weir originally built to sustain the connected mill. The existing concrete dam was built in 1913 and is now 111 years old, prompting consideration for redevelopment of the area to reduce failure risk and enhance public utility.  The proposed solution involves installing boulders downstream to create a backwater condition with whitewater recreation features, improving the fish passage, and considering the business case for hydroelectric power generation with the new hydraulic profile.

The severity and frequency of wildfires in British Columbia have increased dramatically, putting communities within the province at heightened risk. To address this, our team Wildfire Warriors is creating a tool that will assess a property's fire risk level, propose a series of fire mitigation measures and determine the environmental, economic and social impacts of those measures. This helps to make fire safety more accessible to homeowners as it educates them on the benefit of fire mitigation measures and improves the ease of implementation.  

Canadian Pacific (CP) railway passes above the Wild Horse River, located in eastern British Columbia. Anthropogenic activities in the watershed have resulted in excessive bed material supply to the watercourse. In-channel dredging is required to maintain flood conveyance through the bridge openings but causes fish stranding during low-flow periods. Steele Horse Consulting proposes a naturalized channel design, increasing the stream velocity to enhance sediment transport. This design includes sediment detention ponds to capture excess bed material and rearing ponds to provide habitat diversity and refugia. 

The compound disturbances resulting from wildfires and exacerbated by climate change in Fort McMurray, Alberta, are increasing the frequency and severity of algal blooms in the municipality's raw water storage reservoir. This poses challenges to the reliable provision of safe drinking water. In response, Climate Solutions Inc. aims to implement a proactive and climate-resilient strategy to manage algae blooms and increase the storage capacity of the reservoir to avoid water intake during perturbations.  

The Schneider and Shoemaker creeks in Kitchener, Ontario are currently lined with concrete, including where they intersect.  With these creeks being built in the 1970s, the risk of them overflowing during heavy storm events has increased and the presence of concrete and urbanization has diminished the area's biodiversity. Leventec proposes replacing some of the concrete of the channel with rougher and more natural materials to revitalize the area while simultaneously widening it on one side so that it can maintain higher water flows during storms. 

The Greenbrier Remediation Group (GRG) is developing an innovative solution involving biological and chemical processes to lower concentrations of inorganic and organic contaminants stemming from the operation of the Bullmoose Gold Mine from 1939 to 1988. GRG's aim is to create a state-of-the-art remediation design to lower the concentrations to acceptable limits. The innovative remediation design will be transferable to various environmentally contaminated sites such that if future work arises, GRG's designs will be will applicable to the project needs and client goals. 

In collaboration with Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada (TMMC), WattWarriors Consulting aims to utilize the high concentrations of VOCs exhausted from the company Paint Shop as a fuel source for power generation and heating. This complies with Toyota's goals to reduce natural gas consumption, improve energy recovery, and strive for carbon neutrality by 2050. The project involves the designing, budgeting, and scoping of the integration of a micro-gas turbine (MGT) system within the TMMC Woodstock Plant.

Could Land-based Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS) be the future to provide sustainable seafood and bolster food security in a changing climate? AquaTerra will explore this through their biofilter design, and fish raceway laminar flow innovations in a local cold-water RAS Rainbow Trout hatchery. AquaTerra's mission is to improve the economic feasibility of their client's hatchery through reducing energy and water consumption while keeping the water clean and fishy.

Debris floods pose a major risk to Jura Creek, Alberta. GG Consulting has been tasked with assessing risk and constructing a mitigation design for a proposed a community development within the Jura Creek alluvial fan given the need for housing in the area. Following the 2013 debris flood, GG Consulting has assessed the frequency and magnitude relationship to design accordingly. Several design alternatives were assessed and implemented accordingly to create a safe and sustainable community for future Jura Creek residents. 

MDZ Geostructural champions sustainable engineering by restoring, not demolishing, structures with compromised foundations. In the process of securing these structures, we explore the potential of enhancing Ontario's green energy landscape. Our innovative approach to foundation repair opens up the opportunity to integrate geothermal loop technology within the pile installation. This not only focuses on preserving the structural integrity of buildings but also opens the possibility of utilizing eco-friendly energy for heating and cooling, aligning with environmental sustainability as a valuable secondary benefit.

The Mira Mine is expanding the existing pit towards the North Slope Pit Wall Extension. JE Consulting was retained to develop the geotechnical pit slope with consideration to geotechnical and geological characteristics of the mine. Geological features, groundwater effects on slope stability are aspects of the slope stability analysis. Bench design, dewatering features, and other risk mitigation measures are investigated, and applied to the final design. The final product is a mine slope that fulfills all the safety requirements of the mine design.