BBA acted as the design engineer on seismic upgrades to Svante’s global headquarters and research and development facility in Burnaby, B.C. – also known as the Centre of Excellence for Carbon Capture & Removal. Svante manufactures filters and machines that capture and remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from industrial emissions and the air. Their patented technology, based on unique solid sorbents, is environmentally friendly, adaptable across industries, and ready for commercialization. The new facility will allow Svante to scale up filter production to capture more carbon from heavy-emitting industries.

The facility will be first-its-kind in Canada in terms of commercial-scale carbon capture and removal manufacturing. The 141,000 sq. ft. site was built in 1996 and was the long-time Burnaby headquarters for at large consumer electronics company. BBA was hired because the building required structural upgrades to change the building classification and bring it up to the latest code.

BBA’s mandate was to evaluate the building, modify its configuration from an office to a medium-hazard industrial building, and bring it up to the most up-to-date seismic standards, as Burnaby is an area with high seismic activity.

The building was assessed for seismic vulnerabilities, revealing weaknesses that required structural retrofit. The building remained operational throughout construction adding a layer of complexity in project management. The project was completed in 15 phases and fast-tracked to meet Svante’s facility commissioning timelines.

The result is a code compliant, earthquake resistant building for the more stringent building classification and building codes.

An Integrated Project Delivery model facilitated collaboration between engineers, contractors, and consultants. Team members were adaptable and flexible to find quick, constructable solutions when user requirements evolved leading to design changes or if unforeseen challenges arose on site. Despite having limited vendor information through the design work, the project was delivered on time.

Given the building’s age, materials and code used during construction, structural modifications were necessary, sometimes requiring design changes during demolition due to unexpected conditions and to accommodate 15 construction phases. Engineers combined advanced technologies, including viscoelastic dampers to dissipate the absorbed seismic energy and fiber carbon polymer straps to enhance shear wall strength to optimize construction schedule and cost.

Key upgrades included adding seismic collectors and strengthening reinforced concrete (RC) walls and foundations, improving the rocking performance of the RC tilt-up walls. The team also enhanced the roof structure by upgrading the perimeter chords, adding seismic collectors, installing a secondary cable sub-diaphragm, and reinforcing steel beams and columns by adding extra steel elements to improve stability. An additional layer of metal decking was also installed on parts of the roof. Other challenges included working on upgrades to an operational office building and prioritizing the safety of occupants and workers.

The project took under three years, with close collaboration between the owner, engineers and contractors to implement the upgrades. The building is up to code with the latest Seismic Hazard Model for Canada and meets Life Safety Limit objectives. The new building will allow Svante to expand its commercial manufacturing facilities filter modules capable of removing 10 million tonnes per year of CO2. The new plant is expected to be commissioned in May 2025.