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TFMoran Stormwater Department: Balancing Infrastructure and Nature in Nashua, NH

The TFMoran Stormwater Team is working with R.S. Audley of Bow, NH on the NHDOT F.E. Everett Turnpike widening project that includes replacing two 70-year-old bridges over Bowers Pond; the main source of Nashua’s water supply. The TFMoran team prepared the stream diversion, dewatering, erosion control, and stormwater pollution prevention plans (SWPPP) for the project.

In addition to preparing the environmental plans for the project, TFMoran’s EPA Certified personnel are providing turbidity monitoring while R.S. Audley is performing in-water work to confirm the project is compliant with the NH Surface Water Quality Standards.

Preparatory work began in the spring on a new six-lane bridge that will cross Bower’s Brook and Pond, a reservoir located beneath the F.E. Everett Turnpike, connecting Nashua and Merrimack between Exits 8 and 10. This work includes placing fill material in the pond where the new bridge approaches are and monitoring the material for settlement prior to constructing the new bridges.

While ensuring smooth traffic flow during this vital highway widening project from Nashua to Bedford has been a primary focus, equally important is safeguarding the drinking water supply and protecting the wildlife in the surrounding undeveloped woods.

Check out Union Leader’s full article to learn about the project’s full scope and how the project teams are balancing between necessary construction and the importance of preserving nature.

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Nicole Arsenault Joins TFMoran

TFMoran is pleased to welcome Nicole Arsenault as Marketing Coordinator in our Bedford office. Arsenault graduated from Framingham State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Corporate Communication and Organization. Arsenault’s coursework included Human Communication, Media, Society and Self, Public Relations in Advertising and Marketing, and Business Statistics. With her extensive background and previous experience in Marketing, Graphic Design, and Corporate Communications, Nicole will be a great asset to TFMoran!

Welcome, Nicole!

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Matt Mis Joins TFMoran as Survey Field Technician

TFMoran is delighted to welcome Matt Mis as a Survey Field Technician to our Bedford office. Mis holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin and has furthered his education by pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree and a Certificate in Surveying Engineering Technology from the University of Maine, where he studied specialized subjects such as Boundary Law and Site Layout. With a strong background in surveying and experience as a crew chief, Mis also brings eight years of active-duty service as an Infantryman and currently serves with C Co 3/172, a Specialized Mountain Infantry unit in the National Guard. We are confident that his expertise and commitment will make him a valuable addition to the TFMoran Survey team!

Welcome, Matt!

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TFMoran Celebrates Recognition of Best Company to Work For 2024!

TFMoran is excited and honored to announce that we have been recognized as one of the “Best Company to Work For” by Business New Hampshire Magazine for 2024!

This recognition is awarded to companies that excel in redefining workplace culture through innovative remote and hybrid work models while also valuing in-person employee connections. A panel of HR professionals evaluates the nominees based on their benefits, policies, programs, and overall employee engagement.

In the September 2024 issue of Business NH Magazine, TFMoran is featured in an article that highlights our unique culture and explains why we earned this distinction.

To celebrate the 2024 winners, Business NH Magazine will host “Breakfast with The Best ” on September 26th. The event will include a panel with Hall of Fame companies, as well as “CultureFest: 2024”, where participants will dig into workplace topics in multiple eight-minute workshops with executives from the winning companies and Hall of Fame companies.

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David Stoffel Joins TFMoran as Civil Project Engineer

TFMoran is pleased to welcome David Stoffel as a Civil Project Engineer in our Portsmouth office. Stoffel graduated from the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering. Stoffel’s coursework included Advanced Structural Analysis, Water and Wastewater Engineering, System Focused Design Engineering, and Geotechnical Principles. With his extensive academic background, David will be a great asset to TFMoran’s Civil Project engineering team.

Welcome, David!

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TFMoran President Robert Duval speaks at NEREJ 8th Annual Northern New England Summit

New England Real Estate Journal recently held a Northern New England Summit on August 14th, 2024, at The Venue at Portwalk in Portsmouth, NH. Two panels were held, along with networking and a full buffet breakfast.

TFMoran’s President and Chief Engineer, Robert Duval, PE, was on the panel discussing new trends in the building design and construction industries. Among the items discussed were the benefits and pitfalls of AI, modular construction, 3D printing, and how the rapid pace of new rules and regulations is affecting costs and schedules in the construction industry.

Thank you to the New England Real Estate Journal for organizing this great event. TFMoran was glad to be one of the Summit sponsors.

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TFMoran project featured in NHBR’s “From the Ground Up”

A recent project of TFMoran Structural Engineers and the recently opened Grappone Mazda car dealership was chosen to be NH Business Review’s “From the Ground Up” story in the July 2024 issue. The planning and design phase started in 2021 and the project was completed in 2024 after many obstacles and challenges.

TFMoran provided the structural engineering for the new 26,000-square-foot dealership. The building includes a service center, showroom, and a second-floor community space made available to the greater Concord community.

The project team also included Warrenstreet Architects and Eckman Construction. Photos courtesy John Gauvin of Studio One Photography.

Read the article here

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Nick Golon Featured in New England Real Estate Journal

New England Real Estate Journal’s June 7 issue features an article on solar energy by TFM Civil Department Manager and Principal, Nick Golon. Nick takes a deep dive into utility-scale solar facilities in New England and the challenges they may face in the early stages of development. See the whole article here, or continue reading below.


Harnessing the Power of the Sun with Utility-Scale PV

By Nick Golon

“Solar energy is the only permanent, inexhaustible fuel source for our civilization” – Nikola Tesla

With the words of Nikola Testa fresh in our mind, let us look to the remarkable growth undergone by solar photovoltaic (PV) generation in the last year with 23 Gigawatts (GW) of new solar generating capacity added in 2023, with even more substantial growth anticipated in 2024 with another 37 GW expected to come online based on the latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). These figures represent a 33% and 39% year-over-year increase. To put this in context for the baseball enthusiast this is the equivalent of going from light-hitting Mario Mendoza (known for his .200 batting average), to All-Star Rafael Palmeiro, to Hall of Famer Ty Cobb in the span of three years! These solar generation increases have been driven by many factors including lowered costs, aided by state and federal tax credits and downward pressure on prices due to wider availability of modules, but also the industry’s ability to build bigger, with the term “Utility-Scale” solar power becoming more prevalent. But what is utility-scale solar power, how can it benefit our communities, and what is driving this meteoric growth? Let’s discuss!

Although the exact definition of a “utility-scale” solar facility may vary depending on who you ask, the nature of the answer is typically the same in that it is a large-scale solar generator, 1 megawatt (MW) or greater, that connects directly into the power grid, supplying a utility with energy. Typically, there is a power purchase agreement (PPA) between a developer and the local utility, guaranteeing a market for the developer for a fixed term of time, but we are also now seeing utility-owned utility-scale solar projects, driven in part by utility providers ongoing efforts to support renewable energy initiatives. Although more top of mind, utility-scale solar is not necessarily a new technology, and has been generating reliable, clean electricity for decades. As quoted from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) “Developing utility-scale solar power is thought to be one of the fastest ways to reduce carbon emissions and put the United States on a path to a clean energy future”.

With the intent that utility-scale solar could put us on a path to carbon neutrality, what are the greatest challenges facing utility-scale solar facilities in New Hampshire? Well gentle reader, based on this author’s knowledge, it is location, location, location. In that the scale of these facilities requires approximately six to eight acres of usable land to accommodate 1 MW of generation (including solar equipment, panels, access, and stormwater management), finding a site of this size, and in appropriate proximity to existing utility infrastructure, is a challenge. On par with finding a site that meets these basic criteria are the challenges derived by local land use restrictions, as many municipalities did not contemplate the use of such facilities in the original provisions of their zoning and site plan regulations. Perceived environmental and wildlife impacts associated with land clearing and site preparation operations is also a challenge in the siting of these facilities, although these impacts may be offset with appropriate considerations for stormwater best management practices (BMP’s), the inclusion of appropriate buffers to sensitive receptors, and use of wildlife friendly fencing to accommodate wildlife connectivity.

Although the advancements in battery storage will be a prolific contributor to the advancement of solar science, we can also look in a different direction for innovation, as sometimes the best ideas are found in the most unlikely combination of two competing uses. In this case, agrivoltaics or dual-use solar and agriculture, is the use of land for both agriculture and solar energy generation. As one of the acknowledged drawbacks for solar is the conflict it presents with agricultural production, given they share the commonality of preferred land conditions that are flat and provide abundant sun, the co-location of such uses would provide benefits to both industries. Such facilities do exist in the New England area, with the 4.2-MW Rockport Maces Pond Agrivoltaic project, a dual-use community solar project located on a blueberry farm in Rockport, ME., as well as the ongoing efforts of the University of Massachusetts Amherst through their research team collaborating with approval solar developers and host farmers to implement agrivoltaic operations at site around the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Much like we see co-location of different land uses in a mixed-use land development project, it will be very interesting to see if this symbiotic practice of co-locating solar and agriculture can be successful.

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Nick Golon Featured in New Hampshire Business Review’s Ask the Experts: Solar Energy

New Hampshire Business Review’s May 24th issue features a solar energy spotlight, with input from Nick Golon, PE. Read Nick’s insights below.

(Ask the Experts) What to Know When Investing in Solar Energy

Businesses seeking to stabilize the expense of their energy use can look at options for decreasing their needs and find alternative energy solutions. Investments in solar energy can help reduce reliance on a variable energy market and carbon emissions.

Our panel discusses what solar project options are out there, and how to take advantage of available incentives for energy system upgrades and solar power.

Our Expert: Nicholas Golon, PE, Civil Department Manager and Principal, TFMoran

Q: What is a “utility-scale” solar facility, and how is it different from a rooftop solar array?
Although the exact definition may vary depending on who you ask, the nature of the answer is typically the same: it is a large-scale solar generator, 1 megawatt (MW) or greater, that connects directly into the power grid, supplying a utility with energy.
Typically, there is a power purchase agreement between a developer and the local utility, guaranteeing a market for the developer for a fixed term of time, but we are also now seeing utility-owned, utility-scale solar projects, driven in part by utility providers’ ongoing efforts to support renewable energy initiatives.

Q: What are the greatest challenges facing “utility-scale” solar facilities in New Hampshire?
Location, location, locations. In that, the scale these facilities require is approximately 6 to 8 acres of usable land to accommodate 1 MW of generation (including solar equipment, panels, access and stormwater management).
Finding a site of this size, and in appropriate proximity to existing utility infrastructure, is a challenge. One par with finding a site that meets these basic criteria are the challenges derived by local land-use restrictions, as many municipalities did not contemplate the use of such facilities in the provisions of their zoning and site plan regulations.
Perceived environmental and wildlife impacts associated with land clearing and site preparation operations is also a challenge in the siting of these facilities, although these impacts may be offset with appropriate considerations of stormwater management best practices, inclusion of appropriate buffers to sensitive receptors, and use of wildlife-friendly fencing to accommodate wildlife activity.

Q: What future technologies/innovations do we have to look forward to with “utility-scale” solar?
Although the advancements in energy storage will be a prolific contributor to the advancement of solar science, we can also look in a different direction for innovation, as sometimes the best ideas are found in the most unlikely combination of two competing uses.
In this case, agrivoltaics, or dual-use solar and agriculture, is the use of land for both agriculture and solar energy generation. One of the acknowledged drawbacks for solar is the conflict it presents with agricultural production, as they share the commonality of preferred land conditions that are flat and provide abundant sun.
The co-location of such uses would provide benefits to both industries. Such facilities do exist in New England, such as the 4.2 MW Rockport Maces Pond Agrivoltaic project, a dual-use community solar project on a blueberry farm in Rockport, Maine, as well as the ongoing efforts of the University of Massachusetts Amherst through their research team.
The team has been collaborating with private solar developers and host farmers to implement agrivoltaic operations at sites around the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Much like to co-location of different land uses in a mixed-use land development project, it will be very interesting to see if this symbiotic practice of co-locating solar and agriculture can be successful.

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NEREJ Project of the Month: Sturdy Memorial Hospital Operating and Central Sterilization Suites

TFMoran structural engineers worked with Maugel DeStefano Architects to complete a renovation project at Sturdy Memorial Hospital in Attleboro, MA. The recently completed project is featured as Project of the Month in New England Real Estate Journal’s April 2024 issue.

The project included relocating and modernizing the hospital’s central sterilization processing and operating suites to a larger space. Moving the sterilization suite to this new space increased processing volume, provided a direct connection to the existing operating suite, and added space for same-day surgery pre- and post-operative suites. A new operating room, nurse station, offices, anesthesia workroom, sterile storage, and expanded equipment storage were added to the existing operating suite.

“Maugel DeStefano Architects’ healthcare design team, together with Columbia  and BR+A Engineers, has successfully undertaken substantial renovations in multiple areas of Sturdy Memorial Hospital, including the modernization of CT imaging, same day surgery, inpatient pharmacy, and LDRP,” said architect Colby Cavanagh, healthcare studio lead at Maugel DeStefano Architects. “We are pleased that our collective accomplishments have significantly enhanced the patient experience and improved the comfort and efficiency for Sturdy’s dedicated staff.” 

Colby Cavanagh, Healthcare Studio Lead, Maugel DeStefano Architects
New England Real Estate Journal

Check out the full article here.