The American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) recognized GWA, Inc., electrical engineers, for their power supply replacement design solution at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in Charleston. GWA, Inc., was honored as a National Finalist in the ACEC’s Engineering Excellence Awards, held in Washington, D.C., on May 6 - 9, 2007.

            MUSC depends on reliable electrical power, the loss of which can result in wasted research, interrupted operations and even death when critically ill patients depend on clinical facilities for healing and life support.

            GWA, Inc., Columbia, S.C.-based electrical engineers, provided planning, engineering, construction documents and construction administration to replace two 13,800-volt switching stations and parts of the underground power distribution system.

            The old distribution system dated back to the 1950s and consisted of underground cables in manholes and concrete-encased ducts served by two open-construction switching stations. Over the years, cables failed and were replaced, and switching equipment was improved, but system capacity was never increased.

            In addition to outdated equipment and insufficient capacity, operator safety was a growing concern, particularly in recent years, as power interruptions often occurred during times of inclement weather, demanding manual replacement of fuses on the open-construction switching stations using hot sticks in rain and high winds.

            Because of the critical and delicate nature of the project, the work was planned, phased and executed with no prolonged or critical power interruptions to facilities during construction. Particular care was also taken to ensure the architectural design of the new facilities did not detract from the sensibilities of the Charleston Board of Architectural Review.

            The new power distribution system will minimize downtime due to outages as well as anticipates and plans for MUSC’s capacity and expansion for the next 20 years of growth and development. Modernized equipment will provide a safer working environment for operators as well as deliver substantial savings in maintenance costs over the planned life of the system.

            The MUSC campus consists of 76 acres and 88 buildings containing 6.3 million square feet of space, housing the:

            • Teaching Hospital

            • Children’s Hospital

            • Institute of Psychiatry/Psychiatric Hospital

            • Hollings Cancer Institute

            • Medical University

            • College of Pharmacy

            • College of Nursing

            • College of Graduate Studies

            • College of Dental Medicine

            • College of Health Professions

            • Thurmond Biomedical Research Center

            • Gazes Cardiac Research Institute

            MUSC is the largest research institution in South Carolina, having been awarded more than $180 million in research grants in fiscal 2005 and contributing more than $1 billion to South Carolina’s economy.

            GWA, Inc., is an electrical engineering firm offering a diversity of services, including consulting, master planning, studies and reports, design and construction administration. The firm specializes in medium voltage power distribution, electrical systems for buildings, engineering for power quality and reliability, electrical systems for civil works, electrical systems for healthcare and lighting for architecture, sports, roadways, parking lots.

            GWA’s engineers hold professional registrations to practice in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, Florida, Maryland, Tennessee and Pennsylvania.