Founded in Alaska in 1969, R&M Consultants, Inc. is a multi-discipline firm specializing in cold regions civil and structural engineering, earth sciences, surveying and mapping, and construction services (construction administration, special inspection and materials testing). Since its inception, the firm has participated in some of Alaska’s most significant projects.

R&M was formed during the early stages of oilfield development on Alaska’s North Slope. The firm’s work began by participating in the initial route reconnaissance and geocryological/geotechnical studies undertaken by owners of the Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS). These studies evaluated alternate transport systems for delivering crude oil to an acceptable trans-shipment point. The firm then participated in numerous field and office studies involving terrain mapping, geotechnical and other technical and environmental data gathering required to evaluate alternate facility sites and the 800-mile pipeline corridor, as well as all of the detailed pipeline route studies.

R&M assisted the owners of the TAPS in identifying pertinent design criteria and in setting up route data and design procedures. The firm also participated in the visual impact assessment and mitigation efforts. R&M’s major involvement with the project continued from late 1968 through construction completion in 1976.

For a six-year period beginning in 1976, R&M participated in route selection and extensive geotechnical studies on the proposed Alaskan Northwest Natural Gas Transmission System. This effort included evaluation of locations for 16 compressor station sites and their foundation requirements, as well as detailed subsurface investigations of the proposed 750-mile pipeline route extending from Prudhoe Bay to the Canadian border. Within this same period, R&M also completed a route evaluation, alignment selection, and preliminary mode determination on the project feasibility study for a proposed 800-mile natural gas liquids pipeline between Prudhoe Bay and Valdez. R&M remains active in the pursuit of a natural gas pipeline to serve Alaska’s vast natural gas resources. The firm recently held contracts with the Alaska Natural Gas Development Authority to provide a variety of services leading to construction of a gas spur line from Glennallen to Palmer.

During the firm’s earlier years, R&M was involved with many site and route development projects and studies in Alaska. R&M completed site evaluation, selection, surveying and geotechnical studies for location of U.S. Coast Guard LORAN “C” facilities at Tok, Kodiak and Ketchikan; the proposed location for a new state capital site near Willow; ground support facilities for the Navy’s Nuclear Submarine Acoustic Test Facility constructed on Back Island at Ketchikan; and the U.S. Navy’s two relocatable Over-the-Horizon Radar facilities on Amchitka Island. The firm also completed site location studies for the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities proposed maintenance camp facilities in the foothills of the Brooks Range and for the state’s northernmost fish hatchery north of Kotzebue Sound.

R&M is widely recognized as one of Alaska’s premier transportation engineering firms. The firm has performed location and construction feasibility studies in a number of areas throughout Alaska. R&M’s roots in transportation began early in the firm’s history when we completed all phases of design work and construction inspection for the initial 56-mile segment of the Dalton Highway from Livengood to the Yukon River. The firm also completed major test site studies and the design of workpad, drainage and erosion control features for the workpad extending along the 800-mile TAPS. R&M performed feasibility studies on the 24-mile Point MacKenzie access road, the 56-mile Red Dog Mine access road, two proposed Susitna Dam access roads, and the 10-mile Bradley Lake access road. The firm’s more recent transportation experience includes reconstruction of a portion of the Seward Highway, including the Canyon Creek Bridge; reconstruction of segments of the Parks Highway between MP 35.5-42, 44-52, 52-67, and 67-72; and the extension of Anchorage’s C Street, between O’Malley Road and Dimond Boulevard, including a roundabout at the intersection of C Street and O’Malley Road. The award-winning C Street Extension was the first new roadway constructed in Anchorage in the past 20 years.

R&M’s experience in the transportation field is not limited to roadways. The firm has completed planning, feasibility studies and final design efforts for improvements at airports throughout Alaska, including Nome, Bethel, Barrow, Rampart, Fairbanks, Anchorage and Juneau. R&M continues to be a consultant of choice for the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, providing engineering, surveying and construction phase services in support of airport projects statewide.

R&M has participated in site evaluation studies for several large dam projects involving major watersheds in permafrost terrain. These efforts have included baseline environmental data gathering, surveying and mapping, hydrological/geotechnical data collection, terrain mapping, and development of preliminary design concepts for support facilities such as permanent operations structures, construction camps, utilities, access roads, airfields, material sources and disposal areas. These projects have included facilities at Susitna, Grant Lake and Bradley Lake. R&M continues to provide support at Bradley Lake facilities through a contract with the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority.

R&M has also completed a number of studies and design efforts for community water supply and storm water retention dams, intake structures, outlet works and water transmission lines in arctic and subarctic locations involving permafrost conditions. Project locations included Prudhoe Bay, Kotzebue, Wasilla, Fairbanks, Anchorage, Juneau, Ketchikan and many remote villages.

Major land evaluation efforts, such as the formerly proposed site for a new state capitol near Willow, involved extensive mapping of physical and cultural features within a large area of Alaska into data layers for inclusion in the Alaska Department of Natural Resources automated system. This information was subsequently used for completion of suitability/capability studies for several special projects requiring selection of facility siting and route location using a large-scale mapped digital database. For the proposed new capitol site, R&M was responsible for assessment and evaluation of the 147-square mile area of geologic, hydrologic, groundwater, topographic conditions, and identification of natural hazards and potential risks.

The firm’s involvement in development projects on Alaska’s North Slope has included evaluation of material availability and water supply sources, access road and workpad design, exploration well-pad studies, and shallow offshore geotechnical studies for facilities such as Exxon’s Duck Island and the ARCO Causeway. R&M has also participated in the design of building structures, foundations and utility systems at Prudhoe Bay and Kuparuk.

Over the past 10 years, R&M’s talented civil, structural and geotechnical engineering staff, as well as our impressive survey department, has developed successful working relationships with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The firm provides multi-discipline services under a number of Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity contracts, and on a variety of stand-alone projects for the Corps. The team-oriented fabric of R&M allows the firm to work successfully with other specialty firms to meet the needs of our many satisfied clients.

As the firm’s presence in Alaska nears the 40-year mark, we remain committed to making positive contributions to the development of Alaska’s infrastructure and enhancing the lives of our fellow Alaskans. It is R&M’s vision to become Alaska’s premier engineering firm and to continue to be respected for our contributions to Alaska.