The Burloak Water Purification Plant Intake Tunnel has been recognized as one of three projects to receive the 2008 Award for Engineering Project of the Year in the Innovative Category. It was presented to RVA by the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers Engineering Week Committee and the Hamilton Engineering Institute at the Hamilton-Halton Engineering Week Awards Gala 2008, held on March 1st in Ancaster, Ontario. The award and the gala event recognize outstanding achievements of the local engineering community by recognizing projects for their engineering excellence.  

RVA worked with C&M McNally Engineering Corp and Dean Construction Company to design and construct this unique, $21 million tunnelling and marine pipeline project for the Regional Municipality of Halton. The project was a design - build assignment for a 3 km water intake from Lake Ontario in Oakville, Ontario, and includes 1962 m of 3 m ø tunnel and 1026 m of 1.8 m ø marine pipeline and 300 m of under-the-lake tunnel with transition riser to connect the tunnel to the marine pipeline. The average advance of the tunnel boring machine was approximately
200 m/month in the Queenston Shale rock formation. The tunnel spoil was used to make bricks.