When the J.A. Jones/Traylor Brothers Joint Venture began the planning stages, Robert Kindermann, Project Superintendent, and Ivan Rotosky, Carpenter Foreman, talked to Form Tech Concrete Forms Branch Manager James Sweeney and Co-owner Mark Gordon to get some concrete forming suggestions. While Form Tech provided jobsite service and application instruction, Symons® by Dayton Superior provided concrete form design assistance. Together, a combination of Versiform for the straight walls and Steel-Ply culvert forms for intersecting details in the dam sections was recommended. It was also decided that the hollow core pier stem sides would utilize Versiform gangs, Steel-Ply details and Flex-Form for the upstream bullnose sections of the pier stems.

The dam was built in two segments, each measuring 333' long, 104'-6" wide, 59' high and weighing 22 million pounds. The base of the dam included a series of voids with grouting pipes that passed through a slab at the surface. This key element allowed the dam sections to float when the dry dock area was flooded. When the dams were moved into place, the air-filled voids were flooded with water to make the dams sink. Once in place, concrete was pumped in, displacing the water and creating the counterweight for the dam’s permanent installation.