Overview:
Thistley Green Bridge based in Felsted, Essex had an old brick culvert which needed strengthening works. The culvert carries any excess water from the River Ter and local farmland during flooding. Works were needed to futureproof the bridge, strengthening it and continuing to provide effective drainage from stormwater runoff.
The Challenge
The scheme involved closing Felsted Road during a 9 week construction period to allow Marlborough’s operatives to work under and around the bridge. Light-weight 1200mm ID plastic pipes would be inserted through the culvert and surrounded by concrete. An excavator would then be used to lower the pipes down to the riverbed, however, the scheme had to be redesigned weeks before works were due to start, as the pipe supplier could not guarantee the pipes to the correct design requirements. An alternative solution was therefore required to ensure the schedule of works was not delayed.
Fact File
Client Essex Highways
Date October – December 2019
Duration 9 weeks
Value £90,000
Project
- Completing the works within the planned 9 week road closure to minimise disruption to residents and road users
- The scheme had to be redesigned just before the project was due to start to meet the design requirements
- Working to strict environmental restrictions
- Having very limited space to work in
The Solution
Marlborough, in conjunction with the Client’s designer, came up with an alternative solution to use concrete 1200mm ID jacking pipes instead of plastic ones. However, this meant that each of the 2.5m concrete pipes weighed approximately 3.5 tonnes and needed to be craned into the river bed, either side of the bridge and pulled into place. There was very limited room around the bridge to work in and it was also very wet and muddy. The team also struggled to find any equipment to pull or push the concrete pipes through the existing bridge. The solution was to use an RZE-16 pipe puller, which is only designed to pull the male into the female socket on the last 200mm. Through some manipulation however, the team managed to adapt the puller using extra straps and chains to pull the pipes all the way through.
“One of the things I value most is their very collaborative and transparent team culture. It makes a big difference to have a contractor that wants to work closely with us and is supportive and responsive. With Marlborough, I get a team who are attentive, work collaboratively and honestly with me and don’t lose focus on delivering first class communications and compliance.”
“From the design stage, Marlborough has been fundamental in delivering the Broad Lane Square improvements scheme. During the works, not only did the team manage to keep to the programme, but they went the extra mile to ensure attention to detail and came up with innovative solutions to address issues encountered on site. My thanks on behalf of Haringey goes out to Marlborough for their dedication to deliver.”
“Working alongside our Term Service Contractor Marlborough Highways, we successfully completed renovations to the Crowstone Footbridge. The designs were provided by Marlborough, and the work was unique. The scheme was completed to budget and ahead of its programme duration.”
“I would like to thank you and your team for your efforts, the Marlborough crews were professional, courteous, and hard working all day and ensured the event went without a hitch. You and the team were a credit to the company, demonstrating commitment and support to the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham.”
“I just wanted to say what a pleasure it has been to work with Marlborough Highways over the last six months. The quality of work is superb, and there has been some excellent collaboration between Milestone and Marlborough to complete, what at times, has been quite a challenging scheme. I hope to work with Marlborough on another project in the near future.”
“Marlborough worked with us in constructing a 1.3km cycle track. There were a number of technical difficulties to overcome, and their gifted foreman worked to propose some innovative solutions to the challenges we faced. The result is a facility that the locals are proud of, providing walkers and cyclists with alternative access to the hospital and nearby school. The scheme was a lot of hard work, but well worth it.”
“Marlborough attracts people who take care and have pride in their work. Several gangs of Operatives worked tirelessly for six months to reconstruct drainage networks, lay more than 3km of high quality bespoke granite kerbs and granite channels blocks to ensure positive drainage. The technical compliance, attention to detail and level of quality finish along the entire carriageway was exceptional”.
“We saw huge benefits in appointing Marlborough as our full service contractor and we’re impressed – they’ve delivered consistent high quality service and superior quality control across every project. Marlborough, provide us with a ‘one-stop’ shop solution – we get the same quality of service and better control across all aspects of the project.”
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