- Project King Posts at Buckton Castle
- Principal Contractor KMI
- Key Benefit Safe, effective and easy solutions were supplied to KMI
Introduction
In 2002, a joint venture between Kier, Murphy & Interserve were construct-ing a new £4.7 million filtration system at a water treatment works in Oldham, as part of a £300 million framework deal awarded by United Utilities.
This required a 4.0m deep excavation with a perimeter of approximately 46 metres in total.
The location of the excavation cut into the side of a fairly steep hill, meaning that a conventional 4 sided cofferdam excavation was not possible. The rocky and unpredictable ground conditions ruled out steel sheet piling or contiguous piling, and the lack of working space between the existing building and the excavation meant that raking supports were not feasible.
The Solution
MGF designed and supplied a King Post and Infill Lining System which allowed the excavation to be supported without encroaching into the required working space. King Posts were 11.0m long 305 x 305 x 240 kg/m, Grade 50 Universal Column sections installed in 600mm diameter concrete filled pre-bored holes. Post were at 3.6m centres with MGF Heavy Duty Infill Lining Panels spanning between them.
A 600mm diameter auger drill was used to bore receiving holes at 3.6m centres for the king posts which were supplied with cutting edges at one end and lifting points at the other. The King Posts were sunk to a depth of 11.0m and concrete was poured up to a depth of 4.0m, whilst ensuring the posts were vertical and in line.
Once the concrete had achieved adequate strength, the installation of panels could commence.
The 3.5m wide panels were lowered into position with the cutting edge at the bottom, and pushed down with a mechanical excavator to refusal.
Excavation then continued to the bottom of the panel. As more soil was excavated, the panels dropped down using the King Posts as a guide.
At 4.0m deep, excavation was complete and the permanent works commenced.
Once the permanent structure was complete, the excavation could be backfilled around it and the panels gradually lifted out and removed. The customer could now choose to either remove the king posts, or to sacrifice them and leave them in the ground.
The Verdict
MGF’s design and bespoke manufacturing capability provided KMI Water with a safe, effective and easy to install solution for a fairly complex problem.
The working space required for the construction of the permanent structure was achieved without difficulty and the progression of the scheme was fast.
The high quality of service provided by MGF, along with the experienced team on site ensured that the filtration system was successfully completed in good time.
