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The project
This was part of the £4.5 billion London Tideway Project in January 2023, installing 330m of ducting along the busy Chelsea Embankment.
The challenge
Setting up this telecoms link in such a high-traffic area in London city centre came with its challenges.
We had to find a solution that worked with strict urban planning rules, permits and historical Yorkstone paving, which covered around 400m and would have been impossible to lift.
Our solution
We started by setting up traffic management at 7AM and marking out underground services by 7:15AM. Trenching began at 8 AM with our CleanFast machine, which we finished by lunchtime.
Once the trench was ready, we laid the duct and added a fine fill.
We aimed to be ready to pour fast-setting concrete using two InnoMixers by mid-afternoon. The concrete set within an hour, gearing us up for a quick finish to the day’s work.
Unexpected setback & resolution
Heavy rain stopped our progress for about four hours as the trenches filled with water, delaying the final road reinstatement.
Although the rain set us back, we opened the road for two-way traffic the next morning. As we had finished digging the trenches and installing the duct, Openreach was still able to set up their link that morning. Then, the only thing left was to complete the last 80m of road reinstatement.
The results
Normally, traditional methodologies would take a month to complete this job in such a tricky area.
While the weather held us up slightly, we reduced this timeline to just over a day and a half.
This project was a testament to how the right, innovative methodologies can help you overcome obstacles and limit disruptions, even in London’s busiest locations.