Trades & Services : Civil & Heavy Engineering News
Network Rail plans Bow Goods Yard regeneration

Network Rail plans Bow Goods Yard regeneration

Network Rail has launched its masterplanning process at Bow Goods Yard, East London, which will see the regeneration of over 30 acres of brownfield land. The site is the final parcel of land to be developed as part of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games legacy. The site is

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Highways' providers transform "unsafe" Northampton primary school garden into vibrant learning space

Highways’ providers transform “unsafe” Northampton primary school garden into vibrant learning space

Pupils at the Stimpson Avenue Academy in Northampton have returned from their half-term holidays to a transformed garden space, courtesy of Kier, West Northamptonshire Council’s highways providers. The school first approached Kier regarding safety concerns over the space – such as its cordoned-off, disused pond and overgrown vegetation – seeking

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Rushlift GSE celebrates 10 years with opening of Gatwick facility

Rushlift GSE celebrates 10 years with opening of Gatwick facility

Rushlift GSE, the specialist airport ground support equipment and services provider, has celebrated its tenth anniversary with a grand open-day event held recently at its new state-of-the-art Maintenance & Service facility at Gatwick Airport. Attended by over one hundred special guests – including customers, suppliers, Rushlift staff and management –

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Barhale to reinforce strategic West-East London water main

Barhale to reinforce strategic West-East London water main

Thames Water has selected Barhale to reinforce a section of what was once believed to the longest tunnel in Europe and a key source of raw water for East London. The strategically important Thames Lee Tunnel (TLT) was built between 1955 and 1959 to carry water from the River Thames

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Sisk lands Sheffield Fargate revamp

Sisk lands Sheffield Fargate revamp

Construction and engineering firm John Sisk & Son has been appointed by Sheffield City Council to carry out £25m-worth of city centre landscaping work. Sisk started work last month on a makeover for the Fargate area of Sheffield city centre. More than 2,500 sq of pocket parks will be created

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National Pile Croppers assists with Biophilic Living scheme

National Pile Croppers assists with Biophilic Living scheme

Biophilic Living aims to bring nature into buildings in a meaningful and functioning way. It is a concept conceived and based on the ‘Wellness of Future Generations Act’, with seven of its principles forming the basis of the unique scheme. In order for one such scheme to be completed in

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Kier appointed for £70m Derby business school

Kier appointed for £70m Derby business school

The University of Derby has chosen construction firm Kier to build a new business school in Derby city centre. The new business school is 9317m2 and is planned to include a 233-seat auditorium, a stock market financial trading room, a creativity lab, an extended reality (XR) suite and a range

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Latest Issue
Issue 327 : Apr 2025

Trades : Civil & Heavy Engineering News

Network Rail plans Bow Goods Yard regeneration

Network Rail plans Bow Goods Yard regeneration

Network Rail has launched its masterplanning process at Bow Goods Yard, East London, which will see the regeneration of over 30 acres of brownfield land. The site is the final parcel of land to be developed as part of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games legacy. The site is situated close to the A12, and is currently home to several heavy freight uses. Network Rail will work with Maccreanor Lavington Architects to develop a vision for the site’s redevelopment. Possible options for the area include, a new neighbourhood of homes, a logistics and freight hub as well as a new business campus. Commenting on the project, Robin Dobson, Group Property Director at Network Rail said: “As the last part of the regeneration story for the Olympic Park, Bow Goods Yard is strategically connected by both road and rail. The development has the potential to create London’s largest state-of-the-art freight and last mile logistics hub to serve Greater London, alongside delivering homes, a workspace campus and open space connecting to the surrounding neighbourhoods. “The regeneration of this strategic site demonstrates the huge importance rail infrastructure plays in unlocking the development of brownfield sites and to deliver on London’s sustainability agenda. We look forward to working closely with both communities and key stakeholders on this opportunity.” Reflecting on their involvement, Blazej Czuba, Associate Urban Designer with Maccreanor Lavington said: “We have been developing unique approaches to London’s employment locations for many years and we are thrilled to have been selected to apply them on this unique site. Bow Goods Yard has the potential to be London’s most industrious sites – it is also about its newest park and the evolving residential neighbourhoods around it. “This project needs care and sensitivity in its design, with a fair amount of innovation. The team understands the complexity of London: its communities, its spatial character, its uses, and the mix that will create a new neighbourhood here for the people of Newham and Tower Hamlets.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

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Highways' providers transform "unsafe" Northampton primary school garden into vibrant learning space

Highways’ providers transform “unsafe” Northampton primary school garden into vibrant learning space

Pupils at the Stimpson Avenue Academy in Northampton have returned from their half-term holidays to a transformed garden space, courtesy of Kier, West Northamptonshire Council’s highways providers. The school first approached Kier regarding safety concerns over the space – such as its cordoned-off, disused pond and overgrown vegetation – seeking help to return the space to its former glory. Kier was joined by Bridge and Highways Maintenance Ltd and five of its fellow supply chain partners – which spent three months designing the space and receiving donations to bring their vision to life. Over 30 volunteers rolled up their sleeves to support the cause, who spent three days during the half term renovating the space, with some parents donating plants and seeds to support the cause. Luci Clapton, Head of School at Stimpson Avenue Academy, said: “We are absolutely thrilled with the completion of our new garden. The response from our parents, and most importantly our pupils, has been fantastic. “What had become a disused and unloved area has been transformed into a wonderful outside space, which will be used at playtimes and lunchtimes as a quiet space for the children. It will also be used for community events such as our sports day and summer fete.” The garden is now equipped with a sensory footpath; a new pergola; recycled tyre planters painted as ladybirds and bumble bees; a wildflower garden space; raised planters; a compost area; bug hotels; and a log seating, campfire area. Luci continued: “The new garden will form part of our curriculum, as we are launching a new Forest School this year, which offers our pupils the unique opportunity to learn about nature and try a range of outdoor activities including den building and bug hunting. “Our Eco-Committee and the Junior Leadership Team are also excited to be leading some projects in the new garden, including planting and growing vegetables.” The works also included filling in an old disused pond which was unsafe for the children to play near but too costly to fill in.  The highways team filled in the hole and shredded the vegetation that had been cut down and filled the top of the pond with it over a membrane – making their own woodchip, before building a wigwam to place over the top. Parents were invited to see the final result alongside a class of pupils, and were joined by Cllr Phil Larratt Cabinet Member for environment, transport, highways and waste, and John Coombes, general manager for Kier Highways. John Coombes said: “After three months of hard work and planning, the school’s garden space has been transformed from a tired, overgrown safety concern to a fun, safe educational space for the children of Stimpson Avenue Academy to play and learn. We are proud to be able to leave a legacy at the school, with the garden now used to teach the children about the importance of sustainability and nature as part of this project. We’re thankful to Bridges and Highways Maintenance ltd and our partners for their role in bringing this project to life.” Cllr Phil Larratt added: “ We are delighted to be working with Kier Highways to deliver the Highways contract across West Northamptonshire. The fantastic work they’ve carried out at Stimpson Academy is just one example that demonstrates their commitment to making a real difference across the local community. It was great to see their hard work first hand, and I hope pupils enjoy this space for years to come.” Also generously donating materials and their time to complete the makeover were, PGR, NC & JC Construction, EM Pell & Partners Ltd, Hanson, R&C Williams, Swarco and Wickes. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

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Mclaughlin & Harvey trainee engineer wins CECA Scotland’s most promising apprentice

Mclaughlin & Harvey trainee engineer wins CECA Scotland’s most promising apprentice

McLaughlin & Harvey is delighted to announce trainee engineer Christy Dickson has picked up the coveted CECA Scotland’s Most Promising Apprentice 2023 award. Developing the engineering stars of tomorrow is part of the ethos at McLaughlin & Harvey, with the company committed to ensuring 5% of the workforce is made up of apprentices, students and graduates on formalised training schemes. Christy Dickson is clearly making his mark in that 5% having joined McLaughlin & Harvey in 2019.  Initially gaining experience with the team at the Bushmills Distillery Offsite Maturation Facility site followed by a brief spell with the estimating department, he then joined the Hawick Flood Protection Scheme which has been a focal point of his work since September 2020. Despite balancing working away from home on challenging projects and the impacts of Covid, Christy sailed through his Higher Level Apprenticeship (HLA) Foundation course and moved straight onto the HLA in Civil Engineering. He is currently in his second year and attends university every Thursday during term time. Always willing to help encourage more people into the industry, Christy has frequently put himself forward to take on the additional responsibilities of mentoring and supervising young people or work-returners brought on-site for work experience, site visits or work placements. In 2022, Christy helped guide eight S3 girl pupils from Hawick High School on-site as part of the CECA Scotland endorsed What-IF programme. Upon completion, the S3 girls were keen to explore opportunities in construction, with each offering compliments to and of Christy. Robin Erskine, Senior Contracts Manager at McLaughlin & Harvey, said “I have had the opportunity to work with Christy at the Hawick FPS for the past two and a half years and I’m very proud of how he has developed into a very competent young engineer. From day one, he has shown a real willingness and eagerness to learn and advance his knowledge in civil engineering. His attitude, dedication and work ethic are exemplary. He works every other weekend on-site in Hawick due to his mid-week college day commitments back in Belfast. He has an excellent relationship with his peers, colleagues, subcontractors and client team, and I am delighted that he has picked up CECA Scotland’s Most Promising Apprentice award – thoroughly deserved.” Commenting on his award win, Christy Dickson said: “I am very honoured to have won this year’s CECA Scotland award for Most Promising Apprentice. I cannot thank Seamus Devlin and the team at McLaughlin & Harvey Ltd enough for all the training, support and opportunities they have given me. As well as my family and friends who have helped guide me throughout these early stages in my career as a Civil Engineer.” Christy received the award at the annual CECA Awards Dinner, held at the Doubletree by Hilton in Glasgow at the end of March.

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Rushlift GSE celebrates 10 years with opening of Gatwick facility

Rushlift GSE celebrates 10 years with opening of Gatwick facility

Rushlift GSE, the specialist airport ground support equipment and services provider, has celebrated its tenth anniversary with a grand open-day event held recently at its new state-of-the-art Maintenance & Service facility at Gatwick Airport. Attended by over one hundred special guests – including customers, suppliers, Rushlift staff and management – the newly opened service centre provided the perfect venue to celebrate the company’s great success story, to date. Welcoming guests, Tim Willett, General Manager and Director of Rushlift GSE, said: “After ten years of continued growth, it seems highly appropriate to hold this celebratory open-day party with our team and partners at our very latest 36,000 sq ft Service facility at Gatwick. The fact that this is now our fifth such facility here at the UK’s second busiest airport helps demonstrate the growth that we have achieved over the last ten years and our steadfast commitment to supporting our clients well into the future.” Illustrating Rushlift GSE’s recent successes, the company has just secured a 56-month extension to its successful, long-running GSE contract with Europe’s leading short-haul airline, easyJet. The new multi-million pound deal continues a pre-existing five-year agreement with Rushlift GSE to supply, manage and maintain easyJet’s ground-handling fleet at London’s Gatwick Airport. In total over 600+ ground support assets are managed by Rushlift GSE under a progressive program of innovation and equipment enhancement, which includes an on-going transition from diesel to electric vehicles. Further success came less than two years ago with Rushlift GSE’s entry into a six-year global framework agreement with airport ground services company, Menzies Aviation, to supply GSE equipment. Under the arrangement, Rushlift GSE initially leased 650 brand-new vehicles to Menzies Aviation’s ground handling operations at Heathrow and Gatwick airports. At the open-day event, Daniel Chapman, easyJet’s Regional Operations and Contracts Manager, said of the new service centre: “The value-add of a facility such as this is being able to strip down pieces of GSE equipment that have been running for several years and then refurbish them to a standard that is going to support us over the next five years – and to do it at some scale.” Ian Baker, GSE Asset and Lease Manager at Menzies Aviation, said: “It’s a great facility, and with this 10-year anniversary it’s good to see Rushlift thriving and investing for the future. We have been working with Rushlift for almost two years, mostly at Heathrow, but our involvement with them is growing at Gatwick and elsewhere in the UK. Some of the new equipment we are bringing in is now electric, replacing old diesel units, which is better for the environment and, importantly, they’re intrinsically safer – as with the new belt loaders and stairs.” The new Maintenance & Service Centre is a long-term investment by Rushlift GSE involving a £250,000 comprehensive upgrade of the facility: including the installation of LED lighting, an uprating of the electrics with a move to three-phase power, the provision of vehicle charging points, a pumped waste-oil tank, and a vehicle exhaust extraction system. To further increase operational resilience, the number of on-site service engineers working across the three Rushlift GSE sites will be increased to 41. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

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Barhale to reinforce strategic West-East London water main

Barhale to reinforce strategic West-East London water main

Thames Water has selected Barhale to reinforce a section of what was once believed to the longest tunnel in Europe and a key source of raw water for East London. The strategically important Thames Lee Tunnel (TLT) was built between 1955 and 1959 to carry water from the River Thames at Hampton Water Works to Lockwood Pumping Station at the Lee Valley Reservoir Chain. The 19-mile (31 km) tunnel, runs at a depth of 68 to 190 feet (21 to 58 m) and passes through 24 access shafts of 12 feet (3.7 m) diameter. It was designed to transfer 120 million imperial gallons (550 megalitres) of water per day. The contract will see civil engineering and infrastructure specialist Barhale reinforce a 70 metre length of the 102-inch (2.6 m) diameter concrete-lined tunnel water main where it runs across the route of HS2 in North London. The location of the works will necessitate an unusually long concrete pump – 800m horizontal plus the almost 50 metre depth of the Barrow Hill shaft at Primrose Hill – to the site of the works. Barhale has been working with Caumford to design a bespoke pumping solution. Shane Gorman, Barhale’s Water Director – Southern Region, highlighted the importance of the Thames Lee Tunnel as part of London’s water infrastructure. “The need for the TLT was identified both to address drought conditions and to meet the requirements of new housing and development in East London after the Second World War,” he said. “For more than sixty years it has played an essential role transporting water across the capital and these works are an important measure to reinforce a key part of London’s water distribution network. “The section we are working on offers some additional challenges: the actual site of the relining is an unusually long distance from an access shaft and the levels of service and utility congestion in Camden means that we can’t sink boreholes. So designing a concrete-pumping solution that will work over more than half a mile has been a key focus. “We have worked closely with Thames Water on the design and scheduling of this project. Such is the strategic importance of the Thames Lee Tunnel that outages can only be scheduled for certain times of the year and they are contingent upon general storage levels across the rest of the network. “We have now identified a suitable window and look forward to successful completion in February 2024.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

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Land & Water helps return historic lake back to its former glory at Boughton House

Land & Water helps return historic lake back to its former glory at Boughton House

Working at historical British landmarks is nothing new for leading wet civil engineering firm Land & Water as it announces the commencement of works at Boughton House, having been engaged by Buccleuch, to return Star Pond, which dates back to the 1700s, to its original shape. Situated in Northamptonshire, Boughton House dates back to 1528 when it was once the home of the Montagu family who took style inspiration from the French, leading to the House being coined the ‘English Versailles’. In the 20th century it became home to the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry who wished to preserve this national treasure. Over the last three decades, Buccleuch has been working to uncover long lost waterways and lakes dating back over 300 years. As part of this, Land & Water will be restoring Star Pond which earnt its name through its original star shape. Having become built up with silt, the wet civil engineering firm will be carrying out dredging works as well as ensuring the pond cascades back to link with other estate waterways and the River Ise. Roger Baines, Contracts Manager at Land & Water, said: “We are delighted to be working at another historical landscape and preserving the future of the waterways at Boughton House. “As well as the works to return Star Pond to its former glory, we will also be installing an aquatic channel to enable fish and other aquatic life to easily travel down to the River Ise, as well as to support flood protection. “The environment is front and centre of all that we do at Land & Water and as part of this we want to ensure that we are supporting the creation of habitats to increase biodiversity.” David Cullum, Parks and Gardens Manager at Boughton Estate says: “In their heyday, the gardens were considered to be among the largest and finest in the country and in the last 30 years, considerable work has taken place to restore various features. It is an absolute privilege to be involved in this next exciting step of this journey and the restoration of Star Pond.” “Everything we do should have a positive impact on the environment, whether that be designed or natural. We are excited to be able to do both with the restoration of Star Pond.” Land & Water is due to be working at Boughton House until the end of summer. This coincides with another historical project at World Heritage Site, Blenheim Palace, to remove 300,000m3 of silt from Queen Pool to preserve the legacy of the waterway for years to come.

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Sisk lands Sheffield Fargate revamp

Sisk lands Sheffield Fargate revamp

Construction and engineering firm John Sisk & Son has been appointed by Sheffield City Council to carry out £25m-worth of city centre landscaping work. Sisk started work last month on a makeover for the Fargate area of Sheffield city centre. More than 2,500 sq of pocket parks will be created that will catch, store, absorb and clear rainwater and run-off from roads and pavements. Parts of the greenery will also be for children’ play areas. The events area next to Leopold Street will be enlarged, with added features such as public water points and bespoke seating. Trade waste bins will be removed from the street and replaced by ‘buried bins’ accessible to delivery vehicles only at specific times via an automated rise and fall bollard system. The streetworks are designed to support Sheffield City Council’s plan to have more flats and offices in the upper floors of Fargate buildings. Known as the ‘Front Door Scheme’, separate front door entrances will be installed to buildings, enabling easier access to previously hidden parts of Fargate. The project is funded by the South Yorkshire Combined Authority through the £50m Transforming Cities Fund. Completion is expected in summer 2024. Sisk’s UK Civils managing director Dominic Hodges said: “Sisk is delighted that we’ve reached this important milestone and that funding has now been secured to construct the scheme. We’ll be working closely with local businesses and residents throughout construction to ensure this work causes minimum disruption.” “We’re pleased to be working with Sheffield County Council on this scheme which will enhance Fargate and help to make the high street more sustainable.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

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13 bridges supported by civil engineering company Morgan Sindall Infrastructure

13 bridges supported by civil engineering company Morgan Sindall Infrastructure

SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity, is delighted to announce the partnership with Morgan Sindall Infrastructure for the iconic Armed Forces Day event, 13 Bridges Challenge. Morgan Sindall Infrastructure, one of the UK’s leading civil engineering contractors, is kindly providing SSAFA with all of the event infrastructure necessary for the day. SSAFA’s flagship event, the 13 Bridges Challenge, happening on the 24th June, takes walkers through all the iconic London sights, including Tower Bridge and London Bridge, and passes the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Palace, Shakespear’s Globe theatre, and many more on the 10 mile walk. The 13 Bridges Challenge is open to all ages and abilities, and the route is entirely wheelchair accessible. The walk is fully guided, with SSAFA team-leaders looking after participants every step of the way. Logistics support and everything from generators to porta-loos will be supplied by Morgan Sindall Infrastructure and their supply chain partner, Econ Group. Members of the Armed Forces are also on hand to give guidance and assistance to those who need it. Hannah Siddle, Senior Challenge Events Officer, said: “We are so grateful to Morgan Sindall Infrastructure for their continued support of 13 Bridges Challenge. For the last two years they have provided the essential infrastructure, without which the event would not be possible. We are so excited to have their support for the third year in a row, making the 2023 13 Bridges Challenge, the best one yet!” SSAFA has chosen Armed Forces Day to run the annual event to raise awareness of the outstanding effort Britain’s Armed Forces contribute to the country. During times of national emergency, the Armed Forces regularly step in to assist the nation and, in times of conflict, they willingly put their own safety to one side and step up to support their country. The ‘F’ in SSAFA stands for Families. It is often the families of serving personnel who suffer difficulties resulting from service life. From moving regularly, being far away from family and friends, to the loss of a loved one, life in a military or naval family can be tough. SSAFA supports those families in their time of need. Sir Andrew Gregory, SSAFA Controller, said: “SSAFA’s 13 Bridges Challenge, held on Armed Forces day each year, is the main opportunity in London to thank servicemen and women for their selfless commitment to our nation. “In 2022 over 350 people had a most enjoyable walk from the Tower of London to Putney, raising much needed funds that allow SSAFA to help our Armed Forces, veterans and their families in their times of need. In 2023, we hope to have 1,000 participants; come and be one of them!” SSAFA is still open to corporate sponsorship and teams for this event. Please contact Hannah Siddle for more information: Hannah.Siddle@ssafa.org.uk

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National Pile Croppers assists with Biophilic Living scheme

National Pile Croppers assists with Biophilic Living scheme

Biophilic Living aims to bring nature into buildings in a meaningful and functioning way. It is a concept conceived and based on the ‘Wellness of Future Generations Act’, with seven of its principles forming the basis of the unique scheme. In order for one such scheme to be completed in Swansea, National Pile Croppers, a company proud of its own environmental credentials, assisted by supplying pile cropping expertise and equipment to the flagship development. Biophilic Living, is a UK first at bringing nature into our buildings in a meaningful and functioning way, being a concept based on the ‘Wellness of Future Generations Act’ with seven principles forming the basis of the scheme. This uses unique and innovative systems of energy from sustainable sources that deliver unparalleled levels of performance to housing occupiers, leading to lower energy cost that are low carbon in origin. Significant savings in carbon are also experienced from the reutilisation of an existing building, saving up to 40% in embedded carbon compared to an entire new build.  Visionary Swansea development – Helix 21 The vision for Biophilic Living Swansea is to enable reconnection with nature in the urban environment, and the creation of a cohesive community to tackle issues of social exclusion and loneliness in an innovative way.  Under the name of Helix 21, the project will allow residents to help run an urban farm as a social enterprise, with home grown produce consumed and sold locally. Biophilic Living is founded on research that shows that reconnecting with nature is essential to well-being, with positive community and health outcomes derived from living more closely alongside the natural world. In practical terms, Helix 21 will provide residents with access to roof spaces, glass houses, and the creation of a winter garden to meet and become involved in the growing of food for consumption, whilst also providing a meeting space that has panoramic views of Swansea Bay. The development, a first for the UK, has seen the pioneering project being awarded funding through the Welsh Government Innovative Housing Programme. It will trial a new, scalable model that is set to transform the way inner city housing in Wales is conceived and implemented. The project is a mixed use development that includes affordable and shared ownership housing, as well as retail and commercial space. It has been undertaken by Hacer Developments, being designed by Powell Dobson Architects in Swansea.  The concept is the result of extensive collaborative working among a range of local organisations, including Swansea University, the Active Building Centre, Public Health Wales, Swansea Community Farm and Sero Homes Ltd. “There is an urgent need for housing and mixed use developments that are sustainable in terms of their environmental impact and economic viability, as a response to the climate emergency and to ensure greater resilience and well-being for urban communities.  This project will prove what’s possible, showcase new technologies being developed locally, and blaze a trail for others to follow across Swansea city centre and beyond,” says Carwyn Davies, director of Hacer Developments. Environmentally friendly construction Given the nature of the Biophilic development in Swansea, construction techniques had to maintain the highest levels of environmentally friendliness. Any work had to keep disturbance to a minimum, be low emission, and crucially, have as little detrimental effect to the local habitat as possible. As concrete piles were used to form the substructure of the development, Helix 21 sought out a company with high environmental values to supply the necessary pile cropping equipment. To this end, Helix 21 engaged National Pile Croppers to not only advise on the most suitable solution for the pile cropping, but also supply the necessary equipment. “All in all there were 70 x 650mm diameter piles that required cropping over a six week period. Given the nature of the site, and the values of Helix 21 and the Biophilic Living scheme, we recommended the use of our Quad Large,” commented National Pile Cropper’s managing director Simon Price. “The Quad Large is a highly efficient pile cropper that could easily handle the work demanded of it in Swansea.  Although highly powerful with efficient hydraulics, it can be used by a 16 t excavator, and is lowered over the top of the pile to the recommended height. The Quad then simply closes its jaws until the pile section pops free, ensuring that the reinforcement bars are straight for ease of removal, and that the broken pile section can then be lifted for removal. This means that any material from the pile can be easily recycled,” adds Simon. National Pile Croppers has placed a great deal of emphasis on developing its solutions to be not only highly efficient and effective, but also to be as environmentally friendly as possible. “The environment and the effective use of resources is very important to us and has been endemic to the company since its inception.  The chance to be involved on such a scheme as the Swansea Biophilic Living development presented the perfect opportunity for us to put our values into action. We are all very proud to be associated with the scheme,” concludes Simon Price.  Lower cropper Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

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Kier appointed for £70m Derby business school

Kier appointed for £70m Derby business school

The University of Derby has chosen construction firm Kier to build a new business school in Derby city centre. The new business school is 9317m2 and is planned to include a 233-seat auditorium, a stock market financial trading room, a creativity lab, an extended reality (XR) suite and a range of social collaborative study spaces and quiet contemplation areas. The school will also feature a café on the ground floor. The new building is projected to be the study base for more than 6,000 students by 2030 and will provide a link between local businesses and the wider community. Two levels of the building will be open to the public, allowing students, academics, researchers and University staff to work alongside businesses co-located in the school as well as with the wider business community. This will support and nurture growth, knowledge exchange and idea generation. Andrew Bevan, Interim Director of Estates at the University of Derby, said: “The development of the business school is a catalyst for the regeneration of our city hub site. “I’m delighted that we have entered into a contract with Kier to deliver this landmark building, which is part of the University’s broader vision to expand its reach and reputation across the UK and globally.” Colina Wright, CEO of the Union of Students at the University of Derby, added: “As a Union, we are delighted to be involved in this project and are both passionate and committed to ensuring the student voice is reflected throughout. “We have been impressed with discussions about student involvement and wider conversations about giving back to the community through employment and internship opportunities as well as considerations for sustainability and city regeneration. I am motivated by what this project can do for the city but more importantly for our students, during their time at Derby and beyond. I look forward to continuing to work collaboratively with the University and its partners as the project develops.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

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