Kilnbridge piling it on with help from NPC
After more than 50 years in gestation, National Highways has given the go-ahead to main contractor Balfour Beatty to commence construction on two link roads to help alleviate congestion on the Manchester to Sheffield route. Infrastructure sub-contractor Kilnbridge has been appointed to crop CFA concrete piles which are being reduced to size by a National Pile Croppers (heavy-duty) CFA cropper with specialist links....
The A57 Link Roads project includes the creation of two link roads: the dual carriageway Mottram Moor Link Road, which will connect Junction 4 of the M67 with a new junction on the A57 at Mottram Moor, and the single carriageway A57 Link Road, which will link from that A57 Mottram Moor junction to a new junction on the A57 at Woolley Bridge. The construction of these roads is in response to the A57 and A628 between Manchester and Sheffield currently suffering from heavy congestion.
The new road work aims to alleviate this congestion, with the current route restricting potential economic growth as the delivery of goods to businesses is often delayed, and the route is currently also not ideal for commuters. Furthermore, much of this heavy traffic travels through local roads, disrupting the lives of communities, and making road crossings less safe for pedestrians. To help solve these problems, the creation of the two new link roads is being undertaken by Balfour Beatty with reinforced concrete structures, including concrete pile reduction, being delivered by Kilnbridge.
Specialist highway and railway infrastructure company
With decades of experience as the UK’s leading structures specialist, Kilnbridge has delivered works on some of the country’s most significant rail, road and infrastructure programmes. Its portfolio includes HS2’s Colne Valley Viaduct, Crossrail, Gatwick Station and frameworks for Network Rail and Transport for London. For 35 years, Kilnbridge has delivered complex structures and enabling works within constrained corridors, maintaining safety and minimising disruption to road users and surrounding communities, supporting connectivity and economic growth.
With a track record in delivering specialist infrastructure, Kilnbridge has been appointed by Balfour Beatty to deliver a variety of infrastructure works on the links road and bypass project, including the cropping of contiguous concrete piles. To crop the piles to the required size, the company has called upon National Pile Croppers (NPC) to advise and supply a range of pile croppers.
Effective cropping power
At the sharp end of the pile cropping, and purpose designed for dealing with augured (round) piles, is the NPC developed CFA & HD range, which cuts circular augured concrete piles ranging from 300mm to 2000mm in diameter. Specifically in response to meet customer demands, the latest version of the NPC Heavy Duty CFA Links have a new and improved design to help achieve minimal downtime for working to demanding timescales, in demanding conditions. Since their introduction, they have become the go-to option for the reduction of larger diameter piles, being able to crop piles up to and above 2m in diameter.
“NPC Heavy Duty CFA Links are proportionally larger than other croppers available. They provide more of the desired cropping power customers increasingly require. This means that they are able to reduce piles of 2m in diameter, such as those found on HS2 and other large highways projects ongoing across the UK,” explains NPC director Lee Aston. “NPC also offer segmental adjustment links to help provide a closer proximity to the pile. This in turn enables the shape tuned chisels to penetrate and provide market leading break. Flexibility is inbuilt into the design which means that they are modular, being easily adjusted to suit required pile sizes with adjustments of 100mm at a time without any hydraulic interference. Furthermore, by using the provided lifting frame, restrictions are minimised.”
Developed solution
Lee explains the challenge faced on the new roads project and the NPC solution: “The concrete piles here are 1,350mm in diameter in the first instance, whilst further on in the project there will be a number of 1,080mm concrete piles that will require cropping using an NPC Quad XXL. The CFA cropper being utilised was trialled with specialist links we have developed to specifically reduce the 331 x 1,350mm contiguous piles which provide more contact points for the space available around the pile and between adjacent piles. This system also better complimented the pile reinforcement positioning to ensure zero interaction. These specialist links are being used in conjunction with standard sized CFA links to provide a bespoke and targeted solution.”
As customer and project requirements change, so does the NPC product portfolio. This led directly to the CFA & HD range being updated and improved. “We continually keep in close contact with our customers, including Kilnbridge, and use the feedback about our croppers, and how they are being used in the field, to produce the equipment we know our customers require to be more efficient, productive and safe. The latest development, which is now being utilised by Kilnbridge, is the direct result of this close relationship we have developed. The work done in improving our pile croppers is certainly paying off as the Heavy-Duty CFA cropper is providing outstanding performance on a potentially tricky project,” concludes NPC director, Lee Aston.