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13.02.2020 (654 Clicks)

Limestone in Australia no Match for Keller Expertise

In Perth, Western Australia, Keller has expertly navigated difficult soil conditions to deliver a retaining wall and foundation works for a proposed luxury aged care facility. We speak to Project Manager Brad Clothier to find out more.

With more than one in six Australians over 65, the country faces a stark challenge to meet the needs of an ageing population. The growth in demand for aged care facilities has led to an increase in private developers entering the market. One such developer is Oryx Communities, which is building luxury aged care apartments in Claremont, a suburb of Perth. And it’s here that Keller has recently completed earth retention and foundation works for this desirable new development.

Rigorous design

Keller was involved at an early stage of the project, selected by main contractor Multiplex to design and construct a piled retaining wall and foundation piles for the proposed building’s column-bearing loads.

“The main part of the project called for a wall to retain a one-to-two-storey basement in a site roughly 45m by 70m,' explains Brad Clothier, Project Manager.

“We wanted to use the most economical solution possible that would still provide all the necessary retention characteristics. With this in mind, and given the depth and soils, we designed a partially anchored, partially cantilevered solution with small mechanical anchors in some locations. In total we installed around 400 retaining wall continuous flight auger [CFA] piles. Alongside this we also installed 200 CFA foundation piles to a depth of 10m to support the structure.”

Meticulous approach

The biggest obstacle was the ground conditions, which mainly comprised sand but with a high presence of limestone.

“This precinct is fairly notorious for limestone pinnacles that are highly variable in presence and strength,” he adds. “Limestone can have a very detrimental effect on pile constructability, causing problems with verticality and piles encroaching into the basement footprint. A quick look at some of the other buildings nearby shows you the problems other contractors have had.

“There was no magic solution for this. At the end of the day it was all about taking our time and meticulously and repetitively checking the drilling verticality of the machinery to ensure we were adhering to performance requirements.”

Operating in a relatively constrained site was also challenging, with Brad and the team having little leeway and needing to carefully plan the sequence of works in line with the earthworks.

Opportunities on the horizon

Having started on site in July, the team finished in September, well ahead of schedule, with no quality issues and a very satisfied client.

“This project has shown that Keller people have the skill set to manage risk in challenging soil profiles and work in constrained spaces to design and execute a successful project,” says Brad. “With a couple more developments in this precinct scheduled for next year, the success of The Queenslea project has put us in a good position to secure more work in an area with difficult ground conditions.”

Source: Keller Group

                     

12.02.2020 (685 Clicks)

LKAB: Year-end Report 2019: Strong Earnings in an uncertain Market

Stable production and favourable market conditions enabled LKAB to increase its operating profit both for the quarter and for the full year, this despite lower delivery volumes. The market remains uncertain, however.

12.02.2020 (950 Clicks)

Herrenknecht: Students get Information at first Hand

The Max Planck High School in Lahr hosted the 2020 Engineer's Day last Thursday, February 6, 2020, the tenth time it has taken place. The half-day event gives pupils first-hand insight into and information about careers in engineering. The opening presentation was given by Artur Miller, project engineer at Herrenknecht AG.

11.02.2020 (683 Clicks)

Vision Zero: Healthy Working at Rema Tip Top

'Vision Zero. Zero accidents - healthy working!' | Goal: Working environment without accidents | Cooperation with the employers’ liability insurance association for Raw Materials and Chemical Industry

10.02.2020 (634 Clicks)

Samsung SDI and Glencore extend their long term strategic Cobalt Partnership

Glencore has today signed a five year agreement with Samsung SDI for the supply of cobalt hydroxide.

Under the terms of this supply contract, Glencore will provide up to 21,000 tonnes of cobalt contained in cobalt hydroxide between 2020 and 2024.

09.02.2020 (851 Clicks)

Cimic’S CPB Contractors selected for two regional Road Projects in Australia

Cimic Group company CPB Contractors has been selected to deliver upgrades to two major regional highway projects.

07.02.2020 (736 Clicks)

ReNew Canada releases Top 100 Infrastructure Project List

In January, ReNew Canada published its annual “Top 100: Canada’s biggest infrastructure projects” report, which features a list of the largest Canadian infrastructure projects currently underway.

07.02.2020 (735 Clicks)

Statement on Mining Safety Reviews

QRC has welcomed the release of the Brady Review into Mining and Quarrying fatalities and two University of Queensland expert legal assessments of coal mining and mining and quarrying legislation.

These reports represent a wealth of information that the resources industry can use to further enhance safety.

06.02.2020 (721 Clicks)

Genoa in Italy: Completion of Piers on West Side of Riverbed in Record Time

Workers have completed the installation of all the piers on the west side of the Polcevera riverbed in Genoa across which will stretch the bridge being built by PerGenova, a joint-venture between Salini Impregilo and Fincantieri. With the installation of Pier 1 to support a ramp of the A10 Highway, the number of piers completed has reached 15 out of a total of 18.

05.02.2020 (774 Clicks)

Balfour Beatty appoints new Managing Director to lead its regional Construction Business in the South of England

Balfour Beatty announced the appointment of Beth West as Managing Director of its regional construction business in the South of England.