Tags Civils Works Composite Materials Track Maintenance
Suppliers Complete Composite Systems (CCS)
Our eco-friendly post-mix product TECHNO-CRETE® has made a significant contribution to a low-carbon, sustainable energy project on the London Docklands Light Railway network.
The high-profile project used sustainable GRP and foundation materials throughout the route, while our client’s welfare and office facilities were fed from power generated by solar panels, effectively running the job as carbon neutral.
The project, designed and delivered by rail construction and infrastructure experts Cleshar, consisted of the design of an installation of demarcation barriers on the DLR network, running from Bow Church to Stratford, and Limehouse to Tower Gateway. The barriers will provide a visual and physical demarcation where DLR and Network Rail lines run adjacent.
For this project there are two types of GRP demarcation, one comprises of a moulded grating walkway, seated on ground-mounted square tube rails fixed into the ground using angled stakes. The walkway is coloured and manufactured to be DDA compliant for both parts of the project.
The other barrier, which is vertical, was designed using 100×100mm lightweight GRP posts approximately half the weight of the timber equivalent, along with 87×38mm hollow rectangular tube cross rails. Using GRP offers a robust sustainable alternative to timber that needs no regular planned recoating to maintain its structural integrity, or regular replacement which is costly and time consuming. Using GRP, you simply wipe it down with soap and water if the need arises.
TECHNO-CRETE® was chosen as the foundation material for the embedded posts. An innovative, eco-friendly post-mix, TECHNO-CRETE® is a hydrophobic polyurethane foam foundation system. Made from a blend of reprocessed oil from the catering industry and sustainably grown rapeseed oil, it is rapidly becoming the prime choice of foundation material, offering a green and cost-effective alternative to concrete post-mix.
Supplied as two 0.9kg bags which are mixed together with no water required, the mixture foams to form a structurally robust, solid foam to securely hold the posts in place. For this job, each post required just two bags of TECHNO-CRETE®, instead of 140kg of concrete post-mix and 40 litres of water, thereby significantly reducing transportation costs and time, as well as the risk of personal injury from manual handling. Its ease of use and minimal bulk also reduces the need for additional non-productive labour or track possession.
With a significantly lower ratio of material required when using TECHNO-CRETE® on a job compared to cement-based products, there is also a much lower amount of CO2 emissions released into the atmosphere. The larger the job, the more that environmental saving increases.
TECHNO-CRETE® has a huge advantage over cementious materials during extreme weather conditions, something that on-site project managers were thankful for as temperatures plummeted during the early stages. Using concrete post-mix at sub-zero temperature is not possible unless the temperature is 3 degrees and rising, therefore frequently delaying work during the winter months. Using TECHNO-CRETE® ensures there are no delays as the exothermic reaction still takes place regardless of ground or air temperature, providing the product is stored at room temperature.
“We contacted Complete Composite Systems during the design phase to assist us to deliver the project as carbon neutral. Through various value engineering workshops, we challenged traditional design methods and were not only able to achieve our goals, but also significantly reduce manual handling and the amount of excavation required should we have used traditional concrete, and the additional temporary works requirements associated with curing times.”
“I was involved with the project from the outset along with our Technical Director to design and implement a low carbon, sustainable installation for this project. It was a pleasure to work with Cleshar’s management and their design team, and to be involved in and deliver a ‘one-of-a-kind’ eco-friendly project is a fantastic achievement for all.”
TECHNO-CRETE® has outperformed cementious products in comparative testing verified by engineers and design teams, while secondary fixing works to posts can begin within one hour of the product’s application.
Further information about TECHNO-CRETE®, including an instructional video highlighting its simple application process, can be found on our dedicated TECHNO-CRETE® page here. If you’d like to discuss how this unique and innovative foundation material can enhance the green credentials of your infrastructure project, contact our team of technical experts at CCS.
TECHNO-CRETE® is developed and produced in the UK by Strucsol and the exclusive UK rail stockist is Scott Parnell.
This article was originally published by Complete Composite Systems.
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