Morgan Sindall X Welsh Water - Decommission Old Pump Well
COMPANY
CLIENTs
DATE
2022
LOCATION
Llanelli, South Wales, UK
PRODUCTs:
Contractor Morgan Sindall turned to the PORTAGANTRY RAPIDE to decommission an old water treatment plant in Llanelli, South Wales.
The background
Llanelli Wastewater Treatment Works (WwTW) in Llanelli, South Wales, serves the catchment’s 60,000 inhabitants and discharges treated sewage into the Loughor Estuary. The estuary is not only ecologically sensitive, but also a critical natural asset to the local community and to the wider South Wales region.
This section of the works required safe access that allowed the contractor the capability to decommission an old asset that was no longer needed. Through ongoing communications with the principal contractor, the team at MGF identified the requirement for a working at height solution on part of the works to remove a section of concrete from the existing UV inlet chamber to create a bypass chamber.
The challenge
The construction company, Morgan Sindall was commissioned to decommission an old water treatment plant. This required fall protection for the skilled workers on site: a 1 meter long concrete core had to be removed from a UV inlet chamber to make room for a bypass chamber.
The SOLUTION
The section that required removal was a 1m core to be taken out of the original UV inlet chamber. Holemasters were called in to carry out the works inside the chamber and needed access to this section to use a 1.5m long drilling rig. This involved 2 days of drilling to remove the section which was then lifted out using a crane.
As 2-man confined space access was required for the working area, our Porta Gantry Rapide was used to straddle the walls of the above ground chamber section after it was discovered that the remaining floor space once the chamber covers were removed was too small to use a standard counterbalance system.
Our unique and innovative Porta Gantry Rapide is a portable aluminium gantry that offers adjustable height and width properties with foldable capabilities, designed for rapid deployment. Capable of an impressive load lifting capacity of up to 1000kg.
This system can be assembled and disassembled by just one person within a minute without the need for any tools and is the perfect solution for confined space access as well as rescue and entry lifting scenarios due to its unique features and ability to lift equipment and personnel.
The adjustable beam size of the gantry allowed the principal contractor to change the beam size to suit the opening, offering much more flexibility onsite with the beams 2.3m to 3m span. This proved to be beneficial as it met their need to find a solution that met the openings exact dimensions.
The feedback
“As part of the construction work, we and two skilled workers climbed into an above-ground chamber and wanted to protect these people from falling. After the existing chamber covers were removed, there was not enough space for a conventional jib crane. Working with a tripod was not possible due to the access possibilities. REID Lifting ‘s PORTAGANTRY RAPIDE completely spanned the chamber, not only giving us more workspace, but also allowing two people to enter and belay at the same time.” -Site Manager at Morgan Sindall