Trench Control, a piling contractor and supplier of ground support equipment for hire, has been selected to install in excess of 140 sheet piles on Merchant Quay in Waterford City. Some of the sheet piles will be in excess of 30m long and the work is part of the ongoing flood alleviation works in the city.

Niall Barry & Co are completing the final stage of Phase 1 of the flood alleviation works, as awarded by the local authority. Along the final stretch of Quay wall, movement in part of the car park on Merchant’s Quay was noted and the need to shore up the quay wall to avoid further movement was determined.

The contract, received from Niall Barry & Co., required the design and installation abilities of Trench Control. With the largest piling rigs in Ireland and a design team with many decades of experience, only Trench Control could master this unique project.

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In conjunction with RPS consulting engineers, Trench Control designed a solid 18m deep sheet pile wall along a 70m stretch of the quay. This design was accepted and the contract awarded. However, once on site, it was realised that the ground conditions were different from the initial reports and a new design was needed.

To solve the issue, Trench Control conducted several boreholes on site and determined a final depth of 30m in some areas. These longer depths required a re-design and also the onsite splicing of sheet piles to meet the new challenge.

The final design called for a total of 180 sheet piles, with 40% of these to be 30m in depth. The sheet pile wall would also require a series of tie-back anchors to dead-men using a gravity system to hold them in place. With Trench Controls’ mix of design experience and onsite contracting experience, this challenge was met to the requirements of all parties.

The project proceeded after the new design was approved and Trench Control completed the installation as per programme and to the satisfaction of both the Local Authority and the main contractor, Niall Barry & Co.

(GK)