Temporary Works Initiative of the Year
BAM Nuttall, Morgan Sindall and Balfour Beatty Joint Venture
Tideway integrated temporary and permanent works truss solution
The Tideway integrated temporary and permanent works transfer truss solution was applied on the £750m Tideway West Project to accelerate the programme by six months, protecting the overall system preliminary commissioning commencement date. This was a significant challenge as the BMB JV was already working 24/7 with just two years left on the programme. Construction of the shaft internal structures at Carnwath Road Site (CARRR) was driving critical path, and re-designing the large elements of reinforced concrete works remaining in the large drop shaft was vital to delivering a significant reduction in programme, and increasing safety during execution.
Eiffage Kier Ferrovial Construction and BAM Nuttall JV
Engineering earthworks to minimise waste and maximise space
EKFB’s Risborough Temporary Bridge provides a construction traffic bridge over an existing highway. This provision is key to minimising impact on local traffic and enabling earth movement through the project. The location poses challenges of existing infrastructure (including utilities), poor ground conditions, and clashing engineering works. These constraints prevented a traditional abutment on deep foundations and battered earthworks, and a more involved solution was needed. The collaboratively design solution delivers the project’s needs in this challenging site and provides cost and carbon reductions over the standard solutions, along with avoiding blockers to the main civil works.
McGee
McGee's Modular Façade Retention System
McGee's innovation, featuring a patented ribbon cutting of re-used steel sections, addresses the challenges of urban façade retention. Pioneered at Grosvenor’s South Molton development, it optimises stiffness, minimises installation time, and ensures flexibility for future projects. Overcoming fabrication challenges, including achieving a CE-mark certification, it sets a new standard for sustainable construction. This approach reduces carbon footprint, ensures product quality, and advances industry norms. McGee's partnership with ASD Westok and EMR facilitates safe and rapid assembly. Already adopted by further projects, this solution reshapes construction practices towards sustainability, leaving a visual legacy of its re-used steel's transformative impact.
RDG Engineering
Stabilising Decagon Scaffold Exoskeleton
The Queen’s Tower, built in 1887 to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, is undergoing refurbishment. The project required temporary access platforms extending 85m high without fixing to the tower structure. An innovative solution was developed using scaffolding to create a free-standing, self-stabilizing structure. A 10-sided decagon exoskeleton was designed for stability, incorporating features like guy ropes and heavy-duty splices to resist uplift. This approach addressed various engineering challenges, demonstrating a pioneering method in heritage conservation. Additionally, the use of scaffolding improved project delivery, reduced the carbon footprint by approximately 90%, and ensured safe access without compromising the tower's integrity.
Sir Robert McAlpine Design Group
Jacking the Westbury Hotel to create additional basement
The idea of jacking is not new in the construction industry. However, jacking a 7-storey concrete frame 5* hotel in Mayfair in London whilst excavating below the existing foundations to add another basement level, presented several engineering challenges. To safely finish the project on time and budget, we used a new jacking method with piling and plunge columns and temporary jacking frames in a tight old basement. After supporting the building, the old foundations were removed and the new basement was dug out. Then, new steel columns attached to the existing concrete columns were put to transfer loads.
Taylor Woodrow
Heavy Haul Road – Fawley FAST Project
ExxonMobil is investing £800m at its Fawley facility to build a low sulphur diesel plant that will increase capacity by 40%, helping to reduce diesel imports to the UK by around a quarter. Temporary works included a heavy haul road (HHR) to transport 18 prefabricated modules - the largest 650 tonnes, and equivalent to three tennis courts by five double decker buses high - 6.5km on Self-Propelled Modular Transporters (SPMTs) from Fawley Power Station’s docks to Fawley Petrochemical Complex. Five temporary bridges spanned critical refinery services. There were 800m of reinforced earth embankments. The HHR was time and space constrained, with an immovable end date and a pinch point with 100mm tolerance.
Tony Gee and Partners
Barmouth Bridge Metallic Replacement
Barmouth Bridge Metallics included an innovative temporary works solution which demonstrates the programme and budget savings and efficiencies achievable using pioneering temporary works when fully integrated with the permanent works. The replacement of two 160-tonne spans on this heritage structure was complex, requiring a multitude of temporary works and inventive construction techniques to transport the new bridges, install the girders in their final position and use these girders to support the existing structure during its removal. The method-led design ensured the project was delivered safely, efficiently and to programme achieving plaudits from the local residents, demonstrating what engineers can achieve.