Coring – Page 2

20 May, 2013

SPOSH? POSH? What’s in an Acronym?

SPOSH? POSH? (insert baffling acronym of your choice here). Sometimes our industry really makes a meal of what should be a simple process. How do you determine if a site is contaminated or not? We think the answer is simple: do a decent site investigation!

We have recently been working at site that proved to be a classic example of a ‘cheap’ site investigation saving nothing. The original investigation was carried out by others four years ago. After many other consultants were hired but failed to provide any clear answers (or any answers at all) we were commissioned to break the impasse.

We constructed 180 boreholes on a 5m grid using one of our dynamic sampling rigs. Boreholes and sampling locations were surveyed using GPS allowing us to develop a 3D contaminant profile of the site. Finally
sufficient information is now available to allow our client to make sensible decisions regarding future use and/or remedial strategy for the site. All this without resorting to any obscure and baffling acronyms.

3 January, 2013

Out on the Wiley, Windy Moors

December saw us out in the middle of Dartmoor drilling water wells. Frail insfrastucture and maintenance issues had driven one Devonian farmer to drinking water distraction. The water well supplying their property was a shared supply and each year they were expected to contribute to the maintenance of the lengthy, unreliable water pipe. We were commissioned to design and install a new well to serve just their property, together with all associated pipework, electrics, buffer tank etc as a ‘turnkey’ package.

We used modern installation techniques and our Comacchio drill rig, capable of drilling in excess of 100m, to construct a 46m deep borehole lined with a modern PVC screen, a graded filter pack, cattleproof/watertight inspection chamber, ducting into the property, cabling, pipe work, pressure vessel, on demand water flow controls, piped into the existing supply and insultated against the hardest frost. All works were completed in only four days.

If you’d like to know more about our water well installation service or would like a quote for your own water supply, please call Duncan Eastland (Tel. 01296 739431).

19 April, 20128 May, 2012

Pile Probing for Five Star Hotel

Encountering obstructions during piling works and clearing these obstructions can cause significant cost implications and also impact upon the construction programme. However, delays and significant cost-overuns can be avoided by completing a quick and easy pile probing survey.
We recently carried out a pile probing exercise a high profile redevelopment project in central London. The principal contractor identified an old, below-ground fuel tank that needed to be removed. Due to adverse ground conditions and proximity to a basement and the adjacent road, sheet piling around the tank prior to its removal was considered the most effective and safest option.
We were brought in prior to the piling rig to identify an obstruction free boundary around the tank to allow the piling to be undertaken. We completed 400m+ of probing in two days using our Geoprobe drill rig, completing the works on budget and ahead of schedule.
Additionally, despite the working area having been surveyed and declared “service-free” by the principal contractor our drill team, who are all trained in service detection, identified a 4″ water main in our specified working area during our pre-enabling The findings from our probing allowed the pile design to be refined and the service clearance works we carried out avoided everyone from getting very wet.
Contract value: <£10k

Beating the Hosepipe Ban

We’ve installed thousands of groundwater wells in our time, although admittedly the
water we pump from them is usually contaminated and in need of treatment! We have
recently been contacted by a concerned gardener in the Thames Valley, worrying about
water supplies this summer. We used one of our rotary drilling rigs to install a 12m deep
groundwater well for irrigation purposes, installing the required pump and pipework as part of the contract. Our rotary auger rig only needs a metre wide access, making it ideal for accessing garden areas. Our drillers also prefer working on a site where tea and cakes are on offer!

21 February, 201221 February, 2012

Subadra Upgrade Geoprobe

Following an extremely busy few months our hard-working Geoprobe drill rig has had a week off the road for its annual overhaul and re-spray. We took the opportunity to add a diamond coring facility to the rig for coring concrete pavement/forecourts. Now, not only can we offer 30m+ of drilling productivity per day, but we’re even neater doing it!