They worked through atrocious weather conditions to deliver an innovative flood protection scheme for a vital facility which supplies electricity to one million homes and businesses.
Now the £8m project for National Grid by Southampton-based Trant Engineering at Walham 400kV substation, on the River Severn flood plain in Gloucestershire, has been recognised with two industry awards.
The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) voted the scheme major award winner and member’s award winner in its annual awards for civil engineering excellence in the South West.
In the 18-month scheme, completed last December, Trant installed a range of defences to provide permanent protection against a 1-in-1,000-year flood event.
The urgency of the project, which had to be carried out without interruption to power supplies, was underlined by atrocious weather throughout 2012 and 2013, including powerful storms and record rainfall. Flood water encircled the substation.
Due to the threat of flooding before the new perimeter defence wall was built, despite a temporary flood barrier already being in place, the site team had to erect a temporary mooring and slipway in case evacuation by boat was required.
Alistair Parker, Trant Contracts Manager, said: “It is a privilege to receive two awards from ICE for our flood defence work, which was delivered through professional expertise, innovation, knowledge, skills and unwavering commitment to health and safety in an operationally difficult environment.
“In addition to working near to live 400kV substation equipment, the task was made yet more difficult by having to contend with the risk of flooding due to severe weather and maintaining complete flood defences. Talk about challenging conditions!”
He added: “Positive community benefits include a secure power supply for the population, improved upstream and downstream flooding behaviour, with the introduction of a flood mitigation pond, flood channels and improved flow around the substation.”
Trish Johnson, ICE South West Regional Director, said: “The objective of the awards is to recognise projects completed in 2013 of particular merit, physical achievement, innovation or ingenuity which promote the excellence of the engineering profession.
“The entries this year were of an extremely high standard and all of those recognised in the major project category thoroughly deserved the acknowledgement and the Walham Flood Defence Scheme fought off some extremely strong competition.”
The judges commented: “The threats to our national infrastructure have made the headlines every year. The Walham team demonstrated that not only can infrastructure be protected but it can be done so sustainably, safely and timely and with the promotion of the industry.
“Safety was integral to the design and execution of the works, with preparedness for all eventualities, and delivered in time for the winter 2013 floods.”
Installation of a new flood defence wall comprised steel-sheet piling and a 1.6m-high concrete wall with electrified palisade fence and pulse fencing, with an overall height of 5.6m.
It is the fifth time in three years the Southampton-based company, which employs 700 people, has collected ICE awards for excellence in engineering.
Following a rigorous tender, National Grid appointed multi-disciplinary contractor Trant to carry out the flood defence works at Walham.
The scheme was required following flooding in July 2007, which made national news due to the potential of widespread disruption to essential infrastructure, including power and water supplies. River levels in many locations were the highest on record.
Then supplying half a million people with electricity, the substation was saved from having to be shut down thanks to ‘Operation Giraffe’.
In a race against time and tide National Grid, with the assistance of the military, Environment Agency and fire and rescue service, successfully built emergency protective walls around the perimeter with sandbags.
ICE itself rewards projects which reflect aspects of ICE’s global vision of civil engineers at the heart of society and has approximately 6,000 members in a geographical area stretching from Cornwall to Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Dorset.
Both ICE accolades follow three other awards bestowed last year and in 2012 on Trant for other highly-respected engineering projects in southern England.
The latest awards were presented at the ICE South West Annual Awards and Dinner, held at the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery earlier this month (July).
Founded in 1958 by the late Phil Trant, Trant now has a record number of long-term framework contracts, totalling £120m per annum.
