Case Study
Harpwood House
Harpwood House is a new care home facility in Sevenoaks Kent
The new 80 suite care home complex was developed by Graham Land and Developments to replace the previous care home provision on the site. We were asked to provide upsized gas, water, and electric supplies to the new building.
Due to topographical complexities of the land our specialist tunnelling equipment made Harlaxton Engineering the ideal company to undertake the installation of all three utilities causing as little disruption as possible.
“Harlaxton value engineered several design options with us to find a workable solution for the site’s power requirements to keep the project within budget. Harlaxton’s flexibility has helped us overcome a number of challenges as the project developed, including short notice site visits and assisting to arrange additional works to keep the delivery of the project on track. We look forward to working with them again in future.”
Nick Bull, Graham Land & Developments
The Challenges
• The initial load assessment by the client meant that the new electric supply needed to be high voltage and involved a lengthy offsite route, meaning the project would drastically exceed the client’s utility budget.
• The position of an existing electricity pole onsite clashed with the new building’s footprint and required re-locating
• Dense undergrowth and a steep bank made bringing utilities onto site more challenging.
Solution
• By discussing the requirements of the building with the client and liaising with the local Network Operator (UKPN), we agreed a smaller load for the site resulting in the connection only needing to be low voltage, saving around £180k against the original price.
• We proposed using our specialist equipment to tunnel through the steep bank making the excavation works possible for the new gas supply.
• We negotiated with UKPN to explore options for moving the existing pole that was impeding the contractors. Ultimately, it was agreed that we should carry out a diversion to remove the pole and reroute the overhead cable underneath the road. As the road is a busy dual carriageway, we planned to bore under the road, rather than open-cutting to minimise disruption.
Services Provided
• Harlaxton provided resources to clear the undergrowth before a main contractor was appointed. This allowed the works to continue at an early stage.
• We used our specialist equipment to tunnel under the dual carriageway and the steep bank making the route into site possible for the new supplies.
Results
• We achieved the necessary cost savings by reviewing the client’s load requirements against the existing network.
• By undertaking diversion works and utilising our specialist equipment to support the main contractor we were able to keep the project on track.
As with any project of this scale, the requirements and scope were frequently changed to manage obstacles in order to meet the required outcome. The flexibility and experience of the Harlaxton team in reacting to such changes and providing workable solutions was key to the overall success.
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