Key Phase 1 extension: site preparation works

To get the ground ready for the next phase of homes and the new Education Campus, the team has been busy carrying out demolition and site preparation works.

The works, which started in August 2020, included the demolition and removal of around 20 buildings of varying sizes – from hangars and storage buildings to small substations that needed to be taken down.

Hardstanding also needed to be lifted from small internal roads and the taxiway for the runway. All the material taken up from this hardstanding will be kept on site, recycled and used in future works, which will save approximately 3–4,000 HGV trips from having to go onto the local road network and thousands of tonnes going into waste. This approach is part of Urban&Civic’s commitment to recycling 98% of materials from the brownfield site, as part of its sustainability strategy.

Scott Edwards, Project Manager at Urban&Civic who oversaw the works, said: “The range of work varies from quite careful and detailed removal of fixtures and fittings, to some hefty machinery helping to lift the hardstanding. The work can be quite noisy, so we used a modern Arrow Breaker – a remote controlled machine with a 7 tonne guillotine at the front – to break up the concrete hardstanding. This was a much quicker and quieter process than the traditional method, which would have full days of hammering noise, and helped minimise any impact on the homes and businesses around.

“We are really grateful for everyone’s patience while the work goes on and we are through the worst of it now. The final works should be completed by the end of February 2021.”

Click here to see a video of the work being undertaken and the 7 tonne guillotine in action.

If you have any queries about these works – or any other works being carried out at Alconbury Weald - please email alconbury@urbanandcivic.com or call 01480 413141.