Transformation on track at Alconbury Enterprise Campus

Alconbury Weald is progressing with delivering the first 70 acres of the Enterprise Campus.

The work has seen over £10m of investment to enable:

• removal of unused buildings, former taxiways and concreted areas• creation of two new "infrastructure nodes" with power, water and digital connectivity for over 800,000 sq ft of commercial space• extension of the existing boulevard and creation of the initial road network within the phase 1 Campus area• complimentary landscaping, including the formation of the preliminary sustainable urban drainage systems to manage a slow and controlled release of surface water.

The work started in September and is due to finish by the end of March. So far:

• 39 of the 43 buildings to be demolished are complete• 40,000m2 of the 50,000m2 of hardstanding has been removed.• The concrete and masonry arising’s will be reprocessed to produce 18,000m3 of stone for use in the infrastructure works.

At the height of the demolition and hardstanding removal the contractors were using:

• 2 x crushers, • 5 x 30tonne dumper trucks, • 12 x rotating grabs for processing the demolition arisings into waste streams • 16 x excavators of varying size with specialised attachments to carry out the works were on site.

The largest vehicle was a 70 tonne machine with a veractor tool (one of the largest 360 excavators on the market with specialist pulveriser attachment) which literally chews its way through the buildings. So far 96% of demolition waste has been recycled and will be reused in the foundations and future infrastructure work. The site preparation has also involved the removal of below ground fuel storage tanks, interceptors, fuel lines and redundant services with any contaminated ground removed providing a fully remediated site, ready for a number of uses.  The works progressed under an ecological and archaeological watching brief to ensure minimum disruption to either the ecology or heritage of the site. It is also constantly monitored by noise sensors to ensure work is carried out to strict British Standards – which is also enforced by the District Council’s planning conditions.

Mike Coleman of Professional Remediation who have been carrying out the work, said:

“This is a fantastic project to work on: lots of challenges in the nuclear-proof buildings and 1 metre thick roadways, but all in a day’s work when you have the right kit and the right people.”

Professional Demolition have also signed up to Alconbury Weald’s job strategy – offering a work placement to local man Joseph McCluskey. Joe was such a good worker that he has now been offered a full time job with the company.

Tim Leathes, of site owners and developers Urban&civic said:

“The demolition has made a huge difference already to how people see the site and understand the vision we have here. With the utilities and landscaping starting now, we are already designing up a number of buildings which will start to populate the plots coming forward in phase 1.”

The delivery of this key phase has been in partnership with Huntingdonshire District Council and Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Enterprise Partnership, and supported by £5m of government funding from the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG)’s Building Foundations for Growth Fund, to match additional investment from Urban&Civic.

The work has moved on to it’s second phase now, with local company Breheny removing and replacing the ageing infrastructure with new roads and utilities and landscaping the area to ensure it is ready for the new buildings which come next. Meanwhile Professional Remediation are undertaking work in the area where the new primary school and first homes will be built – in the area to the East of the main entrance, towards Little Stukeley.