Challenging navaids upgrade job recognised

The award relates to the successful delivery of the New Brighton Aids to Navigation scheme, a technically and operationally challenging coastal project delivered at the height of the tourist season. The project involved the replacement of three Navigational Structures, constructed in the 1980s to mark submerged offshore coastal defences within the Mersey Estuary.

Recognition was given by the judges to the need for developing an alternative design which allowed the project to be delivered in accordance with a restricted budget and within a challenging tidal environment. This simplified design involved replacing the existing tripod arrangement with a single 508mm diameter concrete filled monopile complete with sleeve.

The three Navigation Structures were installed from a 250 tonne jack up barge due to the need to work within the inter tidal zone. In addition to a piled foundation, the Navigational Aids also include a superstructure which consists of a gantry complete with handrailing. The superstructure was pre-fabricated off-site, allowing it to be installed in a single lift, thereby minimising the onsite programme. The new Navigational Structures include a fixed light which can be seen for three nautical miles. Upon completion the existing structures were dismantled.

Visit CECA – The Civil Engineering Contractors Association at M&CCE 2021 (co-located with Seawork) on stand MC59