Delta Marine Consultants (DMC) has confirmed that the first phase of the rehabilitation of the main breakwater at the Port of Poti, Georgia, has recently been completed.
The breakwater was first constructed in the 19th century and had an armoured layer of large concrete blocks (each of 20 to 60 tons), but frequent maintenance was required and significant settlement had occurred over time. A large section of this breakwater has now been covered with rock layers and an armoured layer of 2m3 Xblocs.
The crest of the rehabilitated breakwater structure has been covered with Xbase units, the reason for this being that interlocking units like Xblocs are less stable on a horizontal berm as they are not pushed together by gravity. ‘Due to the shape of the Xbase, wave loads on these units are reduced and the stability of the units is enhanced’, said DMC.
The Xblocs were placed with a hydraulic excavator with a crane monitoring system at placement rates of up to 20 units per hour underwater and 40 units per hour above water.
