{"id":8598,"date":"2023-02-09T13:19:18","date_gmt":"2023-02-09T13:19:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/recosa.co.za\/?post_type=avada_portfolio&p=8598"},"modified":"2024-10-07T13:18:10","modified_gmt":"2024-10-07T13:18:10","slug":"n2-road-upgrade-lynnfield-to-asburton","status":"publish","type":"avada_portfolio","link":"https:\/\/recosa.co.za\/reinforced-earth\/n2-road-upgrade-lynnfield-to-asburton\/","title":{"rendered":"N2 Road Upgrade (Lynnfield to Asburton)"},"content":{"rendered":"
N2 Road Upgrade (Lynnfield to Asburton)<\/span><\/p><\/h1><\/div> Reinforced Earth South Africa (RESA) was awarded a contract for the design and supply of materials for construction of retaining walls on the project for the upgrading of the N3 between km 30.6 and km 31.7 (Lynnfield to Asburton).\u00a0<\/p>\n The face area of the Reinforced Earth\u00ae structures is 9950 m2<\/sup>; their height varies from 4m to 10m with a 30 degree surcharge and their total length is approximately 2 km.<\/p>\n<\/div> Reinforced Earth\u00ae is a composite material comprising frictional backfill, reinforcements and facing elements and was invented by French architect and engineer, Henri Vidal, in 1964. This invention was one of the most important civil engineering innovations of the twentieth century. RESA introduced Reinforced Earth\u00ae to South Africa in 1975. Ongoing innovation has enabled the material to offer state of the art solutions tailored specifically to meet the requirements of each structure.<\/p>\n The constituent materials for the construction of the Lynnfield Ashburton Reinforced walls comprised:<\/p>\n Backfill: \u00a0coarse backfill (G7) material from a nearby quarry.<\/p>\n Reinforcements: 50mm x 4mm high adherence, medium tensile steel, hot dip galvanized to ISO 1461: 2009 specifications.<\/p>\n Facing: \u00a0TerraTrel\u2122 manufactured from 12mm, 10mm and 8mm hard drawn wire, welded into a grid with 100mm x 100mm apertures. The grid is shaped, and hot dip galvanized to ISO 1461: 2009 specifications.<\/p>\n The construction of Reinforced Earth\u00ae with TerraTrel\u2122 facing is labour intensive and allowed the Contractor, Rumdel Cape, to sub-contract the construction of the Reinforced Earth structures to Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises in line with the project\u2019s C<\/strong>ontract P<\/strong>articipation G<\/strong>oals \u00a0(SMME\/CPG).<\/p>\n The TerraTrel\u2122 facing allows for internal settlement of the facing elements during construction without bulging of the elements between layers of reinforcing strips.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n A recent innovation, a flexible spacer named SpringTrel\u2122, keeps the initial vertical spacing between the elements constant, until squeezed by the weight of the ongoing backfill placed above it during the construction process.<\/p>\n TerraTrel\u2122 construction for permanent works requires rock with diameter greater than 100mm to be packed behind the facing. This presents a pleasing gabion-type appearance. Vegetation takes easily to the facing and could, relatively easily, be encouraged to become a \u201cgreen\u201d wall.<\/p>\n The appearance of the structure is dependent on the construction. In this case the MMSE\/CPG sub-contractors did an excellent job within the required tolerances. \u00a0<\/p>\n Since work takes place from the back of the facing, while personnel stand on top of the compacted backfill layers, and because the advancing facing provides a barrier during construction, there is reduced risk associated with working at height.<\/p>\n The pacing time for construction is the placing and compaction of the earthworks. When the earthworks are complete, so is the structure. This allows a significant saving in time compared to reinforced concrete retaining walls.<\/p>\n The cost is influenced by the rate of construction, the availability of the backfill and the height of the structures. The Reinforced Earth\u00ae solution succeeded in replacing an alternative solution, which was accepted by the contractor, further illustrating it\u2019s cost effectiveness.<\/p>\n Quality: All materials were manufactured in South Africa to strict codes of practice. The construction was according to the specifications.<\/p>\n The excavation for the walls had to be made into the existing N3 embankment slope while the N3 remained operational during the works. In addition, poor foundation conditions were expected.<\/p>\n Reinforced Earth (Pty) Ltd was not only responsible for the internal stability of the walls, but also for the global stability. To ensure the global stability, RESA appointed geotechnical engineers Melis & Du Plessis to assist in the works.<\/p>\n To monitor the long-term degradation of the buried reinforcing strips, test strips were installed. These strips can be extracted at any stage during the life of the structures.\u00a0 Tests to determine the amount of corrosion as well as tensile strength will be carried out on the test strips by an accredited laboratory.<\/p>\n The TerraTrel\u2122 facing cannot easily be vandalized. To our knowledge, no TerraTrel\u2122 structures have been vandalized on any of the hundreds of RE projects throughout 16 African countries.<\/p>\n Reinforced Earth\u00ae Retaining Walls on the Lynnfield to Ashburton N2 Road Contract were:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n<\/div> <\/p>\n Client:<\/strong> SANRAL<\/p>\n Main Contractor:<\/strong> Rumdel Cape<\/p>\n Consulting Engineers:<\/strong> NME (Nathoo Mbenyane Engineers) & Leporogo Consulting Engineers<\/p>\n<\/div>Reinforced Earth\u00ae Retaining Walls on the Lynnfield to Ashburton N2 Road Contract <\/strong><\/h4>\n
Introduction<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Construction innovation technology<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Corporate Social Investment<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Design Innovation\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong><\/h4>\n
Environmental Impact Consideration<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Health & Safety<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Quantifiable Time, Cost and Quality<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Risk Management<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Motivation Facts about the Project<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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\nProject details:<\/h3>\n