Aston Way

The project aim was to maximise the usable land on a sloping development site at Manning’s Heath Road, in Poole, to create a car parking area.  

Suttle Piling were contracted to design, supply and install a sheet piled retaining wall to BS EN 1997-1.  This involved using more than 90 Larssen L605 interlocking sheet piles.  

Due to the presence of a dense sand strata, the pile locations were pre-augered with a Klemm 709 segmental flight auger rig.  This loosened the soil and thus minimised the need for vibration in the driving process.  It also reduced the noise emissions necessary to properly install the piles. This allowed us to be as considerate as possible to our client’s neighbours, on this industrial site.

The piles, which ranged from 7m-10.5m in length, were pitched using a 28-tonne Movax SP60F rig and were then re-driven to level with a DPH impact hammer. The exposed steel sheet piles were treated to prevent wear against the elements.

The completed wall enabled the excavation down to the desired level to facilitate the installation of a Type 1 Limestone sub-base (supplied by our colleagues at Suttle Stone Quarries).  This was later surfaced with tarmac to create a car parking area.

The design life of the final solution will be 120 years.  Sheet piles offered an ideal situation in terms of speed of installation, and a tidy, but robust appearance in the context of a light industrial estate, where no other expensive surface finish concealment was necessary.