Works get underway in the Falklands after strong team collaboration

The project on the Falkland Islands’ brief was to install new Addagrip system on Alpha Loop and RHAG remedials.

The green light was given to the operational team to go ahead and start ordering for the project just 10 days before the 2019 Christmas break. The vessel was due to sail on the 13th of January, which was a tight deadline. The team pre-empted a positive outcome regarding contract awarding, this meant that once the contract was awarded they were primed for early mobilisation. The operation and procurement team worked hard from the start of to ensure that all the plant, equipment and materials were ready to leave Marchwood in Southampton on January the 10th. with an arrival date at Mare Harbour in the Falklands, on the 10th of February. This included our own mobile asphalt plant, (Intrame UM260 batch plant) to produce the binder and surface course required. Together with all of our Subcontractor Equipment, vehicles, sweepers, planers, spare components, hired non-operated plant surfacing and compaction plant, materials and temporary accommodation and equipment including a piece of equipment of imperative importance to Kenny – his teaspoons! Binder and surface course are specified in accordance with UK DIO (Ministry of Defence) Specification 013 – Marshall Asphalt for Airfields. The constituent fillers, fine aggregates and Colflex binder were also shipped, and mix designs were completed in the UK.

Also within that timeline, Becky Harrison with Steve’s Bryant’s support, was successful in raising almost £700k worth of orders to a number of suppliers which included the need to get some new Suppliers onto COUPA due to the type and location of the main works. The Procurement team worked relentlessly in processing the required accreditation paperwork in order to ensure compliance of our processes and procedures, which involved full collaborative working with the project and SHEQ teams. The outcome of the strong relationship between Procurement and the Operational team is that despite the very tight time frame and a number of challenges faced, they successfully ensured everything departed on time to enable our site team to go on and safely deliver this prestigious project.

On arrival in the Falklands, the first week was spent transporting plant from Mare Harbour to the site compound which is situated within the Mount Pleasant (MPA) camp. The harbour was on shut-down, and following clearance and security checks, Colas were able to start moving the plant to the MPA camp. We had requested before arrival, that our equipment was given priority so we could start moving straight away.

To enable Colas to transport this as quickly as possible we bought in a local contractor, Makays Transport to help with the movements. Within the contract Interserve were to carry out all movements of containers for Colas and undertook this on the 15th of February. This took a week to complete with lots of plant movements. In total approximately 40 containers/trailers as well as other plant were moved across the island, in a well-executed and organised fashion, meaning that works on the runway commenced as planned on Friday 28th February

In addition, a fully functioning asphalt/aggregate testing laboratory is on site together with one laboratory technician and one site technician. A Tech Supervisor has been seconded from Colas Australia to manage the laboratory, to establish mixes on the asphalt plant based on the laboratory designs, oversee production and installation trials to a satisfactory conclusion, thereafter fulfilling the quality control function of the contracts works.

The following phases are in the process of being completed:

Phase 1 (Addagrip works) – Roadgrip have been brought in to re-install Addagrip (a resin surfacing system) to the Alpha loop located next to the 28 threshold on MPA Runway. Before Addagrip can carry this out, existing joints will be removed by Colas joint sealing gangs and fine milling will take place by Powerplane to remove all the existing Addagrip

Phase 2 (Temporary Displaced Threshold) – Colas Lining gang will carry out works to temporarily close the 28 threshold. Temporary closed runway markings will be installed, temp red lighting installed throughout the threshold, runway centrelines blanked off and a temporary runway threshold marking to be installed 150m back from the existing one. Once these works are completed Colas will then look to carry out a new expansion joint with a SAMI (layer of polymer modified bitumen) constructed across the new joint and re-surfaced using Marshall Concrete Asphalt. This work will start on Sunday.