PWCS - Wick Drain Installation
Client Information
Port Waratah Coal Services
- Duration: 14 months
- Value: $4.5 million
- Location: Kooragang Island
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Project Details
Scope of Work
- Daracon Contractors were engaged by Bechtel Australia to design and install a network of prefabricated vertical wick drains for the PWCS Kooragang Expansion Project.
- The purpose of the wick drain network is to reduce the pore pressure in the underlying clays which, in-turn allows for the preload above to consolidate the soil more rapidly by forcing the ground water up and out of the saturated soils.
- Using a triangular grid with a spacing of 1.3m and an expected wick depth of approximately 7m, the Prefabricated Vertical Wick Drain Contract was a substantial undertaking and a significant amount of effort was employed during the planning for these works to ensure that worker safety was not compromised whilst also adhering to the strict timeframes imposed.
- With the assistance of Keller Ground Engineering, the Wick Drain Design was completed and mobilisation to site was accomplished by October 2009. Installation of wick drains commenced promptly and over a 2 month period, 563100 lineal metres of prefabricated vertical wick drain was installed as Phase One.
Significant Achievements
- Zero incidents or injuries occurring.
- Installing nearly 26,000m of Wick Drain in one day.
- Installing more than 875,000m over the three Phases.