Reducing the carbon impact of lock refurbishment on the River Thames

Product: evoBuild low carbon concrete 30

Volume: 76.4 m³

Main contractor: Jackson Civil Engineering Ltd

Client: Environment Agency

Overview:

Heidelberg Materials UK has supplied evoBuild low carbon concrete 30 to help Jackson Civil Engineering reduce the carbon impact of its work to refurbish locks on the River Thames on behalf of the Environment Agency.

Project description:

Jackson Civil Engineering maintains locks on the non-tidal River Thames as part of the Environment Agency’s Thames Navigation Programme.

Recent refurbishment has been carried out to locks at Buscot Lock, Chertsey, Romney, Marlow, Sonning and Whitchurch, as well as Lechlade Marina. As part of this, the Jackson team cast anchor blocks using evoBuild low carbon concrete 30 supplied by Heidelberg Materials UK from its Reading, Beaconsfield and Byfleet plants.

Each of the six anchor blocks weighs 10 tonnes and they are used to hold the large lock gates in place during maintenance.

The Environment Agency support sustainable development in its work to create better places for people and wildlife; an ethos Jackson shares. The civil engineering company was able to demonstrate this commitment by choosing evoBuild low carbon concrete 30, which cut the CO₂ emissions associated with the concrete used by 30 per cent.

Bradley Dovey, Site Agent with Jackson Civil Engineering oversaw the lock refurbishment project. He said:

“Working for the Environment Agency, we are always looking to innovate and cut carbon from our operations where possible. We had an opportunity to use low carbon concrete on this project and reached out to Heidelberg Materials to use their evoBuild product.

“It was perfect for this job, where we needed to be agile and use relatively small amounts of low carbon concrete for each anchor block. Heidelberg Material’s technical department was also very helpful in getting back to us with any questions we had.”

Heidelberg Materials also offered technical support at both mix design stage and on site, giving Jackson added confidence that it was the sustainable supplier of choice.

For example, the team added a retarder to the mix to extend the workability of the concrete, facilitating the transportation of the product by barge to the discharge point.

evoBuild is Heidelberg Materials’ global brand for low carbon and circular cement, ready-mixed concrete, aggregates and asphalt products. All products in the range have clear sustainability credentials and meet strict requirements.

evoBuild low carbon concrete 30 reduces the CO₂ emissions associated with concrete by 30 per cent compared to a standard CEM I mix, without impacting quality, strength or durability.