INTELLIGENCE
T
he development of the University of Northamptonās Ā£330m purpose-built Waterside campus (featuring a burgeoning Waterside Enterprise Zone, a 20,000m2 Learning Hub, student accommodation and a new low-carbon Energy Centre) required more careful consideration than most new builds. Bordering the River Nene, and built on brownļ¬eld land once home to the old Northampton power station and a series of industrial warehouses, the 24-hectare site posed a series of development and design challenges, not least that its close proximity to the river deemed it at high risk of ļ¬ooding. Jon Williamson, Speciļ¬cation Manager at ACO Water Management, worked closely with the consultant engineers, Peter Brett Associates (PBA), on all elements of the drainage system. He notes that the development had to be
FLOOD-RISK SOLUTIONS
aesthetically appealing because of its location, but that it also, āhad to be able to provide eļ¬ective water storage contingency capacity in the event of a ļ¬ood or periods of heavy rainfall to mitigate any signiļ¬cant damage to the campusā. The ļ¬ood mitigation strategy centered on using channels with a high hydraulic capacity throughout the site and ā where possible ā integrating sustainable drainage system (SuDS) principles into the design. For paved and pedestrianised areas in open view, a Brickslot channel drainage system was used. Designed as standard with a heelguard 10mm oļ¬set drainage inlet, ACOās Brickslot (grating) when combined with MultiDrain channels provided discreet drainage because the vertical sides of the grating allow pavements to be laid directly to the unitās edge. A number of the Brickslot channels also drained directly into swale outlets,
IMAGE: ALAMY
21 Northampton.indd 21
āAnother key area of the design identiļ¬ed by the consulting engineers,ā says Jon, āgiven the volume of road infrastructure, was kerb drainage. Speciļ¬cally, they needed to ļ¬nd a unit that would match the ļ¬nish of the solid granite paving that would be used throughout the campus.ā ACOās KerbDrain met both the structural design and hydraulic capacity criteria, and the company was able to match the surrounding granite. For quieter roads and other areas such as car parks, ACOās MonoDrain channel was used. It is a monolithic general-purpose channel drainage system made from high performance, recyclable VieniteĀ® polymer concrete. Unlike other monocast solutions, its inherent strength means that it requires signiļ¬cantly less concrete haunching when being installed, which oļ¬ers a Ā£5/m per linear metre saving on installation costs. Finally, a series of textured RoadDrain channels, also made from VieniteĀ® polymer concrete and built to Load Class F900, were installed at the main entrance to the campus near the River Nene. The location is the primary point of access for campuswide deliveries and HGVs, and a major bus route for students travelling to and from the campus, which meant high loadbearing capacity channels were needed. The campus combines aspirational architecture with sustainable build principles, so it was entirely appropriate that a sustainable approach to drainage was employed ā a SuDS-focussed solution to a high ļ¬ood-risk site.
21 BUILDING ENGINEER
Kerb your enthusiasm
Kerb appeal
JUNE 2020
Applying SuDS principles provided a practical, yet attractive, solution at a high ļ¬ood-risk beauty spot
located throughout the site to help facilitate the release of surface water back into the local environment in a controlled way. Swales are shallow drainage channels with gentle side slopes in the ground where water running oļ¬ a site can collect and soak away. Swales can be used to channel run-oļ¬ from roads, yards and car parks, or to carry water through a site. Crucially the presence of swales throughout the site not only bolstered the siteās overall water management capabilities, but further improved the aesthetics and biodiversity of the campus by boosting the volume of green spaces.
ACO has a broad portfolio of watermanagement solutions, visit aco.co.uk for more information
18/05/2020 15:13
