Clear Route Limited were engaged by Veolia Energy Services to investigate the possibility of installing a District Heating Network and new Electricity connection from a waste facility on the outskirts of the town, to a hospital situated in the City Centre.

Solution

Clear Route involvement in this project commenced at the planning stage, where various route options were investigated via a desktop study, particularly in regard to existing underground services, allied with extensive route walks. The planned route had various positions along its extent where the network was to be extended to provide heat and power to other facilities within the region, thereby slightly limiting the choice of routes available to Veolia.

Given the city centre environment, numerous other factors had to be considered when identifying possible routes. The route would impact on the hospital itself particularly in respect of emergency access, it would have an impact on city centre traffic flows when construction work started, and have an effect on businesses and entertainment venues situated along the route.

Method

The results of these preliminary surveys identified several areas where there was considerable utility congestion and it was difficult to say with certainty if the District Heating pipework and electricity ducts would be able to be installed, which would effectively stop the whole project. Consequently, further on site investigations were undertaken. These investigations included 3D mapping of all underground services and features, along with the excavation of trial holes. These investigations, allied with further detailed discussions with all relevant authorities, allowed for a route to be identified, satisfying both the technical needs of the installation and those of the relevant stakeholders.