Case study Wendover Lodge Car Park Embankment

The residents of Wendover Lodge in Welwyn took action to strengthen an embankment that separates their visitors’ car park from the nearby public highway, which was in danger of collapse.

43 retaining walls, ordered from and installed by Bison Precast, were used to replace timber posts forming the original wall of the large, sloped embankment bordering the property. Though they had only been installed a few years earlier, the posts were rotting and had begun to fail, meaning time was of the essence. Protected Scots Pine trees growing on the 25m long embankment added further complication and urgency to the project.

A Wendover Lodge resident, and member of the residents’ committee, Ian Hunt, managed the program using his decades of experience in the construction sector to inform decisions, which were agreed upon by all other residents.

Mr Hunt, who has designed and managed projects around the world, said, “We considered several options to replace the timber post wall, including bricks and interlocking blocks, but due to various factors such as practicality and cost, we opted eventually for a precast concrete solution.

“From my previous professional dealings with Forterra – owner of Bison Precast – I knew it to be a company that could be entrusted with doing a job properly. The retaining wall was designed by their own in-house team, working closely with me and another resident who is a structural engineer, and within four weeks of sign-off the 43 units had been delivered.”

The residents selected a textured Estrel Reckli finish to the front face of the precast units, to help ensure the project satisfied the local authority’s conditions.

Thomas Randell, Technical Sales Manager for Bison Precast, said, “The collapse of the embankment at the site was a pressing concern for the local residents who ordered this job, so we created a retaining wall solution as swiftly as we could before the situation worsened.

“The Estrel Recki finish gave the walls a more interesting, weathered façade compared to the standard finish, making the completed wall more suited to a residential location.”