As we specialise in support for structural refurbishment and renovation projects, we are usually given the chance to consult with the relevant construction company quite far in advance. This allows us to carry out thorough and extensive site surveys, making sure that our support structures are strong, secure and designed to last for as long as the project requires. However, there are instances where we do not get the luxury of time to carry out meticulous planning. An unfortunate reality of construction work is that from time to time things go wrong, no matter how careful and precise the planning has been. In such cases, we can apply emergency structural support in a rapid space of time.
We were recently called out to an incident of this nature. There was an incident at a site in Chelmsford under the management of Buoygues. Another contractor had somehow cut through several of the structural drop beams, leaving a very real danger that the entire building would collapse. The staff on site made the decision to call us in so we could implement emergency structural support as quickly and effectively as possible.
We are happy to confirm that in this incident we were able to get the required structural support in place before the damaged drop beams caused a collapse, which could have resulted in a serious situation and danger to the people in the area. After this, the next priority was to find out exactly how and why this incident happened in the first place. In the construction industry, it is important to learn from cases such as this so that there can be a concerted effort to avoid a repeat.
It is always very welcome when we are given the time to plan out and prepare for temporary structural support work. However, we know that the nature of construction work, structural refurbishment and renovations means that emergency incidents like this one are an ever present threat. Those in the building and construction industry know that we are the people to call on in such cases.