McConnell Dowell’s presence in the Gisborne region continues to grow as our team win work with new client, Eastland Port, on Stage 1 of the Twin Berth project. McConnell Dowell is also currently constructing Stage two of the Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrade in Gisborne.
The scope of the $60 million project includes the rebuild of Wharf 7 to create a second deep water berth to accommodate three new mobile harbour cranes, and to ensure the wharf can withstand a one-in-2500-year earthquake event.
Construction of the 240m long deck-on-pile design will begin in April, take around 18 months to complete, and be completed around the adjacent wharf, which will remain in operation.
The MCD team impressed Eastland Port during a six-month value engineering process with our fresh approach to the design and comprehensive understanding of the challenges of working in an operational port. Eastland Port’s infrastructure manager Marty Bayley, overseeing the project said the wharf design had been significantly refined.
“The enhanced deck-on-pile design only needs 50 percent of the piles compared to the initial design. It will further increase seismic resilience, improve operational longevity, reduce steel use by 70 percent and minimise the environmental impact of the structure.
“Hardfill is no longer required, and the piles will now be drilled prior to driving, reducing noise and vibration. This reduces impacts on the seabed, the Rua Koura (crayfish puerulus) and the local ecology. It also results in 3,300 fewer truck movements through the city."
“We have worked closely with the port team over the last six months in a collaborative value engineering process to refine the original concepts and identify ways to maximise sustainability,” says Fraser Wyllie, Managing Director - New Zealand & Pacific at McConnell Dowell.
“Our in-house Engineering, Technology and Innovation team used the latest digital tools and drew on our expertise delivering marine infrastructure, such as the recent Wynyard Edge project, to get the best outcome possible for the client," says Mr Wyllie.
