The Thornton Project Penrith

The Thornton project originally covered a 40-hectare site next to the existing Penrith city centre and train station. The overall concept was to develop a diverse housing development with high density units and apartment complexes close to the retail and transportation hub with further housing and community centres further out.

Many of the housing, infrastructure and open space works are completed and the mixed use and high-density areas closer to Penrith City Centre are well under way with a number of unit and commercial projects completed or nearing completion. The next phase of the development further from the centre comprising of additional units and housing are starting, with works to continue through to 2020.

Starting in January 2016 we have completed a combination of sheet piling, anchoring and bracing, on five different sites in the high density and mixed-use areas of the development for Moits, Dasco and Urban Apartments.

The sites have all required perimeter wall sheet piling as well as lift shaft and core retention. A total of over 1200 lineal metres of sheet piles and associated anchoring have been completed to date with profiles varying site to site based on client, engineering and geotechnical requirements. Piling depths have varied from 5 metres to 8 metres across the sites.

ASP NSW has supplied and installed over 400 lineal metres of sheet piling around the perimeter and lift shafts for Urban Apartments. The depths of excavation required averaged at approximately 6.5 metres. In addition to this, the Lord Sheffield Circuit sites have required dewatering, filtration and sediment tank hire. On one of the sites a generator was also required as the electricity supply wasn’t available to run the dewatering and filtration equipment.

Thornton Central is a three stage development of mixed use lower level retail and upper level unit complexes. There will be three nine-storey buildings totaling over 300 units in total. Stage 1 of the Thornton Central development required the installation of over 450 lineal metres of sheet piling for the perimeter and lift cores. ASP Piling NSW was contracted to Dasco and undertook the mobilisation, engineering, pre-drilling, installation of sheet piling, bracing and anchoring as required.

ASP Piling undertook the mobilisation, engineering, pre-drilling and installation of over 200 lineal metres of sheet piles around the perimeter as well as for the staircase and lift cores and crane base. The sheet piles were approximately 7 metres in length with associated anchoring and bracing used on the site. The anchors were then stressed to the engineering requirements to ensure the strength of the retention walls.

ASP Piling provided a design and construct service contributing a variety of expertise for Stokes Wheeler on the Brooklyn on Varsity project including foundation piling, external shoring, dewatering discharge and environmental management.

The foundation piling consisted of contiguous flight auger (CFA) piles with reinforced steel cages and concrete testing completed to ensure structural integrity. Pile diameters ranged from 450mm to 750mm. The Soilmec SF65 rig and associated drilling augers were used with mini excavator, grout tank and power pack, EWP, compressor and other miscellaneous tools and materials. Pile capping was completed by ASP Piling on this site along with additional crane base piles.

Sheet piling was utilised for shoring the site with anchoring assuring lateral support while the sheets are under load. Using our patented interlocking sheet piles the depth of excavation varied and subsequently different length sheet piles were used between 7 and 8.5 metres. The anchors were supplied, installed and stressed to the required load capacity. Our anchoring rig and stressing equipment were used on the site with additional anchors installed for anchor load testing to be undertaken. Additional bracing was used where anchoring was not a viable option due to adjacent existing buildings.

Australian dewatering systems remediated the site water and discharged off-site once environmental standards were met. A spear system was employed for Brooklyn on Varsity around the external sheet piling wall to minimize space used on site for the system. A pH filtration system and sediment tank were required for compliant discharge water. To ensure effective treatment a dewatering management plan was used including weekly environmental monitoring to ensure all discharged water was compliant with current environmental requirements. A generator was provided for a short period of time to power the pumps prior to electricity being installed onsite. ADS’s use of the Navman system ensures any changes to the output water’s pH levels notify our staff for effective management of water discharge.

The Marina Shores development at Bigger Waters involved ASP Piling designing and installing sheet piling and foundation piling with sister company Australian Dewatering Systems contracted for site dewatering.

Marina Shores has a single level basement with sheet piling used for the external retention as well as for the lift pits and crane base. The cantilevered sheet piles ranged in profile and length from 4 to 8 metres around the site depending on the depth of excavation and soil variations across the site. Over 180 lineal metres of sheet piles were used for the external basement wall, with close to an additional 100 lineal metres used for the core and crane base.

Foundation piling requirements again saw a range of diameters and depths for the reinforced Continuous Flight Auger (CFA) piles according to site, engineering and client design requirements. Pile diameter ranged from 450mm to 800mm. The Soilmec SF-65 rig was used for the installation with a variety of drilling tools, mini excavator, grout pump, compressor, crane and miscellaneous tools.

Australian Dewatering Systems were also contracted onsite and utilised an external spear system with additional environmental control using pH and sediment tanks for the discharge water. Environmental monitoring was undertaken throughout the dewatering process to ensure all standards were met and exceeded.

For this Mainland Apartments development, ASP Piling completed sheet pile shoring for design, mobilization, installation, associated anchoring and bracing as well as temporary anchor removal. Australian Dewatering Systems dewatered this site using a combination of deep wells and spear-point systems with pH and sediment tanks for effective treatment of groundwater.

Qube required close to 300 lineal metres of sheet piling for the perimeter wall as well as for the cores and lift shaft. The deepest section of the site requires heavy gauge sheets to shore to a depth of 14 metres in conjunction with approximately 350 anchors and an additional bracing system implemented.