Working around the clock, Keller Australia installed more than 200 piles in just a couple of weeks to support the lowering of a busy, dangerous level crossing. Keller explores how planning and a partnership approach was key to fast, flawless execution.
More than two-thirds of the 110 dangerous, congestion-causing level crossings identified for removal from Melbourne’s roads have now been eliminated.
As part of the largest-ever project of its kind in the state of Victoria, Keller has played a key role in several of these critical removals, the most recent of which was at Bedford Road in the eastern suburb of Ringwood.
Around 13,500 vehicles travelled through this level crossing every day, with the boom gates down for up to 23 minutes during peak times. Now, the crossing is gone and the track has been lowered beneath the road in a new 380m trench.
A single window of opportunity
Keller was contracted by the Level Crossing Removal Project to install over 200 bored piles for the trench’s retaining wall and to support the overhead road. While the actual installation of the piles themselves didn’t present too many technical challenges, the timescale and logistics of the project were incredibly challenging and required diligent planning.
“Whenever you have to shut a rail line, there’s enormous pressure to reopen it again as quickly as possible,” explains Mo Aziz, Senior Project Manager. “Sometimes the work can be done in three or four stages, but for this one, because of the schedule, we only had one window to go in and get everything done.” “We never over-promise, but we always want to do everything we can to deliver on time, so if it’s possible, we’ll find a way,” he adds.
Intensive planning
With the work scheduled for early February 2024 and the Christmas holidays in between, the last few weeks of 2023 were an intensive whirlwind of planning, sequencing, revisions and meetings with the client to create an achievable programme of works. And with the occupation of the railway set to last around two months, there was little room for error or delay.
“We required six crews working with three rigs around the clock, so every rig movement had to be detailed out to the client and updated after every shift, as they were right behind us doing their part,” says Sam Wong, Project Engineer. “The coordination required to keep production running as smoothly as it did was no small job and only made possible by the combined efforts of our tendering and operations teams.”
To ensure adequate resourcing, the Keller crew was assembled from teams across Australia and sister company Austral. Workshop experts also played a vital role in making sure all the equipment was in the best shape and well maintained to perform night and day.
Finishing ahead of schedule
In total, 218 bored piles in three different diameters were installed up to depths of 14.5m. Apart from occasional hot and stormy weather that prevented work, Mo and the team ensured virtually no downtime. The installation also included thermal integrity profiling tests to verify the quality of the piles – an additional factor that had to be planned into the schedule.
Not only did the Keller team complete the work, they even finished ahead of schedule – hugely beneficial to the client when it comes to a rail occupation.
“The success of this project is really all down to competency and commitment. We don’t promise unrealistic things, but what we do is work with our clients to mitigate challenges, find a solution and then deliver what we say we will, safely. It’s always about a partnership to get the best outcomes.”