We maintained a continuous presence at Sellafield from 1984 to 2017, working on a range of projects large and small.
Working in a specialised and often highly restricted environment, our extensive work at the Sellafield site has included development of infrastructure to support reprocessing, waste management, power generation and decommissioning.
Through our extensive portfolio of work at Sellafield, we have developed a combined design and construction expertise which has allowed our staff to attain the specific qualifications and experience required for working in the civil nuclear environment.
With a continuous working presence of 33 years at Sellafield, we worked in collaboration with Sellafield Ltd and its partners on the front-end development of a wide range of projects, carrying out early constructability studies to support the clients design teams.
The company was involved in providing both immediate and long-term assistance to the people of nearby Cockermouth following the devastating floods of 2009.
Our health and safety performance was recognised with a number of awards including Gold & Merit RoSPA Awards.
We undertook the complete refurbishment of the site’s 60-year-old Sealine Pipe Bridge. Work on the 10-span bridge included replacement of the concrete pier supports and installation of a new truss over the railway line below. Working with our client’s permanent design team we developed the construction sequence along with the temporary support systems and access scaffolds.
The EP2 complex comprised a number of structures including a process building, services building, cement silo and grout washing building, all designed and constructed for the encapsulation of intermediate level waste.
The process building featues heavily reinforced concrete walls with cast-in penetrations and embedments. The services building is constructed of a structural steel frame with suspended concrete floors and houses changing rooms, plant room and the main distribution centre for the building service utilities.
Sir Robert McAlpine constructed two ponds for the underwater storage of spent nuclear fuel, prior to reprocessing. The ponds are 100m long, 27m wide, 10m deep and have a capacity of 18,000,000 litres.
A sophisticated drainage system lies between each pond and its raft foundation, comprising two layers of no fines concrete separated by a flexible membrane. A steel plate positioned beneath the lower layer provides a secondary containment.
We have over 50 years of continuous experience engaged in the design of safety buildings for the majority of the UK’s fleet of commercially operated nuclear power stations, including Sizewell B.
From the pioneering railways and viaducts of the Victorian era constructed by our founder, we continue to build on our legacy of infrastructure projects with the delivery of today’s essential highway and rail networks.
Thanks to the expertise of our in-house design specialists, we do more than turn our clients’ visions into reality.
From the design and construction of the UK’s original fleet of nuclear power stations, through a continued presence at Sellafield between 1984 and 2017, to the provision of civil design services for Sizewell B, Hunterston B, and Hinkley B, we have a proud history of delivering projects in the nuclear industry.
