SOCOTEC has secured the structural monitoring contract for the Elephant and Castle shopping centre redevelopment, which will create 979 homes
The Elephant & Castle Shopping Centre redevelopment is part of a £4bn town centre regeneration scheme, featuring the high-rise development as well as a new tube station for the Northern Line and a new university building.
The shopping centre first opened its doors in 1965, hosting 115 shops. After the centre closed in 2020, developer Delancey contracted Keltbray to demolish the site for a new high rise development offering dining options, retail space and 979 new homes.
SOCOTEC have been involved with the development since demolition works began in 2020
The awarding of the structural monitoring contract follows SOCOTEC’s ongoing involvement with the development, due to run until 2025.
SOCOTEC was working alongside the client, demolition contractors (including Keltbray) and the engineering designer, WSP on condition surveys and ongoing monitoring.
In 2022, the construction phase (including basement excavation, superstructure construction and fit out) of the project has started.
The Elephant & Castle Shopping Centre redevelopment is located in high proximity to multiple tube and rail lines
SOCOTEC has continued to work alongside the engineering designer, WSP, and the construction contractor, Multiplex, to collaboratively design a monitoring system based on WSP’s ground movement assessments.
The site is in a very congested area of London’s transport network with LUL Bakerloo and Northern Lines, TfL stations and Network Rail assets, all of which are in close proximity. In addition to this, there are multiple other above-ground assets, pavements, vent and lift shafts.
SOCOTEC worked with key suppliers from Osprey Measurement, Geosense, Sick sensors and Topcon in order to design the system that will now be installed.
The main requirements of the monitoring system are to:
- Confirm that the structural movements are in line with the predicted ground movements
- Ensure significant movement is identified early to enable sufficient mitigation measures
- Provide evidence to be used if damage occurs
SOCOTEC was awarded the contract due to its innovative system design, which was developed alongside WSP and suppliers in order to maximise quality data and minimise installation and ongoing costs. This included both automated and manual surveys, as well as a combination of sensors and analysis to calculate convergence, which was partially necessitated by tight restriction in some of the LUL assets.
Overcoming challenges to maximise project efficiency
“This is a challenging project to specify the right monitoring systems to mitigate the risks of both demolition and construction phases,” said John Richmond, associate director, WSP, on the Elephant & Castle Shopping Centre redevelopment. “As with other projects, working with SOCOTEC Monitoring has helped ensure a fit-for-purpose system that is able to be delivered in line with the client’s requirements, ensuring that the right data is available.”
Dave Jones, senior project manager, SOCOTEC, added: “Like many other large central London construction projects, the logistics of installing the monitoring system is challenging. The team has great experience in building, testing and installing the equipment in the most efficient way. Our Calyx software team is then able to get the client(s) the data that they need to safely continue with the project construction.”
