Alton Towers

Through a competitive tender process, Sandycroft secured this small but complex project to install a waste water storage tank at the Alton Towers Resort in Staffordshire for the client, Merlin, to act as attenuation for waste water from the complex’s various hotels.    The 10m long tank can store up to 25,000 litres of water and was required to alleviate any potential pressure on the resort’s drainage installations during peak times.

In order to install the tank, we excavated a 3m deep trench over 12m long, through sandstone, in the middle of a wood, off a track in a remote area of the complex’s grounds.  Access was therefore incredibly difficult and once the pit had been excavated and all debris removed from site the tank was craned into position on a prepared base.  Once connected adjacent to the pumping station the land was made good and restored to its natural appearance.

In order for a successful project to be delivered it was essential that we worked closely with the Employer’s team to ensure that no problem occurred that had a detrimental effect on the day to day operation of this fantastic resort.  The Employers team were easy to work with and the methodology agreed to complete this complex project was sensible and deliverable.

Design and Construction Challenges

• Extremely poor access
• Excavating through rock
• Busy theme park
• Confined space working

Conclusion

We believe that most contractors would not/could not have undertaken this project.  The value of the works was relatively small whilst the risks connected with the project were extremely high.  We had not worked with Merlin before and, therefore, treated the scheme as a challenge from which we could prove our abilities.  Our team performed superbly, and the project was completed successfully, on time and on budget with no fuss.  We have since started working on another scheme for Merlin and hope to continue the successful relationship going forward.