Oxted Gasholder - Courtyard Gardens Build - November 2019

Dave and Kieran groundworks foremen are standing on a pile cap, part of the foundation of what will be one of the pillars in the underground car park, this is part of what supports the entire building!

Welcome to my November blog here at Courtyard Gardens, Oxted, the former site of the gasholder.

This is where construction is taking place to build 111 luxury apartments. Each month, since January 2019 I have been visiting to photograph the progress for posterity, with the kind permission of St William, part of the Berkeley Group.

Each and every time I arrive I learn something new. I am always fascinated by all the processes that are taking place. If like me, you know very little about the construction process, or you are one of the many buyers of the one, two, or three-bedroom apartments and penthouses; or you are just curious to know more, then these blogs are written with you in mind and others too.

These photographs were taken on Friday 15 November, they each have a description on to tell you more about what’s taking place.

Read on to discover more…

A mixing station to keep the concrete, that arrives ready mixed, live. The yellow part is the pump and the big white one is the agitator.

Either side of the safety barriers you can see hoses that take the mixed concrete to the piling rig for pumping into the freshly drilled hole.

One of the two piling rigs completing the piling process. There will be a total of 401 piles once they are all in!

The other piling rig completing the process of the auger drilling the holes for the concrete to be pumped into the hole, then the steel ‘cages’ are pushed in.

In the foreground you can see two or three steel ‘cages’ ready for insertion.

Looking down the site to where the former Johnsdale car park once sat. The three geometric shapes are the foundations for pillars in the car park.

An overview of the progress as the underground car park begins to take shape and the different levels are formed.

The trench sheets, a smaller version of the sheet piling, left of centre, which are used for retaining.

The pilings process is coming to an end and we will soon start to see progress above ground once building works start to take place in the new year.

Workmen and engineers start work from 8am until 6pm every weekday with additional time most Saturdays. Flood lighting is used from 4pm at this time of year so as not to lose any valuable working hours.

On the top corner of the portacabin office is a camera that takes a photograph every 20 minutes to record the progress.

Safety barriers around the various blue storage and green water treatment containers.

A trench sheet is positioned for further retainment of the earth behind what will become the walls of the underground car park this is done swiftly with precision as it is guided in place.

Two piling rigs taking on the task to complete the piling. The auger, the drill part of the rig bores a hole into the earth, then concrete is pumped into the hole in preparation for a steel ‘cage’ to be inserted.

The larger steel cages are supplied ready-made as the components are too heavy to man-handle for a steel fixer to make up on-site, there are only about 10 of these, the rest are made on site.

This is a relatively small site for the Berekely Group who are use to working on huge developments all over the country, with many different challenges, such as working near the River Thames and other urban areas that are in close proximity to cities and skyscrapers

The top of one of the cages once insertion has taken place.

The brush on the piling rig does a good job of cleaning the auger of the earth collected during insertion, ready for the next insertion.

In the foreground, the smaller steel cages are made individually by experts using the various components. The large ones are too big to handle and arrive ready-made.

Water continues to collect at the bottom of the site due to the heavy rainfall. This is pumped out and processed in the onsite water treatment plant.

The numerous deliveries that arrive everyday are carefully planned so as not to cause too much disruption to the high street, or the work onsite as well.

One of the pile caps which is part of the foundation of the entire building that will form a concrete pillar in the underground car park. This part of what supports the whole building.

Another view of the precision it takes to insert the trench sheet, guided into place, for further retainment of the earth behind what will become the walls of the underground car park.

Another of the pile caps that forms the foundation for one of the concrete pillars in the underground car park.

Machinery and accessories that are used onsite.

As mentioned on previous blogs the foundations are for three Blocks - A, B and C all with outside space and underground parking.

If you would like to take a look at a model of the completed development, this can be found at Robert Leech Estate Agents on Station Road East, Oxted who will be more than happy to show you the finished look.

This is a Dust Scanner to monitor the dust particles in the air. Air quality and vibration monitoring are in place around the site and will continue to take place throughout the build process, which completes in summer 2021.

That’s about it for my November visit, I’ll be back in December with a new update.

To read my previous ten blogs this link takes you to the Blog page on this website.

This link to Robert Leech Estate Agents website shows you more about the finished development.

Bye for now.

Stella

To read other previous blogs these can be found on the ‘Featured’ blogs below by using the arrows on the right to scroll through the past 30 blogs.

Oxted Gasholder - Courtyard Gardens Build - October 2019

Steel rebars that are used with the coiled steel to make the ‘cages’ to go in the drilled holes.

The coiled steel for making the ‘cages’ with the steel rebars that go in the drilled holes.

A view of the two machines that work together during the drilling process on the piling mat. The piling rig and the excavator.

The last remains of ironwork from the former gasholder which is sent away for recycling.

Netting to prevent any concrete splashing over the fence onto the back of the neighbouring premises.

The coiled steel ready for making the ‘cages’ with.

The triangular marker called a ‘witches hat’ shows where the piling has taken place ready for the next stage of the build process.

Welcome to my October blog (number 10) about the construction process at Courtyard Gardens, the former gas holder site here in Oxted.

Regular readers will be aware that I have taken on this personal project to visually document the construction process from the demolition of the gasholder back in January to completion in summer 2021.

My monthly visits to the site are accompanied by Ness Kingham, Assistant Site Manager for St William part of the Berkeley Group, who shows and tells me more about the progress every time. I am always in awe of the vastness of the development and all the processes that are involved, it looked so small when it was overgrown with trees surrounding the gasholder.

These photographs with descriptions on each were photographed on 22 October 2019.

The site from the top corner nearest the railway station, looking down towards the former Johnsdale car park.

During this visit, the completion of the piling was well underway, with over 300 holes drilled by the auger, the drill attachment on the piling rig. It was interesting to watch the final few holes being drilled and filled with the basket type ‘cage’ and concrete. When the process is complete it is marked with a triangular ‘witches hat’ during the drying process so it is easy to identify its location.

A completed hole, drilled with the steel ‘cage’ inserted and filled with concrete, takes less than 20 minutes.

The positioning of the steel work for the making of the ‘cages. On the right of the picture completed ‘cages’ for inserting into the hole.

Photographed from the narrow walkway on the perimeter of the site looking through the protective barriers. On the right the top of the sheet piling is visible at ground level.

A diagram of the site and positioning of Blocks A, B and C.

The foreground is where the gasholder base was placed, there no longer is any evidence of the remains of the base or the foundations, leaving it clear for levelling.

Leveling of the surface ready for the piling rig to take its position on a piling mat.

The two green electricity generators on the right, that the cabling will be connected to. The black tubing in the front of them is visible and will be used underground to pass the electricity cables through.

The black tubing that is visible from under the earth will house cables to be connected to the main source of power, a network of these are taking shape in the foundations.

Blocks A will sit in this area.

This area is the former Johnsdale car park and I’m standing on the spot I use to park my car on. Earth is deposited to raise the level.

Steel work left from the demolition and excavation of the gasholder is cleared.

Looking up to the upper level where Block A will be built.

The sheet piling in the foreground in preparation for the underground car park. The portacabin offices behind this will be moved to make way for Block A to be built.

Health and Safety barriers are placed above the sheet piling to prevent any accidents because of the different heights at ground level.

An excavator picks up one of the steel beams as if it were a tiny toothpick, it happened with such precision.

Leveling of earth.

A view between the sheet piling and the safety fence, looking over the building site towards the back of Station Road East.

The top corner of the site shows the surface is level.

This is where blocks A will be built.

The positioning of the steel rebars that form part of the ‘cages’.

Sheet piling above ground level with cable.

You have to keep well away from the works.

Around the perimeter of the site is a narrow walkway to enable access from the top to the bottom.

The site has two entrances which enables carefully planned site traffic to enter and exit at strategic times. These entrances are independent of each other, you can only exit from the one you entered, this will remain the same for the residents of Courtyard Gardens.

Concrete deposited in preparation for the foundations to sit.

Coiled steel to form the ‘cages’, part of the piling process.

The auger digs deep into the ground to excavate the earth for foundations to be inserted.

Protective wear must be worn at all times on site.

A view from the office portacabin looking down the site.

Well, that’s it for the October edition of my blogs, I’ll be back next month with an update from my November site visit, I think it will start to look very different with works more visible above ground level.

To read my previous 9 blogs this link takes you to the Blog Page on the website.

Bye for now.

Stella

To read other previous blogs these can be found on the ‘Featured’ blogs below by using the arrows on the right to scroll through the past 30 blogs.

Oxted Gasholder - Courtyard Gardens Build - August 2019

Safety barriers above the sheet piling at the Courtyard Gardens Site, Oxted.

Welcome to my August blog about the progress of the St William, Courtyard Gardens development here in Oxted for 111 luxury apartments.

This should have been published over a week ago but due to my business premises relocation this has taken a back seat and now that the holiday period is over I thought it best to publish it now when you have more time to read it as well.

The photographs below tell you more about the story with the captions on each image.

Ground clearance for the underground car park. The green tanks on the right are part of the water purification process.

The tanks are part of the water purification process in the corner of the site behind the shops in Station Road East.

Sheet piling inserted and ready for the next stage.

Looking down the site towards the former Johnsdale car park.

Looking over the top of the sheet piling on the perimeter of the site. This gives you an idea of the height of the sheet piling as it protrudes above ground level. Sheets are supplied in different lengths.

Every time I return to the site I can see the progress that has been made and this month was no exception. It was clear to see all the sheet piling had been inserted and the ground had been excavated for the underground car park to take shape. There was also still evidence of the rim of the demolished gasholder, which was interesting to see.

Looking towards what will be the underground car park.

Sheet piling ready for the next process to take place, update to follow on the next blog.

This shows you how high some of the sheet piling is as engineers tower over and discuss the progress.

Safety walkways for site managers, engineers and others to access the site within carefully contained boundaries.

Water that collects at the lowest point of the site is pumped into three tanks that take care of the water purification process, this is then pumped up to the top of the site to a holding tank for disposing of.

Walk ways over looking the excavation of the underground car park.

This blog is the eighth one in the series, the first one was published in January when the demolition of the gasholder started to take place. To follow the story of the progress and to read the previous blogs please follow this link to the Blog pages on the website and select the ones you would like to read.

Walkways around the site give access to capture the progess.

A corner of the underground car park.

Any hardcore remaining on site from the demolition of the gasholder is crushed and reused where possible.

The underground car park area is prepared for the next stage of the building process, it looks vast from this angle.

Machinery used to bring in hardcore and remove any that isn’t suitable is taken away for recycling.

A carefully designed plan is in place to ensure the arrival and departure of site machinery and vehicles is kept to a minimum to reduce any potential high street disruption.

Monitors to measure vibration to ensure any noise does not go over a certain level.

Three separate blocks are being built with an underground car park - Blocks A, B, and C. To see a model of the finished development call into the offices of Robert Leech Estate Agents in Oxted and opposite my former studio in Station Road East, it’s well worth a visit, it’s an interactive model, not quite one you can walk into but it does tell you a lot about each of the flats available to purchase.

Water is intermittently sprayed with the smell of freshly ironed cotton sheets to dissipate any odours.

Several of these water pipes are positioned on the fence behind the houses in Johnsdale to emit sprays of scented water, it really does smell of freshly ironed cotton sheets.

A view from the former Johnsdale car park looking up the site towards the porta cabin offices.

The remains of the former gasholder base.

Behind the houses in Johnsdale.

I always have a sense of wonderment when I photograph on site, it’s the sheer scale of the development, although Ness Kingham the Site Manager who accompanies me during the visits, assures me this is one of the smaller developments compared to the vast ones they work on in London.

Fascinating to watch all the elements slowly come together. My visit this month took place on Tuesday 20 August 2019 as a point of reference.

The site viewed from the flats behind the shops in Station Road East, gives a different view point.

A view of the outline of the site from the same spot each month.

Check out the July blog to see the progress from last month and previous months too.

If you would like to keep in touch with my monthly blog about the progress of Courtyard Gardens feel free to click on the ‘subscribe to our newsletter’ button below for our monthly round- up newsletters.

I’ll be back later this month with the September update progress of the site.

Thanks for reading.

Stella

To read other previous blogs these can be found on the ‘Featured’ blogs below by using the arrows on the right to scroll through the past 30 blogs.

Oxted Gasholder - Courtyard Gardens Build - July 2019

The sheet piling is taking place for the construction of all 3 Blocks, A, B & C, this photograph was taken on 17 July 2019,

Welcome to this months July blog about the progress at the St William, Courtyard Gardens development here in Oxted, this blog is number 7, previous ones can be found here.

For my regular readers and locals, you will be aware that the gas holder that once stood on this site for over 50 years was deconstructed earlier this year, its removal has made way for the construction of 111 luxury apartments due for completion summer 2021, my regular monthly blogs will keep you updated about the progress over the next two years.

This month I attended the site on July 17th, one of the hottest days of the year and the ground was dry and relatively easy to walk on, which compared to my visit in June when there was so much rain fall it had to be pumped away and the ground was very wet and slippery.

My past visits had all taken place on overcast and cold days, it was interesting to visit on a day when the sun was beating down as it made me realise how exposed the site is and how the people working on site need to have regular breaks and drink lots of water to prevent dehydration, I felt drained and I had only been on site for 45 minutes before 9.30am!

Machinery and operatives working on the insertion of the sheet piling, during July 2019.

The apartments are being built in 3 separate Blocks - A, B & C - Block C which sits north of the former Johnsdale car park has had the sheet piling inserted.

At this moment in time the crane and the rig are being moved to the top section of the site nearer to the railway station to allow for the sheet piling of Blocks A & B, this process will continue until mid August when my next visit is due. A new contractor will be brought in after this to do the foundation bearing piles which will continue through to the end of September.

The photographs I have taken (the sunshine makes all the difference) below show and tell you more…

A view of the top of the site, where Blocks A & B will be built , the railway station sits behind this view

Looking down the site, a hose on the right, is visible to drain out the excess water

Drilling for the sheet piling to be inserted

Block C will be built in this position where the former Johnsdale car park once stood

The edge of the base of the former gas holder is all that remains visible of where it once stood

Monitors to control noise and air pollution and CCTV information

An ‘echo barrier’ to reduce the noise levels

Where possible the concrete broken out from the base of the gasholder has now been crushed and reused on site to form the piling mat, additional crushed concrete is brought in as well.

The Echo Barrier used on site is scientifically developed by leading acoustic engineers, acoustic barriers are the most effective temporary noise control solutions on the market. They typically reduce noise energy by up to 99%, and are lightweight, weatherproof and adaptable to any setting.

Machinery in place to drill and insert the sheet piling for Blocks A & B

Mats in place for the machinery to sit on during the sheet piling process

Machinery in place for sheet piling to Blocks A & B

Crushed concrete ready for distributing to form the piling mat

Machinery maintenance to complete the piling task

A sound or ‘echo barrier’ to reduce the noise from generators and machinery

Top right of this image, the cabins where the project, technical and site managers are based

Piling is an essential part of building works to ensure strong foundations and prevent the risk of any future subsidence or ground movement.

Delivery of crushed concrete for the piling mats

Each piling sheet is lifted by crane from the delivery lorry with the guidance of the engineers to lower in place

Each piling sheet picked up by crane and lowered in a pile on site ready for insertion

A view from the former Johnsdale car park

Crushed concrete is placed at different points on site

This picture gives you an idea of the size of each piling sheet

Sheet piling lowered onto the site

Time delay camera takes an image every 20 minutes

A view of the site from the back of the flats that are above the shops in Station Road East

If you are interested to know more about purchasing an apartment, follow this link to Robert Leech, the Estate Agents for this development by St William, part of the Berkeley Group

To keep up to date with my blogs and to sign-up to my monthly round-up newsletter please scroll down to the ‘Subscribe to Our Newsletter’ button below to enter your contact email address.

I’ll be back next month with further updates, watch this space for further developments.

Thanks for reading, bye for now.

Stella

To read other previous blogs these can be found on the ‘Featured’ blogs below by using the arrows on the right to scroll through the past 30 blogs.

A view of the sheet piling delivery lorry from Station Road East

A view of the crane unloading the sheet piling from the delivery lorry on site

Oxted Gasholder - Courtyard Gardens Build - June 2019

On site at the Courtyard Gardens housing development for 111 luxury apartments.

Welcome to this months June blog about the St William Courtyard Gardens development here in Oxted, this blog is number 6, previous ones can be found here.

For my regular readers and locals, you will be aware that the gas holder that once stood on this site for over 50 years is no more, its removal has made way for the construction of 111 luxury apartments due for completion summer 2021, my regular monthly blogs will keep you updated about the progress.

The buildings works are beginning to take shape, the previous two bases where the gas holders once sat are less visible now. This photograph taken on 11 June 2019.

Moving on…

I look forward to my monthly site visits because each time I photograph I can see a vast difference that never ceases to amaze me, and this time was no exception. I know very little (maybe nothing) about the building process and find it fascinating to see the different processes involved, from the excavation, to the soil examination, to the air purifiers, that intermittently blast a mist of a fragrance that is reminiscent of freshly ironed cotton sheets, into the atmosphere to dissipate any potential soil odours. A series of vibration and noise mechanisms are in place to monitor in real time the vibration and noise emitted from activities on site, and dust suppression is in place to settle any excess from spreading.

The remaining rim of the base of the gas holder is over one metre wide and over 5 metres deep/high. During the removal process we have heard a tapping sound during working hours (my studio backs onto the site), which has been the result of the gradual destruction of the concrete to make way for the building works to take place. All of the hardcore on site is recycled for use during the building process.

The photographs below show the preparation of the ground works before the sheet piling takes place next week during a six week period. There is no longer gas on the site as all essential gas equipment has been relocated, but occasionally people may notice some smells as the next phase of groundworks begins, but hopefully the air fragrance will be sufficient to destroy this. There will also be increased noise and vibration during this period. I will be on site in July to photograph this next stage.

The photographs below give you a sense of what it is like.

Machinery attachments for the different excavation processes.

The rim of the gas holder is clearly visible during the excavation process to remove this.

This angle shows the width of the remaining base of the gas holder.

Monitors record sound and vibration in real time to keep this to a minimum.

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A series of vibration and noise mechanisms are in place to monitor in real time the vibration and noise emitted from activities on site, and dust suppression is in place to settle any excess from spreading.

A view through the many safety barriers.

Excavation in preparation for the sheet piling.

When this is fully operational it sprays a fine mist of fragranced water to dissipate any unpleasant gas odours that may remain in the soil.

Ground preparation for the next stage.

The temporary electricity generator for the porta cabins.

The remaining base of the gas holder is over one metre thick over 5 metres high/deep, is gradually broken down in preparation for the sheet piling.

A view from the former Johnsdale car park, the water is the result of a heavy few days/weeks of rainfall.

An excess of water due to the rainfall, a pump is brought in to drain it away.

Each time I am on site I meet a different team of contractors as the development grows, but the two people from St William, who have remained constant are Joe Pallister the Project Manager and Ness Kingham, the lovely Site Manager, who accompanies me on my visits and tells me more about the build process each time, very educational. On this particular occasion the heavy rain over the past few weeks was one of the topics of conversation as it had made the site very muddy and slippery, a pump was needed to drain the excess water that had collected at the lowest point, it looks like we have experienced the wettest June on record!

The photographs show different machinery that is required on site to excavate the soil, move rubble and prepare the surface for the next stage. What once looked like a familiar space to me no longer feels or looks how l once remembered it.

Deliveries guided to the site by the traffic marshals for minimum traffic disruption.

The entrance to the site.

The site from behind the flats in Station Road East.

Contractors on site.

The entrance to the site from the porta cabins.

Rubble recycled and used as hardcore.

Machinery at work, on the left the porta cabins that houses a team of professionals.

The water from the recent rain downfall shows the tubing to drain this from the site.

It was very slippery and muddy on site this month due to the rainfall.

The driveway behind the gates to the site.

Rain water at the lowest point had to be drained away.

If you would like to keep up to date and sign-up to my monthly round-up newsletter please scroll down to the ‘Subscribe to Our Newsletter’ button below to enter your contact email address.

I’ll be back next month with further updates, watch this space for further developments.

Thanks for reading, bye for now.

Stella

To read other previous blogs these can be found on the ‘Featured’ blogs below by using the arrows on the right to scroll through the past 30 blogs.

Oxted Gasholder - Demolition - March 2019

Crane in position for the dismantling of the roof structure..

Welcome to my third newsletter about the dismantling of the gas holder.

Documenting the process of the demolition of this beast is an eye opener as I watch small and large segments of the roof being cut away and dropped into the pit of the structure.

From the outside it doesn’t look like too much has happened but I can assure you it has, the contractor John F Hunt has been working carefully to dismantle the roof in the first instance, leaving the sides free for dismantling.

So far almost 500 cubic metres of metal have been removed from the gas holder and taken away in skips for recycling and that’s just from the roof!

As the studio is so near to the site we can occasionally feel the ground rumble as we hear pieces of metal falling, other than that it’s easy to forget that such a vast demolition is taking place just a stones throw away!

There are various viewpoints I choose to photograph from to show the progress and the difference for comparison further down the line, I have access to photograph on site too as some of the photographs below show.

Cutting pieces from the roof which fall into the pit ready for recycling

Sparks fall into the pit from the cutting process

Each piece of steel is cut in between the trusses

The pieces fall into the pit

A small 'porthole' at the base of the gas holder

The crane that holds the basket the two operatives work from

Slowly but surely the trusses are exposed before they can be removed so the sides can be dismantled

Sparks falling against the discoloured interior of the gas holder

The mobile crane has now been exchanged for a cherry-picker which gives extra stability at height, allowing the team to work under greater wind speeds.

The crane in position during the dismantling of the roof

Systematically cutting piece by piece to expose the trusses

A piece from the side of the gas holder removed so the crane has access to the furthest part of the roof to complete the top removal

The same viewpiont from the site

The trusses are clearly visible in the roof

From ground level the cherry-picker in position for cutting away the sides

Close up of the cutting process

As part of the installation of the new utilities into the development for gas, water, electricity and data, St William will soon be undertaking two trial holes in the pavement outside the project on Station Road East. The purpose of this is to establish the location of the services within the pavement to determine the requirements for any service diversions or reinforcement to the pavement build up.

This clever machine sprays a fine mist of water to settle any dust particles

Now that the trusses have been removed the sides are coming down piece by piece

Other useful information to know is that site investigation has been undertaken at various points around the former Johnsdale car park, and there is more to be done around the gas holder in the coming weeks.

This work involves hand digging small trial holes for soil sampling, then cable percussive and rotary drilling to establish the depth and description of the geological make-up of the ground.

The sides are coming down, row by row

Viewpoint from the former Johnsdale traders car park

The site as of 14 March 2019

The gas holder is going to look very different this time next month as the sides come down reducing the height bit by bit.

I’ll be out and about during the course of next month photographing the different stages, it should be virtually down by the end of April, let’s hope the weather is fine and dry so as not to slow down the process.

I went on site this morning, Friday 15th March and wanted to share the latest update photographs as below! The sound of the metal as it is dumped in the container is deceptive, it sounds like it is falling into a huge deep pit as the sound resonates.

Removing the metal pieces and dumping in the container makes a huge rumbling sound

The roof has gone and the sides are coming down

That’s it for this month!

To read my first blog please click here and to read the second one please click here.

If you would like to keep up to date and sign-up to my monthly round-up newsletter please scroll down to the ‘Subscribe to Our Newsletter’ button to enter your contact email address.

Bye for now.

Stella

To read other previous blogs these can be found on the ‘Featured’ blogs below by using the arrows on the right to scroll through the past 30 blogs.