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SMITHFIELD
MARKET DEVELOPMENT
Smithfield
Market Development in Dublin is a 4-acre site being developed for a
mixed use including apartments, offices, hotel, retail, leisure,
cultural space and a 3 level basement with formation some 6m below
water table. The project
currently under construction, is valued at circa €400m, and is
currently the largest single-phase city-centre building project in
Dublin.
White
Young Green are acting as the Civil & Structural Engineering
Consultants to the Client, Fusano Properties Ltd. G & T Crampton
are the Main Contractors and Horan Keogan Ryan Project are Architects
on the development.
It
was clear from an early stage that a water table cut-off-wall would be
required to dewater the site and facilitate construction of the 3
storey-deep basement structure.
 Various
alternative forms of construction were considered for the cut off wall
and it was decided to proceed with a solution involving an 800mm thick
diaphragm wall around the perimeter of the site and the less expensive
slurry wall construction was utilised for internal walls to permit the
site to be developed in 3 areas concurrently. The perimeter diaphragm
wall involved 400 linear meters with depths varying from 15-20m below
adjoining street level.
The
water in the limestone rock fissures in Smithfield was found to be
under artesian pressure and there was a risk that vertical water flows
could present difficulties in the dewatering regime.
Prior to the works being carried out rock cores were drilled to
investigate the rock fissures below the site and a unique pump test
was carried out which was designed to ‘mimic’ the water flow
conditions below the wall. The
actual flow rates currently being recorded under the completed wall
agree favourably with the predicted flows as per the trial pump test.
Cementation
Skanska were employed to carry out the specialist design and
construction of the diaphragm wall. They also constructed the
temporary diaphragm wall anchors that prop the wall excavation, and
the uplift anchors to prevent floatation in the permanent works.
The
building superstructures generally consist of reinforced concrete flat
slab construction throughout the entire development with some areas
framed with structural steelwork and composite decking.
The
building heights generally consist of 13 storeys in total inclusive of
3 basement level storeys below ground.
The lowest basement level is some 11m below the adjoining
street level. As part of
the central phase both the structural design and foundation
sub-structure includes for the provision of a 20-storey high tower
structure.
White
Young Green services on the development are being provided from the
Dublin and Belfast Engineering and Environmental Offices. The
Smithfield Markets project commenced on site in August 2002 with the
final phase due to be handed over to the Client circa summer 2005.
Paul
Halpin, White Young Green
Paul.halpin@wyg.com
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