Demolition and refurbishment projects require careful planning, precision, and safety measures to ensure successful outcomes.
Projects involving either partial, whole demolition (either pull down or blow down) or refurbishment, especially those within close proximity to structures and neighbouring buildings, will more than likely have a need for temporary works. Typical requirements include structural support such as propping, needling, shoring and, façade retention, as well as both structural monitoring and environmental monitoring.
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Using temporary works and monitoring within demolition is essential to ensure the safety and efficiency of the demolition process, and to make sure you remain compliant. Temporary works refer to any structures, systems, or equipment that are put in place for a limited period of time to support the demolition activities.
Here are some key considerations when it comes to using temporary works and monitoring in demolition:
Structural Support
Temporary works can include propping, shoring, or scaffolding systems to provide structural support to the building or structure being demolished. These supports help prevent accidental collapses during the demolition process. It’ is worth noting that traditional façade scaffolding will not prevent a building collapse as it is only as strong as the building it is tied to. The correct specification and use of temporary works both in the design and procedure will greatly prevent this.
Our Structural Support Systems
Dust, noise and environmental protection
Levels of noise, dust and vibration tend to be elevated on a demolition site, so can affect people that live and work in the surrounding area. Constant evaluation helps prevent your works exceeding noise, dust and vibration levels set out in Section 61. Real-time monitoring allows for prompt adjustments or mitigation measures if necessary.
Our Enviroguard solution is ideal for demolition and refushbishment sites. This is because it is a complete, long-term, modular and scalable environmental monitoring solution, which features remote data transfer to our Insite portal. This gives you access to all the information you need to monitor dust levels on-site.
Addressing the challenge head on
Demolition provides engineers with technical challenges unlike any other form of engineering. It is one of the few remaining areas where design codes are not always directly applicable, and the engineer must often rely on engineering judgement and relevant experience, however getting it wrong can prove disastrous.
That’s why some of our customers choose to transfer the risk of supplying, designing and installing temporary works solutions to a specialist who can take some of the project complexities away and speed up installation time.
Safety Measures
Temporary works can include safety measures like safety nets, edge protection, or safety barriers to prevent falls or accidents during the demolition process. These measures help protect workers and anyone in the vicinity of the demolition site.
Regular inspections of temporary works should be conducted to ensure their integrity and effectiveness. Any signs of deterioration or damage should be addressed promptly to maintain a safe working environment. We also offer handheld noise monitoring solution for onsite spot monitoring of noise levels.
Compliance with Regulations
It is crucial to comply with local regulations and guidelines regarding the use of temporary works and monitoring in demolition. This ensures that all necessary safety measures are in place and that the demolition activities meet the required standards – in particular;
BS 5975:2019 – ‘The management of temporary works in the construction industry’.
Section 61 of The Control of Pollution Act 1974 (CoPA) which gives local authorities the power to control noise and vibration from construction and demolition sites.
BS8167:2011: Code of Practice for Full and Partial Demolition
