What was the Client Requirement?
Apogee were instructed by Utilitas to obtain relevant utility information for a large residential development in Chelmsford. With over 10,000 planned homes and 45,000 sq m of office space, 3 schools and a new country park, it is a significant development which takes pride of place in Chelmsford City Council’s local development framework. The site is also planned to include extraction of local sand and gravel resources before much of the development – this represents significant economic value but also presents unique utility challenges due to the large area of deep excavations planned. The site area we were requested to investigate mainly covers zone 3 of this development.
What was the Apogee Solution?
To assist with the masterplanning and planning applications for the development, Apogee were instructed to provision a full search report of buried utilities within the site extent, and a layered PDF/CAD Fastview combining the linework from all affected utilities into one easy-to use file for designers, decision makers and contractors.
Using our experience in analysing utility plans and our knowledge of how to handle them in relation to new developments, Apogee were able to identify all the relevant utilities for the site and inform the client which assets posed a risk to the development and could require some remediation to prevent delays or unexpected costs.
What was the result of the report?
The site searched was relatively large at over 150 Hectares, and fortunately did not contain as many buried services as you would typically expect a site like this to contain. Surprisingly there were no recorded Gas or Sewerage assets at all, and the clean water pipes identified in the survey were almost entirely restricted to the roadway. There were, however, HV electrical cables and BT(Openreach) cables crossing the site, particularly the Eastern portion where deep excavations were to take place.
Why was the client delighted?
The client was obviously delighted by the low level of affected utilities within the site, especially for its size – this is what every developer wants when they engage in utility discovery. This is not the final stage of identifying utilities, however, with an on-site survey and possible hand digging necessary to truly confirm the presence of buried assets. Apogee provided all information relevant to how to go through this pathway in the report in addition to the plans. Even in low risk situations it is important safedigging practises are followed at all times in accordance with the PAS128 Specification and HSG47 Guidelines.
View our range of Utility Search Reports from this page – click here to view more.
About the client:
Halley Developments is a joint venture between Greycoat Real Estate and Oaktree Capital Management, who are working with Homes England to unlock and accelerate large-scale development sites across England. Bringing together Oaktree’s capital and Greycoat’s development experience to overcome many of the barriers faced by housebuilders, the focus is on high-quality environments with sustainable social and community values to create significant value for all stakeholders, with a long-term and multi-tenure approach to stewardship of the sites. Halley Developments has worked with Chelmsford City Council to acquire the relevant sites such as Powers Farm and Wheelers Hill and develop Chelmsford Garden Community as one of the initial sites.
Who else would buy this?
Our Consultancy services are ideal for Solicitors, Clients and Project Managers, Developers, Local Authorities Consultants, Architects, Design & Build Contractors, Highways Scheme promoters and Surveyors. Anyone involved with a residential or commercial development who would benefit from understanding the risks and costs which come from utilities would be well placed to talk to us. Even if you are not the source of funds for the development and costs savings are of secondary importance to you, we can help you avoid other inconveniences such as delays, and reduce the risk of any accidents or strikes of existing plant, as well as improve due diligence and help you achieve compliance under the relevant guidelines and regulations, namely PAS128 and HSG47. We have decades of experience in managing such conflicts across our capable team, a member of whom was on the PAS128 steering committee and who was personally involved in the drafting of PAS128 Quality Level D.
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