Staples Vegetables Ltd is one of the largest producers of vegetables in the UK, and as part of their Anaerobic Digestion Plant development they have selected the Poundfield Products Shuttabloc™ walling system.
Staples’ project is one of five that has been chosen as an exemplar project to receive support from the Environmental Transformation Fund from WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme). This new resource will maximise the use of the residual vegetable product produced by the main manufacturing site. The AD plant will have a 50,000t capacity that will generate 1.4 megawatts of power – which corresponds to 11m kilowatt hours per year.
The Poundfield Products’ Shuttabloc™ system will be used as the retaining wall for the 5000m² silage clamp. The vegetable material will be retained in three interconnected 5m high bays with a wall thickness of 450mm.
The Shuttabloc™ walling system was designed to provide an economical alternative to casting retaining walls on site. It is a patented precast concrete hollow unit design with an internal reinforcing system. Each unit is linked together to prevent individual blocks being displaced. By pumping concrete into the units the reinforcing becomes part of the structure in the same way as if it was cast on site.
The Shuttabloc™ system provides a wall with similar properties to an in situ structure but removes the requirement for formwork and a foundation slab. This ultimately minimises installation cost.
Vernon Read, Managing Director of Staples Vegetables, said:
“We initially approached Poundfield Products in September 2008 because of their expertise in the design and manufacturing of precast concrete retaining walls. They advised us that they were in the process of designing an alternative to in situ poured walls which would meet our required specifications.
“We therefore contracted Poundfield to manufacture over three hundred 5m high x 1.22m long x 450mm thick Shuttabloc™ units. The units were delivered in March 2010.
“We chose the Shuttabloc™ because of the speed of the installation, the cost, and to ensure a factory-controlled finish. This has been a significant investment for Staples Vegetables and the success of the development was dependent on selecting the right partners. The Poundfield Products’ Shuttabloc™ walling system was an intrinsic element in the successful construction of the plant.”
