We are currently working with clients and main contractors to provide marine support on a project to place scour protection rock under the historic Rockley Point Rail Viaduct. The bridge, built in the late 19th Century, has a fast-flowing current beneath it and it’s aged foundations and steel retaining piles have suffered from corrosion in the salt water environment and show signs of fatigue. To maintain the safety and security of this viaduct, railway engineers decided to install scour protection using heavy rock infill placed against the retaining walls either side of the bridge to reduce scour and provide a gravity base.

Jenkins Marine have been able to assist with the provision of marine equipment to support these works. The central challenge was to secure the position of a vessel in a deep, fast flowing channel, and to place rock underneath the railway bridge, which has a very low air draft, preventing a vessel from passing below.

The solution was to use multirole vessel ‘Frome’ equipped with 2 x 13m long spud legs to secure position, and hold an 18m x 6m flat deck pontoon barge (JML 60) in position close to the bridge. The 18m pontoon was loaded with a 12t excavator and telehandler and used to unload a small rock feeder barge and place the rock under the bridge. Jenkins Marine have also supplied a 5m aluminium safety vessel with low air draft, capable of passing below the bridge in an emergency, and a larger 8.8m aluminium dory to push the rock feeder barge around the site and to/from shore.

If you have a requirement for marine operations in shallow or near shore projects, please feel free to get in touch to see where we can help.