13 June 2019

Demolition contractor, Clifford Devlin, has started work on the demolition of five blocks north of Euston station as part of the enabling works for the London terminus of the high-speed rail network.

The project for HS2 Principal Contractor, Costain Skanska Joint Venture (CSJV) involves the controlled demolition of Eskdale, Ainsdale, Silverdale, Granby, Stalbridge and Old Tenants Hall in the Regent’s Park Estate near Euston Station in Central London.

The start of demolition follows on from the completion of replacement HS2-funded homes, elsewhere on the estate, with the last council tenants moving in, in autumn last year. The works involves asbestos removal, soft-strip, structural demolition of the buildings and any sub-structures and includes levelling of the sites in readiness for the build phase.

“Clifford Devlin have successfully worked with both Costain and Skanska previously in highly sensitive locations and major civil engineering projects such as Thameslink,” says Les Rose, Clifford Devlin’s Operations Director, “Our familiarity with their working practices will enable us to hit-the-ground running and should result in a streamlined project delivery.”

The proximity of utility infrastructure, occupied buildings and busy roads has required extensive planning and environmental measures to be implemented to reduce disruption to the local community including:

  • Obtaining third party approval and consents for boundary and party-wall agreements
  • Use of non-percussive machinery to reduce noise and vibration
  • Traffic management planning including proposals for vehicular access, primary traffic routes, use of banksmen and traffic marshalls, wheel washing facilities etc
  • Application of water spray via water atomising plant, to supress emissions of dust and maintain air quality
  • Target of >95% recovery and recycling of demolition arisings
  • Monitoring of air quality, noise and vibration throughout to ensure emissions stay within agreed limits
  • Stakeholder liaison including the local community via meetings, signage and newsletter drops

The demolition package is scheduled for 26-weeks and is expected to be completed and handed over towards the end of 2019. Clifford Devlin has extensive experience of providing demolition in rail infrastructure environments including Borough Viaduct (London Bridge), Tower House (Tower Hill Underground) and Thames Gateway (Lewisham DLR).

In March the contractor was awarded a 5-star audit against rail industry standard RISQS.