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local green spaces and leave mud and dirt throughout the neighbourhood. T e noise of digging and excavation from underpinning would aff ect the neighbourhood for 20 weeks. Geobear has no impact.
• T e carbon footprint of an underpinning scheme is 53% greater than the Geobear method of ground improvement. T is is verifi ed in a Carbon Footprint report comparing Geobear’s solution on a residential property to a traditional underpinning scheme.
• With underpinning schemes, there is a requirement for the cutback of vegetation and tree removal. T e Geobear solution does not require the removal of trees, leaving the green space unaff ected.
BENEFITS FOR HARROW COUNCIL • Up to £320,000 saved on the costs of relocating tenants into hotels, plus costs associated with vacant stock.
• Reduced administration time/cost. Staff resources at Harrow would have spent several weeks arranging the relocation and logistical aspects of the original scheme.
T e total fi nancial savings for Harrow Council over 20 weeks was almost £500,000. T is sum includes both direct savings on the cost of work and indirect savings from requiring no alternative accommodation. T e cost savings for Harrow Council could be invested in other urgent property maintenance projects. In terms of indirect cost savings, these can
be calculated based on losses due to void unit costs to Harrow Council, plus the alternative accommodation costs. T e cost of tenants to be moved to temporary accommodation is approximately £4000 per month – per family room. T erefore, a total temporary accommodation cost for 12-16 units (as there were some households with children), during the 20 weeks of underpinning, would have equated to £240,000 - £320,000. T e benefi ts and overall savings of the
scheme have been widely recognised within Harrow Council and similar asset maintenance schemes are now being re-evaluated to ensure value is maximised.
REMOVING BARRIERS Many procurement processes are standardised and unchallenged. T is case provides an excellent example of how and why existing procurement should be considered to maximise the value of local government and housing association budgets. Harrow Council had a standard procurement
process that was challenged by their housing maintenance team. T e argument for using Geobear’s innovative approach was quantifi ed, illustrating the cashable benefi ts to the council and qualitative benefi ts to the community.
Satellite view of aff ected property
Other organisations may have a similar approach
to asset maintenance and procurement that has been unchanged for many years. T is can prevent new ideas and improvements to existing, tried and tested approaches that deliver increased value. Working in partnership with Harrow Council on
this project has proved an excellent example of how to deliver value through innovation. To discuss subsidence aff ecting your stock,
please contact Geobear Key Account Director Christopher Carlton.
0800 084 3503
christopher.carlton@
geobear.com
Non-intrusive injection points HMM04_Geobear_DPS
ADV.indd 4
Tree roots aff ected clay soils, trees remained
www.housingmmonline.co.uk | HMMApril/May 2024 | 23 29/04/2024 08:42
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