SPECIAL WORKS
The earthquake liner being installed at the Portland Combined Trunk Sewer on the lower South West Coastal path on the Isle of Portland
Repair partnership shakes
up lining solutions in the UK Joint Wessex Water and RSM Lining Supplies Global Ltd approach yields success
Installing an ‘earthquake liner’ on England’s south coast has delivered a seismic step forward for sewer repairs in this country, following a successful collaboration between Wessex Water and industry specialists RSM Lining Supplies Global Ltd.
The utility company and global supplier teamed up to ensure a ground-breaking solution could be found for a trunk sewer pipe that had been damaged by unstable terrain on a cliff-side on the east coast of the isle of Portland, in Dorset.
The first repair of its kind in the country, the German- manufactured liner was recently installed despite considerable challenges posed by the
location of the work.
A section of the Portland Combined Trunk Sewer next to the lower South West Coastal Path at Grove Point had been damaged by ground slips caused by heavy rain earlier in the year, forcing the area to be closed to the public due to safety concerns.
After Wessex Water crews were initially unable to get to the remote site – a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) – to carry out significant repairs, they turned to RSM’s team to come up with a rapid and viable solution.
Drawing on their extensive technical knowledge and partnerships, RSM’s Technical Business Development Manager, Richard Wortley, recommended and supplied the innovative ‘earthquake’ liner, manufactured by UV material specialists BKP Berolina.
The solution is expected to have ensured that Wessex Water don’t have to implement a hugely expensive alternative that would have involved them locating over-pumping equipment in the environmentally-sensitive area to safely divert flows from the sewer towards its treatment sites.
Land movement had caused
damage to the Portland Trunk Sewer alongside the lower South West Coastal Path
34 | March 2025 |
draintraderltd.com
Originally engineered for tremor-prone regions, the liner is uniquely designed to self-support the pipeline in the event of ground movement or collapse.
Wessex Water’s Southern Sewer Renovations Construction Manager, Paul Musselwhite, said: “This was a complex project to
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