The closure of the former Ravenscraig Steelworks in Glasgow, Scotland, created one of the largest brownfield sites in Europe, measuring some 1,125 acres. Future plans for the site include a town center with zones comprising industrial, residential, retail, leisure and innovation.
The current phase of the project focuses on gaining information for design and implementation of the project. This phase includes boreholes and trial pits to finalize earthworks design, detailed analysis of ferrous slags, deep ground water monitoring wells, mineral bores to assess the potential for mineral instability, drainage investigations and finalization of road design and alignment.
Boart Longyear client Raeburn Drilling and Geotechnical was appointed to undertake ground investigation within a 6-week timeframe. The project included 60 cable-tool boreholes, 18 rotary-cored boreholes and 179 machine-excavated trial pits. Due to the inability to penetrate fused slag layers and slag cobbles with cable-tool rigs, Boart Longyear was asked to demonstrate its MINISONIC drilling services.
A particular challenge was encountered in areas of fused slag deposits where representative samples and in-situ tests were required. With the sonic drilling method, the crew was able to deliver representative samples even in these tough drilling conditions. The client was impressed by both the speed of drilling and the sample quality obtained.
John Kemlo, Raeburn’s managing director, says, “With this drilling system, we were able to provide representative samples and in-situ testing which otherwise would not have been possible. Boart Longyear responded quickly to our inquiry and provided an excellent drilling service.”
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