Three Crown Square / Borough Market

We will be continuing with the basement works at Borough Market. We will be erecting the columns for the cast iron roof this month and installing the cable trays at deck level. The installation of the historic bow roof will commence in February 2012.

We have moved the hoarding out at 2-4 Bedale Street to accommodate the scaffolding on our Borough Market site. Pedestrian access will be maintained at all times as well as access to the local businesses. There will be lane closures to facilitate delivery of materials for Green Dragon Court. These will only be for the duration of the delivery and traffic will be managed accordingly.

The installation of the acoustic barrier on the viaduct is almost complete.

We have completed the archaeology works at the Wheatsheaf. The archaeology works have uncovered some interesting historical artefacts; we have found pottery, Roman walls, original sections of London Bridge, and even human remains.

Railway Approach

At Railway Approach we have commenced the utilities works.  This will involve water, gas, and electricity connections and we aim to finish all utility works in the spring.

Hop Exchange / Park street

We will be installing granite sets at Gate 6 for the Hop Exchange.

We have completed the archaeology works at the Wheatsheaf.  The archaeology works have uncovered some interesting historical artefacts; we have found pottery, Roman walls, original sections of London Bridge, and even human remains.

We are currently constructing the new basement behind the Wheatsheaf.

Green Dragon Court

We have begun the building works at 16-26 Borough High Street.  This will involve material deliveries and, where necessary, single lane and full road closures on Bedale Street.

11-15 Borough High Street

Duration: November 2009 onwards

We have completed the archaeology works at 11-15 Borough High Street and are now preparing for the construction of the buildings superstructure.

Almost 2,000 years of history has been unearthed by our engineers following the discovery of Roman bath house ruins on the land.

The ruins, which are believed to be one of the biggest Roman find in London on the south side of the River Thames, have been uncovered on the corner of London Bridge Street and Borough High Street. 

Although work is at an early stage, the bath house appears to include a range of rooms including a cold plunge bath as well as hot rooms warmed by under floor heating. Elsewhere on the site, substantial walls are thought to belong to predecessors of St Thomas’ hospital, which used to stand on the site.

Chris Place, an archaeologist for Network Rail, said: "This is a significant find and offers a further insight into London’s long history.  In Roman times the main settlement was on the north bank of the River Thames and was connected to the settlement at Southwark by the first London Bridge. Much archaeological work has been done in Southwark over the years, but we were still surprised to discover ruin of this nature and size."

Together with the London Borough of Southwark, we are exploring ways of preserving the remains beneath the new building to be constructed on the site.  Where appropriate, key finds will be deposited with the Museum of London where they will be available for study by the public.

Skanska Win Sunday Times Greenest Company

Duration: N/A

On the 12th June, the Sunday Times announced the 2011 results of its Best Green Companies Awards and named Skanska (the contractor for the Borough Viaduct works) as the greenest company in the UK.

The Sunday Times Best Green Companies Awards were launched four years ago and since this time, Skanska has been placed in the top five every year rising to the number one spot for 2011 – a clear demonstration of their consistent approach to green leadership and performance.

Skanska’s green strategy is based on the themes of green leadership, employee engagement and sound environmental performance at project level. The strategy is underpinned by an external focus on engagement with their supply chain and clients in a true collaborative way of working.

Borough Viaduct has played an important part in this award; the team from the Sunday Times came to visit for their only case study and photo shoot. The site was praised for its integrated approach and outstanding community engagement. More details can be found on the Sunday Times website.

Borough High Street Bridge launched

Duration: Completed May 2011

The new Borough High Street Bridge has been launched successfully. The new bridge is 70m long, 6m high and weighs 1080 tonnes in its launch condition.

The steel sections of the bridge were welded together within Borough Market and slid along the Borough Market Viaduct on Teflon pads; the front end of the bridge was supported on multi-axle vehicles and hydraulic towers. The bridge moved a few centimetres a minute across the Borough High Street, and was then lowered onto the new supports at Railway Approach.

For more details see Issue 8 of dbrief Quarterly.

Image courtesy of Watsons, the steel contractor, constructing Borough High Street Bridge