“Our goal was to clear the vegetation on the site swiftly and safely, ensuring compliance with environmental regulations and meeting the client’s requirements for the new railway bridge construction.”
Graham Talbot, Head of Arboriculture, RSS Infrastructure
Services Delivered
This project undertaken for Skanska involved the clearance of a substantial area of vegetation on their site to make way for constructing a new railway bridge. The project aimed to efficiently and safely remove trees, bushes, and other plant species.
Key Actions
- Project manager conducted a site visit to assess vegetation clearance
requirements. - Determined the most efficient and safe approach for the project.
- Selected an excavator with a tree shear attachment and a whole tree chipper as the optimal equipment.
Project Delivery
Scoping and Planning:
During the scoping and planning phase, the project manager conducted a comprehensive site visit to evaluate the vegetation clearance requirements. After assessing the task scale, the team determined the most efficient and safe approach for the project. The decision was made to utilise an excavator with a tree shear attachment and a whole tree chipper.
Equipment Selection
An excavator equipped with a tree shear attachment was chosen to optimise performance and productivity. This attachment enabled efficient cutting of trees and branches, reducing the need for manual labour and minimising Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) risks. A whole tree chipper was also selected to process the vegetation arisings into wood chips. This sustainable approach allowed the arisings to be sold to a biomass company for further utilisation.
Operative Certifications
Safety and compliance were paramount considerations in this project. Therefore, all field operatives involved held the necessary certifications, including Personal Track Safety (PTS) and Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS). These certifications ensured the operatives were qualified to work in the railway and construction environment.
Furthermore, the site supervisor held the Site Supervisor Safety Training Scheme (SSSTS) certification, equipping them with the knowledge and skills required to oversee the project safely.
Execution and Workflow
The execution phase commenced with a pre-start meeting, where the project manager and site supervisor provided detailed briefings to the operatives. These briefings covered the project’s scope of work, safety protocols, and environmental considerations. Following the meeting, vegetation clearance activities were initiated using the selected equipment and certified operatives. Throughout the project, progress was monitored closely, and any issues were addressed promptly to ensure the smooth and efficient completion of the task.
