FP McCann’s First Cement Free Headwall Has Been Installed at Elsenham Park Housing Development in Essex
Project: New Housing Development, Elsenham Park, Bishops Stortford
Location: Bishops Stortford, Essex
Division: Drainage
Client: Bloor Homes
Main Infrastructure Contractor: MACL Ltd
Adopting Water Authority: INWL
Market Sector: Residential
FP McCann has supplied its first ever cement free headwall to a new housing development project in Essex.
FP McCann have manufactured a cement-free headwall using Earth Friendly Concrete (EFC), which has been installed at Elsenham Park Housing Development in Essex, in partnership with MACL Ltd.
FP McCann’s technical team have worked alongside EFC to replace 100% of the cement in the structure with EFC’s binder (comprising activators and supplementary cementitious materials). The work involved adapting an existing high workability mix design, maintaining the high-quality surface finish while significantly reducing the energy and expense associated with mechanical compaction.
The Elsenham Park development is being built by Bloor Homes, with MACL Ltd being the main infrastructure contractor on the project.
FP McCann discussed the potential for trialling the new headwall with MACL Ltd earlier this year, and following discussions with the client and the adopting water authority, they were keen to implement this new technology on the project.
Chris Wheelwright, 278 Works and Infrastructure Manager, MACL Ltd, said: “We were approached by FP McCann to have the opportunity to trial a cement free headwall early 2024. Knowing how groundbreaking this technology/science is we of course wanted to be part of a trial of this nature.
When we presented the opportunity to our client Bloor Homes along with the adopting water authority, Independent Water Networks Limited, they too were keen to be involved and the Elsenham Park developments was the ideal place to do this. The headwall was installed on site on the 12th of September, and we look forward to monitoring its performance and how it integrates with the finished landscaping further down the line.”
Cement can contribute upwards of 80% of the carbon footprint of plain concrete but another significant contributor in modern construction is steel reinforcement. For this reason, in addition to introducing EFC binder, FP McCann also replaced traditional steel mesh reinforcement with a synthetic fibre alternative, added during the batching process and evenly distributed throughout the mix. This combination enables a further reduction in the carbon footprint of the products with an added durability benefit by eliminating the risk of steel corrosion due to aggressive environmental conditions, in turn increasing the service life of the structure.
The trials are part of an ongoing initiative at FP McCann to integrate sustainable precast manufacturing solutions, exploring a wide range of options that include use of alternative binders and concrete making materials, increased use of renewable energy sources, optimised structural designs, reducing factory waste and reuse of recycled materials in our products.
Phase one of the Elsenham Park housing development will consist of 350 new homes, including 2 and 3 bedroom bungalows and 2, 3, 4 and 5 bedroom houses.
