CDL’s Solution To A Large-Scale Drainage Problem

As drainage experts, CDL are often called to resolve large-scale and urgent drainage problems around the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie areas. In June we were contacted by Molly Morgan Motor Inn to fix a major drainage issue with the hotel building in East Maitland

The Problem:

The hotel had a serious drainage issue as the brick structure enclosing the stairwell to the first floor had started to sink at one end and was causing some movement and cracking. The owners had arranged for a company to get the structure's foundations reinforced to stop the sinking and have the building re-levelled.

It was then found that the sanitary drainage system which was located under the structure had been damaged and was leaking. This system ran the entire length of the building with branch lines also picking up the bathrooms from the hotel rooms which were connected. The whole system had to be re-designed and bypassed for the work to be completed.

The Brief

With a $30,000 budget and an urgent timeline, we were tasked with fixing the above issues by re-designing a new drainage system for this part of the building. This required a detailed plan that involved the following, whilst minimising disruption to the hotel and guests. Without CDL’s expert experience hitting a tight deadline, working to budget and providing an optimum solution isn’t easy, but CDL relish the challenge of jobs like this and was able to complete the job above expectations with the brief fully met, with a very satisfied customer added in.

CDL’s Solution

After surveying the area we then sat down to design a solution that would meet all the requirements of the brief as well as today's plumbing standards. Our solution was to design a system that diverted the sanitary drainage system to bypass the problem section. This involved locating services and mapping out the existing drainage connections that would need to be re-connected to the renewed line whilst ensuring there were no backflow issues while dealing with all the earthworks and trench digging. The project encompassed the following elements:

• New drainage design that connected to the existing system
• Concrete cutting, excavation & earthworks
• Laying of drains to correct levels and grade
• Disposal of spoil and demolished concrete
• Repair of asphalt and concrete around the path & car park areas

Challenges

The main challenges were the timeline and the budget. Once we had surveyed the site, the solution came easily enough to us. Budgeting and planning was all simple enough when you have the experience and are prepared and organised for these types of jobs. The main challenges were getting it done on time and within budget, which we did, much to the appreciation of the customer.

Summary

For any large-scale drainage issues like Molly Morgan Motor Inn’s, it really comes down to experience in being able to work under pressure by hitting tight deadlines and working to specific budgets. Whilst you need to have the skills to even be able to design a solution, you also have to have the ability to carry it out, knowing that your reputation is at stake.

Many companies will avoid work like this, but CDL love these jobs and the chance to exercise our expertise, so if you have a drainage problem in the Newcastle or Lake Macquarie areas, then call the local experts - CDL.