Challenges:

Involved in the construction of the Cowell CWMS were a range of challenges that needed to be overcome in order to construct the varies components. Some were more significant than others but all needed to be overcome in order to complete the project. They included:

• Hard rock over 70% of the area of the township of Cowell where the project was to be constructed

• Deep trench excavation up to 5m

• 60x Independent allotment pumped house connection packages

The layer of rock encountered over the majority of the township was overcome with Baker Civil’s capability to increase its operating capacity to the requirements of the job by purchasing a Vermeer T755 rock trencher. This machined allowed the rock to be easily handled providing an efficient method of excavation, minimizing damage to roads from break outs if the rock was otherwise excavated with rock breakers and excavators, the spoil was sufficiently milled to be reused as backfill material on the gravity drain trenches and minimized machine hours. Deep excavations were handled with our company owned trench shields and benching. Baker Civil has extensive experience to draw on from a technical stand point, being able to find alternate design options for alignments and catchment areas. In the case of the Cowell CWMS eliminating an SPS and approximately 55 of the independent pumped connections. This was a cost effective solution because it minimized ongoing running costs and was overall cheaper to install.