Kilkern

Well done to Kilkern Civil Enginerring for winning places on three lots of Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s new £16M Highways Framework.

The Kilkern team has been appointed to Lot 2A Civil Engineering (works up to £500k), Lot 2B Civil Engineering (works above £500k) and Lot 5 (Section 278 works).

The lots cover vehicle access crossings; carriageway and footpath reconstruction; drainage and ducting installation; the construction of kerbs and paving areas; the construction of car parks; Section 38 works (forming new junctions and accesses to the public highway); Section 278 alterations to the existing highway; small elements of road marking; and the installation and removal of traffic management.

The images show work in progress and completion of one of our historic projects in Stoke - helping to relieve congestion problems at Joiners Square.

https://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/kilkern-secures-underground-services-for-480m-waste-incinerator

Kilkern secures underground services for £480m waste incinerator Civil engineering contractor Kilkern has been appointed to carry out the installation of all underground services at the Lostock Sustainable Energy Plant (LSEP) project in Cheshire.

Kilkern JCB and a Vac UK vac ex from our group's specialist operated vacuum excavator hire business, collaborating in Boston.

Kilkern is working with lead contractor Winvic Construction Ltd on critical road improvements on the A16 at Marsh Lane. The works will reduce congestion, improve safety and future-proof the road.

The project is widening a total of more than 3km of carriageway, allowing both the approaches and the roundabout itself to be increased to two lanes. To make the widening possible the roundabout’s alignment is being changed and its diameter increased from 21.5m diameter to 27m. 410m of new drainage is being installed as part of the roundabout upgrade.

The works form part of an overall £5.7m package awarded by Lincolnshire County Council to cover the Marsh Lane roundabout and improvements to active travel links near Wyberton Low Road. It draws on the £20m “Levelling Up” funding awarded to the county council in October 2021.

Our Kilkern Civils division are recruiting for the following roles for sites in the North West & West Midlands from September 23:

Site Engineer (site based)
Site Agent (site based)
Project Manager (site based)
Assistant Quantity Surveyor (office / site)

If you have a civil engineering background with experience in drainage & highways working for a subcontractor or main contractor please email [email protected] and address your email to Patrick & Craig.

You must be UK based and hold a valid driving license, please do not apply if you are from an agency.

Kilkern has been appointed to carry out remediation work on the Soot Hill road in Northwich, Cheshire.

The carriageway was damaged when a landslide caused the collapse of a retaining wall dating back to the 1800s. Kilkern’s £1.2m programme will include stabilisation works, the installation of a new king post-piled retaining wall with sandstone cladding plus the provision of a new surface water drainage system, kerbing and footpaths.

Kilkern’s Patrick Rodgers said that the contract award followed an intense period of ground investigation works and scheme design.
“This is a complex project which will require a high degree of technical accuracy and we are delighted to have been selected,” he said. “When complete the works will remove a significant bottleneck for road users.”

Main contractor Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering Ltd appointed Kilkern on behalf of the client Cheshire West & Chester Borough Council through the SCAPE framework. Completion of Kilkern’s programme is expected in November 2023

Kilkern are delighted to announce the appointment of Martin Gallagher as Head of Health, Safety, Environment, and Quality compliance (HSEQ).

Martin has more than 30 years of experience in the UK civil engineering and construction sector, specialising in strengthening governance and operational processes, particularly around safety and reliability, customer engagement, innovation and efficiency.

Martin joins from Network Plus where he was Head of Safety and Compliance and, as a member of the senior leadership team, led the creation and implementation of the HSEQ Plan for managing CDM 2015.

Previously, Martin led the HSEQ function at MPB STRUCTURES STRUCTURES, one of the UK’s leading concrete structure specialists, and GPL Group, where, alongside developing and implementing the company’s business management systems, he pioneered a social engagement programme that included the creation of an apprenticeship scheme focused on engaging NEETS and ex-offenders.

Martin Gallagher’s appointment is an excellent step forward for the business. Kilkern have always placed great importance on maintaining the very highest levels of behaviour and best practice across the company. As the business grows we are keen to strengthen all aspects of our health and safety and compliance processes so we are delighted that Martin is joining us. Martin brings with him enormous experience and we are confident that he will help Kilkern continue to build on the high standard it has already set for governance.

www.kilkern.co.uk
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https://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/duo-to-share-running-kilkern-civils

Duo to share running Kilkern civils Oldham-based Kilkern has appointed two men to lead its civil engineering and highways infrastructure business.

Happy Xmas from all the team at Kilkern. Special thanks to everyome that has supported us through another successful year in 2022. We wish you and all your families a very merry Xmas and the best of health and happiness for the new year.

BROKK’n’Rolling in Manchester where Kilkern's specialists at VAC UK have been refining techniques for use with the tracked .

We are working on a new in the North East of the city, where we are excavating trenches ready for new utility connections. Combining the Brokk 120DII robot and the enables us to take the 's extended nozzle on to parts of the site that would otherwise be hard to access.

In this case overhanging trees prohibited the vac ex while the Brokk, with it’s much smaller footprint, fitted comfortably.

Even working remotely, the team was able to uncover some very densely packed root systems.

The combination of its small footprint, light weight and ability to work in confined spaces makes the Brokk an exceptionally versatile tool. Teamed-up with one of our long-reach hose-equipped vacuum excavators makes a particularly potent combination.

We take great pride in adopting the most forward thinking approach to and and are continually exploring new methods of deploying the UK’s most modern and powerful fleet.

We’re very proud to announce that we have become the main shirt sponsor for Blackwoodrfc Rugby Club.

The Kilkern logo is taking the front-of-shirt spot on the South Wales club’s red, amber and black strip with a further shoulder slot occupied by Kilkern’s specialist business VAC UK.

Blackwood Rugby Football Club was founded in 1889 and has been a member of the WRU - Welsh Rugby Union since 1918. The 1st XV is currently playing in Division Two East of the Welsh National League from the Club’s home at Glan-Yr-Afon Park.

Kilkern Director, Patrick Curran believes that Blackwood’s strong community focus means that the Sirhowy Valley club is a natural fit.

“We take our role in the community very seriously," he said. "The nature of our work, whether , , or , means that we are continually out-and-about and engaged with the public so we feel that it is important that we try to play our part.

“At Kilkern we believe that sport is incredibly important in pulling people together and nowhere is that more evident than in the South Wales Valleys where the rugby club is often at the heart of the community. We are delighted to be able to add our support to the club.

"One of our principal UK depots is in South Wales so the Blackwood RFC announcement is an important addition to our existing sports and community sponsorships across the UK."

The first shirt was presented by Kilkern’s Southern Operations Manager Joanne Ashford to Captain Josh Law.

Great week visiting the world's largest construction plant trade show in Munich this week.

The Vac UK Longo Rhino Vacuum Excavatorn, the world's most powerful and efficient twin fan vacuum excavator was exhibited at the stand.

It was great to see all the new innovation at the show this year. Particularly the advances in automation, electric and hydrogen.

Some of the highlights on the show included. 3 tonne electric dumper. The e-actros electric truck with its 310 mile range. The automous adt and the autonomous road sweeper. Rsp also had a demo all electric suction excavator which is not yet available for sale which maybe released in 2024.

Whilst the electric equipment on show was very impressive it was felt by most people we spoke to that the actual cost of the equipment and also how long the equipment lasts on site on a full charge needs to keep improving before it becomes more widespread and practical and cost effective for everyday use.

https://jobs.kilkern.co.uk/jobs/Careers/43335000001157178/Groundworks-Gang?source=CareerSite

Kilkern - Groundworks Gang in Middlesborough Kilkern Kilkern are a specialist contractor providing infrastructure solutions. We have divisions covering highways and civil engineering contracting,

Kilkern Civil Engineering has been awarded a contract to provide traffic calming measures in a Stoke-on-Trent residential area plagued by speeding motorists.

The leading highways and infrastructure specialist has been appointed by principal contractor Galliford Try, on behalf of City of Stoke-on-Trent Council, to deliver road safety improvements along and around Chaplin Road in Longton.

According to Chris Wright, Kilkern’s Civil Engineering Director, the project will effectively turn Chaplin Road’s six adjacent roads into a one way system with the aim of relieving traffic.

“Despite this being a residential area with clearly-marked 30 mile per hour speed limits, Chaplin Road has suffered from drivers racing along it at all times of day and night,” he said. “This scheme will discourage through traffic and promote safer driving to make sure that Chaplin Road is primarily used by those living in the area.

“The works will comprise the construction of footway build-outs and the resurfacing of the existing footways to create “pinch-points” and slow traffic at junctions; the installation of new kerbs and ducting; the provision of new road gullies and connections; and the removal and installation of new carriageway markings.”

When Kilkern heard that local primary school Corpus Christi didn’t have the required funding for new sports kits, we delivered like we always do!

Kilkern have provided a new football and netball kit to the school as well as training equipment.

The boys kicked off the season with a 10-0 victory! 👊

As part of our commitment to maintaining the UK’s most modern and most advanced fleet Kilkern and VAC UK have been checking out the latest innovations at IFAT worldwide in Munich.

The world's leading trade fair for water, sewage, waste and raw materials management, IFAT runs over five days and brings together almost 3000 exhibitors to show off their most up-to-date equipment.

The VAC UK team joined almost 120,000 visitors from 155 countries to see at first hand some truly ground-breaking tech, including a leak detecting autonomous submarine, a fully electric autonomous road sweeper and a fully electric grab wagon.

It was a great opportunity to build international links too. VAC UK is the official dealer and partner for LONGO EUROSERVICE S.R.L and we had been invited to show one of our Rhino’s, the most powerful twin fan suction excavator on the market, on their stand. VAC UK has the exclusive rights to distribute Longo’s equipment in the UK, Ireland, USA and Canada.

At Kilkern we believe that automation, robotics, digitisation and technology will transform the construction and civil engineering industry making it safer and more efficient and we are excited to play our small part in this transition.

We are looking forward to attending the quarrying and construction exhibition later this month in the UK and the plant exhibition in Munich again this October.

Due to Kilkern's planned increase in highways infrastructure works on the Highways England motorway network we have invested in a number of three way tipping scania wagons to add to our growing plant fleet.

Typically used for highways work, 3 Way tippers offer exceptional operating versatility, allowing tipping from the rear and side of the body.

Kilkern Specialist Labour Hire proudly supporting Forkers working alongside & GroundShore to deliver deep drainage civil engineering works on the M6 motorway project.

Kilkern and Vac UK working on the M6 smart motorways project.

Here’s a few pictures of Kilkern civil engineering hard at work on the M6 junction 21a to junction 26 motorway upgrade.

We’ve been brought in by lead contractor Costain Group PLC to dig a series of launch and reception pits in the motorway’s verges in preparation for the directional drilling of new underground electrical service duct routes. The project is part of the National Highways Motorway Upgrade Programme.

Work is being carried out mainly at night to minimise disruption on what is one of the UK’s busiest stretches of road.

Each launch and reception shaft will be between 2 and 5 metres depth, approximately 12 metres square and will include suitable access ramps for the plant to set up at the correct drilling levels. Drilling will be carried out using an American Augers DD110 rig with each location being approximately 45m in length at a depth of around 4m.

Completion of this phase is expected in October 2022.

More great work by the Kilkern civil engineering team.

Kilkern to excavate M6 drill pits Costain has handed civil engineering contractor Kilkern a programme of excavation works on a section of its M6 junction 21a to junction 26 motorway upgrade.

Kilkern are proudly sponsoring new jerseys for the incredible Oughterard under 14 ladies Gaelic Football team, county champions last year who are getting ready for the new season after being promoted up two divisions.

The Stoke Mandeville section of the new HS2 (High Speed Two) Ltd railway recently produced arguably Kilkern Labour’s most unusual supply request ever.

The team was already with working with Forkers Ltd & Forkers Scotland Ltd the civils & ground engineering specialist appointed by main contractor Fusion JV, a joint venture comprising Morgan Sindall Plc, BAM Nuttall Limited and Ferrovial Agroman (UK).

The Kilkern operatives included a lift supervisor, slinger, plant operators and groundworkers.

The route of the HS2 line from London to Birmingham has been an important source of new investigations for archaeologists for several years.

Just outside Stoke Mandeville, the ruin of an 11th Century Norman church, St Mary’s, sat on the planned line of the new railway so it was necessary to move the remains not only of the structure and but also of more than 300 skeletons which had been buried in the graveyard.

LP Archaeological, the team leading the dig and removal, approached Kilkern to help with the challenge – specifically looking for operatives able to provide support with the excavation and the cleaning and washing of finds. Kilkern Labour’s team were able to respond positively and a number of operatives joined the archaeology team.

Ultimately, an archaeologically-significant haul that included three life-size Roman busts, eight burial urns, a glass vessel and a cache of ancient coins were recovered and the site has provided important evidence about the last days of the Roman empire in Britain.

The dig was the subject of an episode of BBC2’s Digging for Britain presented by Alice Roberts.

Labour manager at Kilkern, Dave Thompson said while the supply request had been unusual, the team was able to take it within its stride.

“In fairness, it’s not every day that you get asked to provide archaeological dig support and certainly not with the expectation that you are going to be helping to sift through 300 skeletons,” he said. “

That said, several of the team had worked on jobs in sensitive locations alongside archaeologists previously and we ensure all our teams are highly-trained so that they can adapt to almost any requirement.

“Because the dig site was protected by a massive tent it also carried the bonus of providing dry working conditions – not something most of the team expect – so it was quite a popular job.”

The Crosfield under 8's Rugby team in Warrington at the weekend wearing their new Kilkern sponsored shirts. Kilkern is proud to support the latest generation of rugby stars as they advance up the league table.

Crosfields ARLFC were voted the RFL community club of the year in 2014.

Crosfields ARLFC is a thriving Amateur Rugby League Football Club based in Warrington.

Currently the club boasts a full accompaniment of Rugby League teams. From open age team playing in the Rugby League National Conference to the Second open age team playing in North West Counties Division 5 under the British Amateur Rugby League Association.

The club is well served by a thriving junior section which is the Biggest in Warrington comprising teams from under 7's and at every age group all the way up to under 18s.

Crossfields have been playing Rugby in the North West of England since 1901.

Check out the Kilken and Vac UK Highlights of the year video on the Vac UK you tube page. Thanks to all our staff and customers and suppliers for supporting us through a successful and exciting 2021. We look forward to working with you all for the rest of 2022 which has also got off to a flying start.



https://youtube.com/watch?v=dnGyOQkyJnA&feature=share

Kilkern and Vac UK 2021 Highlights It was a busy year in 2021 for Kilkern and Vac UK. Kilkern Highways civil engineering doubled its turnover for the second year in a row and completed several...

Kilkern Grab wagons are busy working across the Highways England motorway network. Kilkern has a fleet of new Grab wagons some of which work on their own highways and civil engineering projects and others that are hired out with operators to other contractors.

A massive well done to the Quality Management team at Kilkern and Vac UK for achieving ISO9001 accreditation.

INVESTMENT IN MANAGEMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL STANDARDS SECURES ACCREDITATION

The Kilkern strategy to invest in the best and to set the highest standards is not limited to equipment and people: it also extends to its approach to processes and operations.Kilkern has been awarded the BS EN ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Systems certificate. Developed by the International Organisation of Standardisation and assessed and accredited by the British Standards Institute, ISO 9001 is based on a number of quality management principles including a strong customer focus, the motivation and implication of top management, the process approach and continual improvement. ISO 9001 is helping Kilkern to enshrine the processes that make sure customers get consistent, good-quality products and services. Hard on the heels of ISO 9001, the business is scheduled to be assessed for its Environmental ISO 14001 in March 2022. ISO 14001 sets out the criteria for an environmental management system and will support Kilkern maximise operational sustainability and minimise its carbon footprint. On a slightly different front, Kilkern has also partnered with Salesforce for its business and operations software. Currently in the build & testing phase, the new set-up is being piloted through the Vac UK division. Initially development and implementation is focused on enhancing fleet and workforce scheduling, streamlining interaction with clients and improving reporting. Sean Donoghue, compliance manager, is leading both the accreditation and the implementation programmes. He believes the Salesforce initiative will make a big difference. “As our fleet continues to grow then the demands on both operators and management increase,” he said. “The new software will help our maintenance teams reduce admin, reduce maintenance time and so maximise utilisation of the fleet – and ultimately improve availability for our customers. “Similarly, we believe that achieving the quality management and environmental standards are important steps for the business because they provide a recognition of the business’s professionalism and the values it holds.”

We’ve been playing our part shaping the UK’s roads of the future and hopefully helping to relieve congestion on one of the busiest stretches of the M6.

The completion of our seven month project on behalf of Costain will help to deliver one of the Smart Motorway Alliance’s early phases on a key section between Junctions 21a and 26 of the M6 in Lancashire. National Highways Motorway Upgrade Programme will increase lane capacity on the strategic road network by embedding roadside technology and converting hard shoulders to all-lane running.

Our programme of works involved removing all the existing manhole access points and replacing them with textured reinforced concrete slabs capable of withstanding the demands of traffic flows. The project also included the temporary welding shut of all gully gratings within the footprint of the works and boring a network of trial holes to assist the development of the main permanent works design.
One of the main challenges was to avoid rubble from the breaking-out of the manholes entering, and potentially blocking, the drainage system. Working with our supply chain partners, we were able to identify an innovative solution in the shape of an inflatable stopper which could adjust to the shape of each opening. By deploying the stopper, we were able to prevent material entering the manhole. On completion of the breaking out operations, our team was left with the relatively quick process of setting up confined spaces access to enter each manhole to clean out minor quantities of debris and dust.

Throughout the project we were under very tight working constraints. The M6 is one of the UK’s busiest motorways so work was only possible at night in relatively small windows – which could be shortened further by traffic or weather conditions.

Kilkern director Patrick Curran described the project as a testament to the quality of the team.

“This was always going to be quite a tricky programme of works with time restrictions, the need to set up and take down traffic management controls every day and simultaneous working on the northbound and southbound carriageways,” he said. “We worked closely with lead contractor Costain to navigate any operational challenges and we are very proud to have brought the project to a successful conclusion.”

Mark Malthouse, Costain’s Works Superintendent said “My thanks go out to the Kilkern team who have really delivered this project to an exceptional standard.”

Before and after picture of Joiners Square roundabout in Stoke on Trent where Kilkern Civils recently completed the Stoke City Council Highways improvement works for main clients Galliford Try and Bentley Project Management. This was an excellent job to be involved with due to the teamwork and collaboration from everyone on the site including our client and supply chain to get the job completed whilst keeping the traffic flowing.

Kilkern civils installing the deep drainage for Galliford Try on Stoke on Trent highways improvement works with excellent shoring support from Eamonn Vaughan's Groundshore.

Two brand new Scania grab wagons arrived into our Manchester yard this morning to join the Kilkern plant fleet, ready for livery and heading straight out Kilkern's highways civil engineering projects.