In just over 100 working days the team has installed 646 secant piles deep into the ground to form the retaining walls for the portal structure.

Completing this piling to the highest health and safety standards in this short period of time is a great achievement but completing it three meters from an operating railway while more than 6,800 trains have past, unaffected by the works, makes it truly outstanding.

The secant pile wall has been installed with a 175t BG40 piling rig, enabling the piles to be excavated with a one piece casing. This increases the number of piles that can be installed from a traditional 2-3 to an average of 7-8 per day. This is the first time that 18.5m long reinforcement cages have been used in the UK using the cased secant pile methodology.


The site team continue to focus on a 6 day week diaphragm walling operation at the deepest end of the portal, along with rotary rigs installing deep tension piles along the centre of the structure. Once the ground engineering works are complete, we will install the ramp that will take the two slurry tunnel boring machines below ground to begin their underground journey.

The ground engineering package is being constructed by Cementation Skanska as part of a 14 month programme to support Hochtief Murphy joint venture in preparing both Plumstead and North Woolwich portals.

The team was recognised for outstanding best practice in safety, quality and environmental standards in one of the most challenging working environments on the Crossrail project to date.

(CD)