A landslip, thought to be caused by Storm Christoph’s heavy rain occurred on the morning of 27th January on the West Coast Main Line railway at Hillmorton Junction south of Rugby. Specialist engineers were called in and emergency work was immediately started to get the landslip under control. JWG Survey and Engineering contacted Senceive requesting an emergency monitoring kit to monitor movement on an overhead electrification gantry which was critical to the site.
Senceive was able to quickly send out two triaxial tilt nodes and a communication gateway so that the system was up and running in just over 24 hours. The sensors monitored movements and initial hourly tests showed that the gantry was still moving. Spotting this movement early enabled JWG to provide Network Rail and J Murphy & Sons Ltd with enough information to keep one line open and ensure that the West Coast Main Line could operate safely while remedial works were carried out. A complete embankment reconstruction was undertaken with new foundations and special pins installed to prevent any future movement. The line was fully reopened over the weekend of 13th February.
Jake Gaskell, Director JWG Survey and Engineering expressed his appreciation: “I would like to thank you and your team for the extremely fast turn-around of the tilt sensors. The Murphy and Network Rail project team are impressed with the equipment, which is critical to ensure the safety of the railway line”.
Photo credit : Network Rail
Created on: Wed 17th Feb 2021
