And There Let Us Wallow In Glorious Mud

Progress with the building work for the Museum and Heritage Centre has been a little slower than originally planned as there were some last minute alterations to the drawings suggested by the building control department which had to be accommodated and resubmitted and then agreed with the contractor.  However, there is still plenty of work that we could be getting on with and the teams been tackling them with gusto.

As ever our Roving Reporters were there to record the events as they unfolded.  Remember, click to enlarge the image!

The delivery of the Insulated Concrete Formwork (ICF) proved rather challenging! ICF is based on hollow block or sheet components, usually made of polystyrene, fastened together with metal or plastic connectors. The panels or blocks lock together without bonding materials to provide a formwork system into which concrete is pumped.  Being very light, getting them off the lorry proved to be very delicate and time consuming using the mini digger.

However, with true ESME ingenuity James, Paul, David, Robert and John arose to the challenge and succeeded.

The formwork remains in place, not only to shape the walls, but also to provide a robust layer of thermal insulation – one that will last for the lifetime of the building.  External and internal cladding is added to finish the job off.

Next on the agenda was work associated with the water and sewage system.  After our long hot summer the inevitable rains coincided with this work and it became difficult work in such conditions.  Never the less, as the photo’s show, the Saturday crew wallowed in the challenge!