Industrial Circular Tank Scaffold Solution for Navigator Terminals

Navigator Terminals is an independent bulk liquid storage provider with over 1.28 million cubic metres (cbm) of storage capacity, with two terminals offering storage solutions for crude, petroleum, chemical, bitumen, liquefied gas and biofuel products serving the key port and demand centres within Teesside.

JMAC Scaffolding have been operating on the site for a number of years, undertaking maintenance works site-wide, and providing scaffolding access for various trades.

The client was confident in the works JMAC provided and asked us to design a solution for a larger project to provide scaffold and access systems to enable teams to remove insulation then NDT test, blast, and coat tanks on a 57m diameter circular tank.

Industrial Works Considerations

Liquid and gas storage tanks are huge structures and were 57m diameter and 17m high. The structure has been constructed on a sloping concrete skirt on the ground and is prone to corrode. Therefore, the periodical maintenance is required to these structures. To maintain these structures, the appropriate scaffolds are required to do works safely and completely.

To analyse the behaviour of the scaffold, the dead load, the moving and working loads, as well as the wind load, had to be taken into account. It is quite laborious work to cover such a huge structure which comprised of various valves, pipes, and an existing staircase. The sheer size of the structure and scope of the refurbishment works included 9 working stages and needed to allow for providing safe access throughout all stages of refurbishment works cladding removal, blasting, repair and paint works.

What we did

After a number of site visits, JMAC’s scaffolding design team produced detailed scaffold structure designs, utilising different materials supplied by Layher UK including the Layher lightweight system scaffold. The design catered for the scaffold to be sheeted in two full lift intervals at any one time.

The design to work timeframe was turned around by the JMAC team within 5 days.

Working with Navigator Terminals site teams, the JMAC logistics team arranged delivery of large quantities of materials to site and co-ordinated forklift use for lay down of materials in readiness for the project start.

Once the project had started, the team undertook the following works:

• To avoid the valves and pipes, we used telescopic boards, and deck to deck transoms where we needed a short deck but could not hit the structural ledger deck. This enabled the team to utilise a shorter deck in a 2.57m bay to work around the structure.
• To scaffold the circumference of the external circular tank, a bespoke design Layher system splay scaffold to the circumference of the tank.
• Scaffold was built using sloping jacks for basing out due to the sloping concrete skirt at the base level of tank. This slope was accounted for within the design ass discussed from site pre visits.

In addition to planned works, the client work specification changed after insulation removal stage, so JMAC issued a new design brief to allow additional works to be undertaken:

• Tread removal from existing tank staircase to allow scaffold standards to pass through for continuation of works.
• Erection of 19 stabilising buttress scaffolds to site an IBC unit on each individual buttress scaffold and filled with water to act as kentledge.
• Utilisation of a scissor lift once we were at the higher levels which helped the job progress.

Andy McFarlane, Contracts Supervisor said “The requirements for each industrial scaffolding project is unique. We have worked for Navigator Terminals for a number of years and the client is confident JMAC can be trusted to understand the complexities that working in a high risk and hazardous industrial environment can bring.  The client faced operational and site specific challenges in this instance but JMAC were able undertake the work competently, safely and efficiently.

Our team have all been well trained in industrial environments and adhere to the latest safety standards whilst ensuring that client deadlines and requirements were met throughout the duration of the works and the job remained on schedule.”

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