Job Specifications:

Our engineers were called out to the 39-45 Memorial at Brookwood due to reports of continual flooding within the structure’s circle way. They also had a few other routine drain maintenance tasks for the team.

Our client:

The Brookwood Military Cemetery is the largest war cemetery in the UK and is owned by The Commonwealth War Graves Commission. The CWGC is funded by six-member governments and commemorates the men and women of the Commonwealth who passed away during the First and Second World Wars. The Brookwood 1939-1945 Memorial commemorates nearly 3,500 men and women of the land forces of the Commonwealth who died during the Second World War and have no known grave, the circumstances of their death being such that they could not appropriately be commemorated on any of the campaign memorials in the various monuments of war.

What work was undertaken?

A platform for machinery access to the location was erected. This ensured adequate protection for the stonework and grassed areas.

• The old pipework and soakaway within the memorial were excavated.
• The four sumps that surround the memorial were excavated, and their condition was reported.
• A new perforated pipe was installed where the old soakaway was located.
• The inspection chamber was raised to ground level for future access.

Challenges:

The structure is a Grade 2 Listed Monument. Because of this and the fact that there were mourners in the locality, the team needed to take special care in preserving the peace and keeping the place tidy. During the excavation, the team found that the existing soakaway was old and filled with bricks and rubble, making it redundant. Additionally, the drainage systems that they were dealing with were constantly refilled with water while they were working on them. This made the fact the Inspection chamber was buried and inaccessible even more challenging.

Conclusion

CWGC was pleased with the team and the work completed, as it meant there was no more flooding around the memorial. They appreciated the accommodations that we made so that people were allowed to visit the site while repairs were being made.

The client was delighted with how the sight was left, how fast work was completed and with the overall quality of the job.