Southdowns staff began working with RLE in 1997 at the early stage of detailed design.
Part of a multi-disciplinary environmental team, the in-house noise and vibration team had a wide range of activities and responsibilities including:
- Reviewing and advising engineers on the Project’s noise and vibration commitments.
- Advising design teams and project engineers on specific mitigation measures to achieve commitments;
- Liaison and negotiation with external parties (statutory bodies, Local Authorities etc), on detailed proposals submitted for planning purposes;
- Detailed operational noise modelling of route to establish detailed noise barrier requirements and costs;
- Detailed design of bespoke noise barriers and absorptive panels for surface and elevated sections of high speed line;
- Development of technical specifications for the performance of resilient track systems for vibration and groundborne noise mitigation;
- Development of tender documentation (inc. specifications) for the main construction contracts for the project;
- Tender evaluation and technical interviews with tenderers;
- Presentation of technical material to senior management on critical acoustical considerations and risks for project;
- Training for RLE, Union Railways and Contractors on specific noise and vibration related issues;
- Development of management system for Section 61 consents process across all contractors;
- Auditing and site inspections to ensure compliance with the Project’s Environmental Management Systems;
- Value Engineering workshops on noise barrier designs, mitigation of structure radiated noise and groundborne noise and vibration;
- Managing the detailed FE analysis of structure radiated railway noise within the proposed station areas of the new terminus at St Pancras;
- Detailed modelling of aerodynamic noise from ventilation shafts due to the operation of ventilation equipment and passage of high speed trains;
Project management of numerous other acoustic testing and modelling programmes including:
- Measurements on in-line ventilation shaft components for aerodynamically induced re-radiated noise (laboratory);
- Dynamic stiffness testing of various resilient components for track form mitigation (laboratory);
- Scale acoustic modelling of forced ventilation equipment within tunnels (laboratory);
- Rheostatic braking noise profiles for Eurostar trains (field);
- Testing of noise barrier and absorptive panel designs (laboratory); and
- FE analysis of structure radiated noise from large elevated structures to assist in track form design.
