F1 Wind Tunnel Infrastructure
Site engineering, dimensional control and design support for the reinforced concrete infrastructure supporting a new Formula 1 wind tunnel.
A highly complex reinforced concrete package comprising piled foundations, raft slabs, plinths, a central wind tunnel structure, rolling-road base and fan inertia block. The works incorporated numerous embedded steel plates onto which the specialist wind tunnel structure was subsequently installed, demanding exceptionally tight construction tolerances.
Engineering control across the project
Site engineering and dimensional control were coordinated across multiple subcontractors, from earthworks and approximately 700 CFA piles through to the reinforced concrete structures and embedded steelwork. Survey and geospatial checks were used throughout construction to verify that the completed infrastructure met the demanding tolerances required by the specialist wind tunnel installation.
High-tolerance embedded steelwork
The RC structures incorporated steel plates that formed the critical interface between the civil works and the wind tunnel itself. Their position and level had to be tightly controlled so the specialist contractor could subsequently install and weld the wind tunnel structure directly onto the completed works.
Solving the fan base challenge
The wind tunnel fan was supported on an isolated H-shaped reinforced concrete inertia block. Working with the structural designer and specialist contractor, constructability input helped develop a methodology in which the block could be jacked to allow its bearings and formwork to be installed before being lowered into its final position.
Further design development resolved the extremely confined 15mm isolation joint using permanent steel formwork and a tensioning arrangement, while maintaining the required structural isolation.
Delivered under our former company name, D.S.W Civil Engineering Ltd.
