CPD Specifier May 2015 issue September 2014 | Page 41

Outdoor Engineering

Beach protection
ACBM’s are Articulated Concrete Block Mattresses sit at the heavy end
of coastal erosion protection measures. At up to 8.30 tonnes in weight,
each ACBM consist of a mattress of individual concrete blocks which are
secured together with high strength steel cables. When installed they help
stabilise and reinforce intertidal zones and mitigate against the scouring
effects of wave action.
Coastal containment
MacTubes are giant geotextile tubes designed for building coastal and
river structures for erosion protection, containment and dewatering of wet
slurries and the reusing of dredged material.
As a ‘soft’ armoured structure, they offer minimal impact to the
environment while providing a cost effective alternative to ‘hard’ structures.
MacTubes are designed for use as: revetments - to protect against erosion
of shoreline adjacent to existing buildings; as beach protective groins or
breakwaters; as dykes - to form a containment area in which to pump
dredge spoils; as dune cores and as artificial reefs, installed offshore to
replace natural barriers.

Articulated Concrete Block Mattresses (ACBM’s) reinforce intertidal zones and
reduce the scouring effects of wave action.

Green reinforcement
Where soft erosion protection is required for vulnerable channel banks,
Maccaferri provides pre-bundled Coir Logs which can be installed at the
water-line where they prevent wave action from damaging river or lake
banks. They are designed to rapidly re-vegetate and can be supplied preplanted with established riparian species for instant bank vegetation.
The plants quickly trap sediment and soils in suspension in the channel
flow, refilling eroded pockets in the existing banking.
Coir logs contain densely packed coir fibres within either a polymer mesh
‘sausage’ or within a woven coir mesh, to produce an entirely natural coir
log. These bio-degrade over a period of years to leave a stabilised bank of
plant biomass.
Emergency hydraulic protection
Hand placed sand bags are probably the most recognised and basic tool
in emergency flood prevention for homes and commercial properties.
At a much larger scale MacBags are non-woven polypropylene geotextile
enclosures made in a range of sizes and designed to enable machines to
lift the pre-filled bag into position.

Biodegradable Coir Logs, installed at the water-line, promote biomass growth and
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protect against wave action

Software
To help engineers model and assess how changes to channel profile
and surface characteristics affect crucial flow patterns in rivers, streams
and other watercourses, Maccaferri also has a free software package
available.
The ‘Macra 1’ software package is simple and straightforward to operate
and allows users to calculate flow depths in rivers and watercourses and
see how altering the channel profile or modifying surface characteristics,
such as by adding vegetation or applying protective measures, can affect
watercourse performance, instantaneously.
For a copy of the free Macra1 software or further information on any of the
Maccaferri range of erosion and environmental engineering products, visit
www.maccaferri.co.uk

Maccaferri’s free ‘Macra 1’ software package allows users to see how altering the
channel profile or modifying embankment characteristics, can affect watercourse
performance.

MACCAFERRI

TEL: [phone]

WWW.MACCAFERRI.CO.UK
41

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