Case Studies - Gratings for Manholes and Gullies
Bradford MBC and Kent Medway Council
Envirograte is a Lightweight replacement gully grating launched by PDS in 2009 in response to requests from various local authorities all over the country whose roads were targeted by unscrupulous scrap metal thieves.
The theft of metal grates or drain covers is an ongoing problem for all local authorities: a quick "google" search of the problem shows that councils across the country are falling prey to the thieves: in June 2008 in Harrow, London, 40 were stolen in two weeks with a replacement cost of £450 each; in October 2009 in Derbyshire, 35 were stolen in one day, replacement cost £140 each; in South Leeds in May 2010, 30 were stolen in one night with a replacement cost of £300 each; and the list goes on. It may sound like relatively small amounts but consider the problem facing Bradford in 2009.
In 2009 Bradford MBC had 900 gully gratings stolen in just 3 months. They estimated this would cost the council between £180,000 and £280,000 to replace. The cost includes the excavation of the old Gully frame unit and then the reinstatement of a brand new product. Then of course, there is also the risk that the gratings would be stolen in the future. In fact, in 2008, the Daily Mail reported that 50,000 grates were stolen countrywide, which they estimated would cost the taxpayer £1.5 million to replace.
Furthermore, the theft of metal grates presents a potentially fatal series of hazards for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists as the exposed chamber holes can be up to 450mm wide and up to 1.2metre in depth. Then there is the added risk of a compensation claim should a council fail to replace a grating quickly enough. [Although it has not happened in this country, in Bejjing China, one man recently died after falling into a drain whose ductile iron cover had been stolen. The threat is real.]
It was against a backdrop of these problems that PDS Launched the Envirograte product in 2009. Envirograte is a 100% Composite, lightweight (all below 20kg so far!), slip resistant gully grating unit which is designed to withstand heavy vehicular traffic and has no resale value therefore is not attractive to thieves. Furthermore, it presents an instant repair solution; units can be cut to size and there is no need to prepare or replace the existing frames thus offering a further saving on labour costs.
PDS are able to manufacture gully gratings to the specific requirements of a local authority if our standard sizes do not suit. This has recently been done for Bradford MBC and Kent Medway Council as a solution to the problem caused by the theft of a non-standard grating. Bradford and Medway approached PDS to make a replacement grating as the units stolen were either very specific to that Authority, or to the geographic area. PDS would be able to save Bradford MBC over £100,000 for the 900no mentioned and as you would expect none of the grates would be stolen! PDS now offer 5 sizes of gratings. It is available in 550 x 340 x 45mm depth; 475 x 475 x 80mm; 365 x 365 x 85mm dished for Bradford; and a 600mm x 400mm x 40mm dished for Kent Medway. Any of these can be cut down to size with a standard power saw.
Unsurprisingly, Envirograte is proving to be a real success. Suffice to say the cost compares very favourably to the full replacement solution with minimal time required to affect an immediate repair.
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