Waterview Connection Tunnel

One of the largest civil engineering projects New Zealand has undertaken, the Waterview Connection completed Auckland’s motorway ring and linked the airport directly to the CBD. We delivered two critical elements: an innovative opening roof to assemble the tunnel-boring machine, and round-the-clock scaffold labour for the build.

The first was a mobile roof that let the cutter head of Alice — the boring machine — be assembled under shelter, with critical parts craned in as needed. Rather than a conventional shrink-wrapped roof, we used a Layher Keder Roof system, whose large sections could open and close on demand. That saved our client time and money and kept the project moving undercover, clear of weather delays.

We were then asked to supply 24/7 labour through the four months it took to get Alice operational, then scaffolders and materials for the rest of the project. At peak we had upwards of 45 crew on site on any given day; our health and safety systems and gear-stock management made sure the men and materials were always there when needed.

A project like this throws up situations never seen in New Zealand before, and we met each with a workable solution. Its success led directly to further critical civil work, including all four stages of the City Rail Link. The job was also featured by Layher New Zealand.