Engineered protection for infrastructure and utilities in marine environments requires special know-how and expertise.
Infrastructure built in marine environments are exposed to many risks that may cause damage and affect long-term performance. Whether immersed or in close proximity to shorelines, it is possible to mitigate the risks associated with extreme weather, rising sea levels and exposure to sea water.
Sea walls
Reinforced Earth has designed and supplied materials for the construction of sea walls as part of many projects around the world. Working with public and private clients, our solutions offer proven performance when built in marine environments. Our protective and confinement walls are designed to protect infrastructure built near the shoreline or riverbank. We design walls with integral wave and flood deflecting features and water-channeling and drainage systems.
Reinforced Earth® wall solutions can be designed and dimensioned with galvanized steel strips or with geosynthetic reinforcements, offering more options to reach expected service life and optimal performance.
Our TechWall™ precast cantilever wall and T-Wall® precast gravity wall can also be used to build sea walls. These alternatives allow for more design options, for instance when building in narrow spaces or for construction directly in water. Easy and quick to install, while ensuring for long-term service life, our precast retaining walls are an excellent fit to marine environments.
Coastal protection
For coastal protection and coastal damage control, our TerraDyke™ geotextile tubes are commonly used to build self-standing gravity barriers. Protective levees, groynes and breakwaters provide protection to nearby construction sites, or to permanently mitigate risks related to unpredictable sea levels. They can also be used for shoreline reconstruction and rehabilitation.
Scour and erosion control
Extreme water levels and current fluctuations can cause erosion and scour. Shorelines and nearby infrastructure are at risk of degradations when not protected. Geotextile formed concrete mattresses, Articulated Concrete Block (ACB) mattresses can be used to protect shorelines from erosion and scour.
Pipeline and cable protection
Oil and Gas pipelines and cables often pass through waterways as part of the energy supply and telecommunication networks. It is necessary to protect these pipelines and cables from any impact or deformation that causes the release of chemical materials into the sea or provoke electricity or telecommunication breakdown. TechRevetment™ geosynthetic formed concrete mattresses and Articulated Concrete Blocks are often used to cover and shelter these networks from risk of damage.
Related solutions
Reinforced Earth®
Reinforced Earth®
Our flagship technique, Reinforced Earth®, is based on the principle of the friction between soil and reinforcements creating a permanent and predictable bond. At the origin of all mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) walls on the market today, we are continuously perfecting this ingenious technique.
TerraLink™
TerraAnchor™
TerraAnchor™
TerraAnchor™ is used for soil reinforcement applications. It is used for permanent and temporary stabilization of existing slopes and structures by using high tensile galvanized steel rods as soil reinforcement for permanent applications, or galvanized steel strands for temporary applications. Reinforced Earth provides a range of anchor load capacity selections that reach up 15-tons and driven to variable depths.
TerraNail™
TerraNail™
Reinforced Earth and subsidiary companies offer TerraNail™, for installing passive soil and rock anchoring and stabilization systems. This solution is widely specified by geotechnical engineers for builders and earth workers to install adequate measures to ensure stability and take control of embankment soil and rock displacement, foundation instability, mass erosion, and retention facing displacements.