Cintec North America has undertaken vital restoration work on The Red House, also known as the seat of Parliament for the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
The project is significant in the history of structural engineering; one of the reinforcement anchors inserted is believed to be the longest in the world, measuring 120 feet in length. It was also the first time that Cintec had used 3D printing for sacrificial parts.
In 2007, Cintec’s North American division was asked to advise Genivar, Engineers, (also known as W.S.P) and C.E.P on The Red House’s required repairs. After lengthy discussions with Genivar and having an already triumphant track record in strengthening many of the world’s prestigious landmarks such as the White House and the Egyptian Pyramids, Cintec began working on The Red House in 2017.
Cintec’s approved contractor, Celtest of Bangor (located in North Wales), was awarded the contract to install the Cintec Reinforcement System under the guidance of project manager Jason Chinery. Cintec provided additional specialist training and long reinforcements bars to Celest to ensure there would be no long hole drilling issues during the restoration.
During trials, it was calculated that the positioning of the drill would be deliberately pointing upwards at 0.50 degrees. This would compensate for the force of gravity pulling down the core barrel, which was over 38m/125 ft in length, and proved extremely effective.
Robert Lloyd-Rees, managing director of Cintec North America, said: “Accuracy is critical during a project such as this, misalignment by one degree would mean the drill exiting at the wrong point causing a great deal of damage to the structure.
“We spent a great deal of time and used all of our own unique techniques to ensure that the project would be completely successful in restoring such an historic structure to its former glory.”
