West Wales haulage,
civil engineering and aggregates contractor GD Harries is celebrating the
completion of one of its most unusual projects yet: the creation of a new
velodrome in Carmarthen.
The £500k structure
is believed to be the first and only concrete velodrome in the UK.
It posed some
interesting challenges for the contractor, who had to find a way to pour
concrete onto a sloped surface without gravity redistributing it before it set.
"The shape of a
velodrome has no horizontal or flat areas; event the straits are slightly
inclined, so laying concrete is quite challenging," said senior quantity
surveyor Richard Burton.
"We had to come
up with method of getting it accurate, and making sure the concrete stayed
where it was supposed to. We achieved it by pouring the concrete into a series
of bays, continually moving from the bottom to the top of each bay as we poured."
The velodrome, which
was funded by Carmarthen Town Council, Carmarthenshire County Council, Sports
Wales and Welsh Cycling, opened at the end of October. It is used by the public
and by local cycle team Towy Riders.
The construction
required 570m³ of concrete, which GD Harries supplied, and it is expected
to last 50 years. It replaces the original velodrome, which was built in the
early 20th century.
An added benefit of
the new velodrome is that its concrete surface enables cyclists to travel at
higher speeds than on velodromes made from other materials.
"We were
delighted to take this on as it's such an unusual project," said Richard.
"We enjoyed the challenge of finding the best method to use, and we're
very pleased with the finished result."
The velodrome was
officially opened by Carmarthen Mayor Cllr Alun Lenny, who praised GD Harries'
work.
"The
redevelopment of this facility, first used over 100 years ago, has been a
challenging but really interesting project and my thanks go to all who have
worked so hard to make this happen," he said.
"It would not
have been possible without the financial support of Carmarthen Town Council,
Carmarthenshire County Council and Sport Wales. Also the people on the project
team, including Carl Morgan the project manager, Alun Harries the Clerk of the Town
Council and of course the contractors GD Harries who have done such a fine job.
We now look forward to the next chapter in the story of Carmarthen
velodrome."
