Sea Wall Strengthening, Ilfracombe, North Devon
During the refurbishment of a holiday park in Ilfracombe, the owners were concerned by the poor condition of a sea wall at their site boundary. The wall is located above the high tide but is sometimes vulnerable to storm waves. Frederick Sherrell Limited carried out a ground investigation to establish the thickness of the wall […]
Ground Investigation at Gem Bridge, West Devon
An integral part of the Devon Coast to Coast National Cyle Route is the crossing of the River Walkham, near Tavistock. The cycle route follows the old railway but the original railway viaduct was demolished in the 1960’s, so the only option for cyclists was to negotiate the steep sides of the Walkham Valley. A […]
Quarry Inspection, South Devon
Quarry companies are required to carry out regular safety inspections of the excavated quarry faces and tips and to commission a geotechnical assessment at least every two years. Frederick Sherrell Limited carry out these inspections for many quarries in the South West. The field work is carried out by trained engineering geologists and the reports […]
Old Coal Mine, North Devon
Coal mining in North Devon was carried out at East-the Water and Bideford in the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries. When a new road was planned across an area of suspected historical coal mining Frederick Sherrell Limited were asked to undertake and investigation to establish the extent of old mine workings. Documentary records […]
Old Metalliferous Mine Site, Dartmoor, Devon
Dartmoor has a long history of mining for tin and other metalliferous ores. The remains of some of these old mines are still clearly visible in the remote areas of open moorland but in other, more populated areas, very few signs of the mining legacy remain. An essential part of investigating old mines sites is […]
Rockfall Control Measures at the New RNLI Lifeboat Station, St Davids, Pembrokeshire
Frederick Sherrell Limited were asked to undertake a detailed geotechnical assessment of the cliff face next to the proposed new lifeboat station and to use that assessment to prepare a detailed specification, drawings and bill of quantities for the rockfall protection works. These works were to be completed prior to the construction of the lifeboat […]
Cliff Failure at Oddicombe Beach, South Devon
The cliffs overlooking Oddicombe Beach in Torquay are about 60-70m high and are formed of strong breccia with some interbeds and lenses of much weaker sandstone. The cliffs are prone to rockfalls and for many years engineering geologists from Frederick Sherrell have carried out inspections on behalf of the Local Authority and when necessary, advised […]
Ground Investigation at Bridge Site
The road deck of an old bridge was in a poor condition and in need of replacement and the client required geotechnical information to assist with the design calculations. In the first instance Frederick Sherrell Limited carried out a desk study and walkover inspection to check the likely ground conditions. Old borehole logs and historical […]
West Devon Soil Slope Stabilisation
During an exceptionally wet winter in 2020/2021 cracks started to appear along the edge of a main road in West Devon. Frederick Sherrell Limited undertook an initial engineering geological inspection for the Local Authority and concluded that the most likely cause was the poor condition of an old retaining wall supporting the side of an […]
Great Torrington Rockfall
In January 2022 a large rockfall occurred from a roadside cutting and blocked a main road in North Devon. A geotechnical inspection by an engineering geologist from Frederick Sherrell Limited indicated that the rockfall was caused by a sliding failure on steeply inclined fractures in the bedrock strata, possibly triggered by tree roots loosening the […]