Piling activities

About the project

April 2014
Piling rig

The Moreton Bay Rail project will deliver a 12.6 km

dual-track passenger rail line between Petrie and KippaRing, including six new stations along the route. Major
construction has started and the project is planned to be
operational by late 2016, weather permitting. Thiess Pty Ltd
was awarded the contract to design and build the project.
The Lawnton to Petrie upgrade project will also be delivered
as part of the project. The upgrade of the track between
Lawnton and Petrie stations and additional work in the rail
corridor is required to integrate the new Moreton Bay Rail
services as well as supporting the freight network.

What is piling?
The installation of piles into the ground creates a solid
foundation to support the construction of large structures
such as bridges or buildings. The piles penetrate the ground,
reaching a strong layer of soil or rock in areas where the
ground lacks strength.
There are different methods of piling, depending on the type
of soil and/or the type of structure to be built.The number of
piles required in an area is also dependent on these factors.
Most piling activities are supported by a mobile crane which is
used to position the pile ready for piling to commence.

Types of piling
Bored piling involves the use of a vibratory hammer to drive
a permanent steel lining into the ground. Then a piling rig
is used to drill into the ground to create a hole, removing
material from within the newly installed liner.
Once the hole is created, a steel prefabricated reinforcement
cage is lowered into the hole. Concrete is then poured into the
hole to form the pile and once the concrete sets, the bored
pile is complete.
Driven piling involves hammering a precast (or pre-made)
concrete pile into the ground to a determined depth, using a
piling rig.
Sheet piling involves using vibration to drive interlocking
sheets of metal into the ground to form a barrier similar to a
retaining wall.
This method is often used when construction activities are
very close to existing structures as the piles only have minimal
disturbance to the ground and do not require any material to
be removed.

Piling on the Moreton Bay Rail project

The Moreton Bay Rail project alignment passes across varying
ground conditions over its 12.6km length. This, together with
the different structures to be built, will see a number of piling
methods used.

The project consists of 22 major bridge structures, all requiring

an element of piling to provide a solid foundation to support the
future structure.
Bridges will carry the rail over the road at Dohles Rocks,
Goodfellows and Brays Roads as well as the Bruce Highway.
Bridges will also provide crossings of Freshwater and Saltwater
Creeks and the North Pine River as well as other low-lying areas.
The six new stations will all require piling activities in the
location of the lift tower structures.

Noise and vibration

Noise can result from a range of activities and equipment used
during construction. Common sources of noise include heavy
machinery, trucks, piling rigs, power tools and mandatory
reverse squawkers on mobile equipment. The amount of noise
on a construction site may vary at any given time depending on
the activities being carried out.
Vibration is sometimes experienced by people living or working
near construction activities where heavy machinery is used.

For more information

For more information on the Moreton Bay Rail project
please contact our team on:
Telephone:
Email:
Web:

1800 096 821 (toll free)

moretonbayrail_info@thiess.com.au
www.moretonbayrail.qld.gov.au