Historic Cast Iron Bridge Beams Reused In Manchester Park

A carbon saving project in Mayfield Park, Manchester has made use of the existing industrial heritage to create a new area of recreational space.

A carbon saving project in Mayfield Park, Manchester has made use of the existing industrial heritage to create a new area of recreational space along the banks of the River Medlock. New Civil Engineer reports that engineers have used as much of the existing materials as possible, including cast iron beams to form the culvert of various bridges at the site.

Civic Engineers director and Mayfield design team lead Julian Broster said: “In our approach to the development of Mayfield, we saw a real opportunity to use our progressive low carbon engineering methods to reinstate the River Medlock as an authentic natural geographic feature, especially as it is set in a wider urban landscape.”

“Central to our approach has been the reuse and re-purposing of remnants of the different uses and activities that have accumulated on site over centuries, responsibly blended with the natural landscape.  It was a real team effort.”

The former industrial landscape has been transformed into a recreational area with wheelchair accessible play areas, rope bridges, slides, and crawl tunnels.

Lead structural engineer on the project Tomasz Lukaszewicz said: “This truly has been a once in a lifetime project. From the sheer scale of the work involved to the high standards we held for ourselves, we have delivered something so important, an iconic project that will transform this area of the city and its impact will be felt across the local community.”

“The approach to the park’s bridges has been very different, reusing ‘hog back shaped’ cast iron beams showcases the real out of the box thinking that has been present throughout the project so far. It’s exciting for all of us to work on something so important to Manchester and its future.” The park is due to open in September this year.

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