LATEST DOCKLAND TOWER GUARANTEED A WATERPROOF FUTURE THANKS TO SIKA
Sika supplied the fully-comprehensive solution to provide the ultimate watertight protection for a basement within a commercial superstructure that is destined to earn ‘landmark’ status in London’s Canary Wharf.
Located within the capital’s thriving dockside district, 1 Bank Street will occupy a 5,000m2 footprint upon its completion. The stunning 28-storey building, which will be 145 metres above ground when complete, is designed to include cutting-edge trading floors on three levels. A large slip form core forms a significant part of the fully fitted-out building which has achieved an ‘Outstanding’ BREEAM rating, making it one of the most sustainable and desirable buildings of its type in London. Designed by globally-renowned architects, Kohn Pederson Fox Associates (KPF) in conjunction with structural engineers, Arup, 1 Bank Street will provide capacity for 6,000 full-time equivalent jobs, enhancing the role of Canary Wharf as a prime London office and employment location.
Due to the development’s construction on 25 metres of reclaimed land in a high water table area, Byrne Bros, the concrete contractors selected by the project’s clients, Canary Wharf Group, required a proven, high-performance system to put a long-term watertight seal on the basement. Sika’s waterproof solution proved ideal for the task.
The building’s concrete basement was designed to meet the requirements of a Grade 2 environment to BS 8102: 2015. It will contain a car park and vital plant equipment, hence a range of Sika products were used to provide the maximum waterproof protection to its reinforced raft slab. These included Sikaproof®A-12, a highly-durable, watertight membrane, and Sika® Watertight Concrete powder, a powerful state-of-the-art admixture. SikaSwell®-A profiles, which swell in contact with water, were used to seal the basement’s construction joints.
Vulnerable joints within the basement’s walls, which contained Sika® WT-200, a powerful, crystalline waterproofing admixture, were bolstered with SikaFuko® – a range of solid core PVC Injection Hose Systems. Sika Metalsheet FBV, a coated metal sheet with excellent adhesion to fresh concrete, was used in the structure’s kicker joint. Sikalastic®-1K, a flexible, fibre-reinforced mortar, was applied to pile heads and faces at slab interface junctions, whilst a Sika® Cavity Drainage membrane provided the basement’s south-east wall with a secondary layer of waterproof protection. SikaProof® P-12, a permanently-bonded, self-adhesive composite sheet membrane system, added a watertight layer to the basement’s toe projection. SikaProof® A-12, a composite sheet membrane, added a waterproof layer to the water-retaining dock wall.
Pierce McCready, Project Engineer at Byrne Bros, said: “The Sika waterproofing option ticked all the boxes for this huge project, hence its specification. For a high water table area it was imperative we selected a system that was proven and trustworthy. The Sika products didn’t let us down – the quality of their workable, durable properties is without question.”
The 1 Bank Street building is scheduled for completion in 2019. Its future as a landmark addition to Canary Wharf’s imposing and spectacular skyline will be long-term safeguarded at its base by Sika’s superior concrete waterproof system.
(Credited to Canary Wharf Group for the supply of the image. One Bank Street, Canary Wharf by Canary Wharf Group).
