Case Study: Kilve Chantry, Somerset, England

This Grade II* listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument,was listed on English Heritage’s Heritage at Risk Register as “very bad” with a priority rating of “A”, the highest possible.

Structural Conservation Engineers Mann Williams were appointed to devise a sympathetic scheme to restore structural integrity to the remaining structure to preserve and protect it from further deterioration.

A temporary steel framed external support and bracing system had been put in place a few years ago to prevent a collapse of the gable which had a substantial lean outwards. This unsightly but effective structure was required to be removed and replaced by a permanent solution which had to be inobtrusive. The natural choice was the Cintec option which was selected by the engineers and readily approved by Historic England and the Somerset County conservation officer.

The scheme devised by Mann Williams included vertical Cintec anchors in pairs either side of the main windows in the gable wall and extending into the foundations. Cintec consolidation anchors were set either side of the vertical anchors.

Subsequent to the transverse and vertical anchors being installed in the gable the structure’s stability in a vertical plane was further enhanced by horizontal Cintec anchors through the thickness of the gable at mid-height with bare section of bars projecting outwards and cast into a new concrete slab and beam set inside the building and behind the gable.

The Cintec consolidation and stitching works, undertaken by Falcon Structural Repairs, formed the 1st Phase of the Kilve Chantry restoration project, with other phased works being proposed to follow, on behalf of Historic England.

Pictured here are the first, second and final vertical lifts and installation, of the two pairs of 2 number M24 x 9500mm long Cintec were accomplished by
Falcon using a crane to hoist and place the vertical anchors in position prior to injecting Cintec’s unique cementitious grout “Presstec”.

The anchors are prepared at ground level by securing the fabric sock and grout feed tubes to the anchor body before being lifted into position.