ZA

Great partnerships and innovation to overcome complex challenges.

Project overview

The ZA project incorporated the replacement of overhead lines stretching from the Elstree substation just south of Watford to the Sundon substation just north of Luton.

The contract involved installing a higher rated conductor along a single circuit of the route, which is needed to enhance power flow into London. The route consists of 104 overhead line towers, spanning 35km.  

Protecting People at the core 

Finding ways to pull new cables between towers on either side of the M1 motorway required some out of the box thinking and investment. With some of the replacement spanning across the UK motorway network,  putting towers up over the motorway wasn’t an option, so the team introduced the Catch Block Quad System to safely remove and then pull through the cables at height. The system will catch any falling cables, avoiding risk to both people and the road below as well as the the cable itself.    

On competition, the team completed with no RIDDORs (serious reportable incidents and near misses) or category two to four incidents (ones which require treatment or investigation and action.)   There was no reported environmental harm, showcasing our total commitment to improving the environment and space in and around where we work.   

Working with Voltage Engineering 

To help us deliver such a tight schedule, we called on our partners Voltage Engineering for additional line workers, which required close coordination to ensure we worked as one team, ensuring everyone worked to our high standards for Protecting People and quality.