Located three miles south of Sherborne in northwest Dorset, the Higher Stockbridge Solar Park is being developed on an 80-hectare site comprising a collection of fields, mainly improved grassland. The solar farm layout includes a large construction compound, a substation compound, and approximately three kilometres of 4-metre-wide access tracks to facilitate the movement of vehicles across the site for initial construction as well as for future maintenance of the ground-mounted photovoltaic solar modules.
Overcoming Site Challenges with Innovation
The site poised significant engineering challenges due to ‘loamy and clayey’ soil composition, which impeded drainage and made road-building difficult. Instead of resorting to excessive aggregate importation, Aider UK, the project’s contractor, turned to Naue’s Combigrid® technology. This geosynthetic solution, already proven in previous installations, provided the stability and durability needed for the park’s extensive access network.
The Combigrid® Advantage
Naue’s Combigrid®, a fusion of geotextile and geogrid layers, delivered multiple benefits essential for the project. The integrated design simplified installation, offering superior separation, filtration, stabilisation, and reinforcement. With high tensile strength at low elongations, Combigrid® allowed for a significant reduction in the required aggregate depth, leading to cost and resource savings.
“Although obviously well-placed to benefit from sunlight, the site conditions were hardly conducive to road building without importing copious volumes of aggregate to create a sound base,” says Naue’s sales manager for southern England and Wales, Jake White, “and in many areas, excavations prepared for the tracks and compounds quickly transformed into rivers and ponds!
“Combigrid® was perfect for this application”, continued Jake. “The amalgamation of a geotextile and a geogrid layer in a single product, simplifies installation on projects where separation, filtration, stabilisation and reinforcement properties are all essential. In addition, the geogrid’s excellent tensile strength at low elongations reduces the depth of the aggregate layer significantly.”
A Sustainable Future with Geosynthetics
Naue supplied 50 rolls of Combigrid®, each roll being 100 metres long and 4.75 metres wide, perfectly sized for the 4-metre access tracks. Installed directly onto the soft subgrade, the geosynthetic material improved bearing capacity, reduced surface deformation, and extended the service life of the roads, ensuring long-term stability for vehicle access and maintenance operations.
By integrating Naue’s innovative geosynthetic technology, the Higher Stockbridge Solar Park showcases how sustainable engineering solutions can efficiently tackle challenging ground conditions.
For more information on how Naue can support your project, visit the website.
Image – Naue.