HS2’s Logistics Milestone
HS2’s London Logistics Hub, operated by the Skanska Costain STRABAG Joint Venture (SCS JV), celebrates a significant milestone – the transportation of one million tonnes of spoil by rail. This achievement has already taken 110,000 lorry movements off the roads, contributing to a more sustainable construction process.
The Logistics Operation
The Logistics Hub manages the transportation of excavated material from various HS2 sites. Over the course of the project, the Hub will transfer and transport over five million tonnes of spoil. At peak, seven trains per day will depart from the London Logistics Hub, with three per day departing at present. Each train takes 1,500 tonnes of material – the equivalent of 80 lorry loads.
The material from HS2’s work is brought to the site on a network of conveyors, which were switched on in November 2022 by the HS2 Minister, Huw Merriman. The operation at Willesden sees the material being transferred onto rail wagons which are then taken to sites in Kent, Rugby and Cambridgeshire, where the material will be used for beneficial re-use projects, including a nature reserve for birds.
A Collaborative Effort
The enormous logistics operation is managed inside the site’s state of the art control room. The team can see how much spoil is on site, monitor the loading into the wagons and ensure that the operation meets the railway timetable. SCS JV worked collaboratively with Sheffield based company, 3Squared, to develop the software being used for rail logistics.
Celebrating Progress
Celebrating the progress, Malcolm Codling, Project Client at HS2 Ltd, said: “The London Logistics Hub is at the beating heart of the HS2 operation in the capital, keeping the project on track to deliver Britain’s new low-carbon high speed railway in the most sustainable way. Transporting one million tonnes of spoil at this one site is no mean feat and has been achieved through effective collaboration and planning.”
