BG&E was engaged to assess the durability of the Queen’s Wharf in Newcastle, which was built in 1988 for the bicentenary and consists of two mirrored L-head jetties connected to a long-shore platform.

We tested concrete elements and steel piles using both invasive and non-invasive testing.

This included

•  Visual inspection and mapping:
• • Assessing concrete, steel, timber, and masonry elements for defects.
  • Inspecting the rock wall for erosion or deterioration.

• Diving inspection:
  • Unwrapping, assessing, and rewrapping petrolatum tape and rubber sleeves on four piles.
  • Removing marine growth.
  • Evaluating corrosion above and below the low-water mark using visual and ultrasonic thickness testing.
• Concrete testing:
  • Scanning reinforcement depth and spacing.
  • Breakout testing to assess reinforcement condition, corrosion, and section loss.
  • Extracting concrete cores for compressive strength assessment, chloride testing (three cores, one per location), and additional compressive strength testing (three cores, one per location).

Based on durability modelling, remediation strategies were proposed and the residual service life was estimated.