Following a competitive tender process, Turfdry were appointed by the University of Warwick to install new drainage systems on a trio of sports pitches as part of the ongoing £49 million investment project in its sporting facilities. This project was driven by the objective of enriching its students’ lives, empowering and inspiring them to embrace the opportunities offered by sport as part of a well-rounded life, to make the University into the country’s “most physically active campus”.

Although a huge array of activities are catered for by the University’s 1,550m2 Sports Hub, football and rugby are amongst the most popular sports on campus; however, recent years have seen a steady rise in the number of cancelled practice sessions and fixtures as a result of persistent waterlogging issues on the natural turf sports fields.

Whilst the impact of this waterlogging on the teams that rely on it most regularly was of the most pressing concern, the University’s hosting of 1900 athletes for the 2022 Commonwealth Games deepened its resolve to offer top-class sports facilities across the board.  

Specification

The specification for the tender was a traditional two-tier drainage system involving a secondary layer of gravel-bands over a primary layer of perforated 80mm diameter plastic pipes. Whilst Turfdry won the tender on this basis, the University was intrigued by the potential benefits of Hydraway Sportsdrain – the unique alternative to plastic pipe offered by Turfdry.

Installed in trenches cut to 60-65mm wide, Hydraway has a substantially smaller installation profile than conventional plastic pipe drainage, the trenches for which are generally 95-100mm wide. This means that any disruption brought about by the initial installation is significantly reduced; moreover, the degree of trench sinkage – an unavoidable consequence of any drainage installation – is significantly reduced by the narrower trenches.

Beyond these advantages, Hydraway’s greatest strength is its unique construction, which combines a crush-resistant core with a clog-resistant geotextile outer layer. Whilst the perforations of a conventional plastic pipe allow water to enter the drain through around 6% of its surface area, Hydraway’s geotextile is needle-punched with tiny, 140 micron diameter holes, which combined with its greater surface-area allows water to enter the drain 3x faster than conventional plastic pipes.

The upshot of this construction is twofold: firstly, the rate at which water is removed from the playing surface is increased significantly; secondly, the smaller perforations prevent silt from entering the drain and reducing its capacity or flow, thereby extending the effective functionality beyond that of a traditional plastic pipe system.

Finally, the increased intake rate of Hydraway in comparison to plastic pipe is such that a secondary layer – of sand-slits, for example, as per the original specification – is no longer required for the functionality of the primary drainage layer. This means a higher rate of drainage with fewer maintenance requirements, delivering premium drainage performance in a cost-effective manner.

Installation

Turfdry’s installation team is well-equipped, highly-motivated, and skilled, led by experience of over 25 years of successful projects delivered across the UK. Using bespoke machinery to enable an efficient, minimally-disruptive installation, the team is well-equipped to overcome the varied challenges that are a part of any project.

A particular challenge to this project was the existing pitch irrigation system, which obviously needed to remain functional subsequent to the installation of the drainage. Irrigation systems are typically installed at a greater depth than drainage trenches, for the express purpose of their not disturbing – or being disturbed by – any works to the pitch surface, including drainage. However, the existing irrigation system on some of the University pitches had been installed shallower than optimum depth, meaning that - irrespective of the type of drainage installed - there would be a conflict between functional irrigation and effective drainage.

Following extensive site investigations – conducted both by Turfdry, and by the University, who were pro-active partners in delivery of the works throughout – it was determined that the most cost-effective solution to this conflict was to install new, deeper irrigation infrastructure in those areas that intersected with the new drainage system, allowing the continued functionality of the irrigation system without compromising the drainage installation.

These complications dealt with, the installation was delivered smoothly, with a strong working relationship between Turfdry and the University ensuring a promptly-delivered, tidy project, which minimised disruption to the continuing activities elsewhere on the sports campus, as well as the general public, given that the pitches were adjacent to a public right of way.

The University of Warwick has monitored the performance of the new pitch drainage system subsequent to the installation, and deemed it to be effective, delivering a higher quality sports surface for its own teams as well as the visiting Commonwealth athletes earlier in 2022.