A Tier 1 main contractor preparing a town-centre redevelopment in St Albans needed an existing 11kV cable diverted out from beneath the new building footprint. The DNO had agreed the diversion in principle, but the route ran across the high street footway — a Section 58 location with high amenity reinstatement and a six-month restriction on disturbing the surface.
We were brought on by the main contractor to deliver the trenching, ducting, cable pulling and jointing as a single package, with the DNO providing the new cable and a network outage window.
What the job involved
- Coordinated PAS 128 utility survey and trial holes on the proposed route.
- 220m of duct laid in an open trench, with HAUC-compliant bedding and warning tile.
- Pull of 185mm² 11kV XLPE between the existing tee-joint pit and the new termination chamber.
- Two straight joints under DNO supervision during the agreed outage window.
- Permanent reinstatement to high-amenity footway spec.
Key challenges
- Section 58 restriction meant we had one chance to get the trench, duct, joint pits and surface back in.
- Live BT chambers along the route — re-routed twice on site to maintain access.
- Heritage paving had to be lifted whole, palletised and re-laid in original orientation.
Outcome
- Diversion completed within the planned six-week programme.
- Reinstatement passed the local authority's high-amenity inspection first time.
- DNO ring restored to full operational state inside the agreed outage window.
I expected to be arguing with the council about the paving for weeks. Their reinstatement was signed off on the first inspection — that's never happened to me on a high street job.
— Project Engineer, St Albans, Hertfordshire
Need something similar?
If you're planning a cable pulling job across North London or the Home Counties — talk to us about scope, sequencing and a price. We work directly with DNOs, ICPs, main contractors and developers.