Results
Delivered a technically demanding package of geotechnical works on a nationally significant dam.
Enhanced structural resilience and spillway capacity in line with safety upgrade objectives.
Enabled successful dam operation during extreme rainfall shortly after project completion.
Provided State Water with reliable, re-stressed anchors designed for ongoing performance monitoring.
Project
Solution
Installed rock bolts to strengthen and widen the spillway.
Constructed permanent post-tensioned anchors, including 19-strand multistrand anchors drilled to 30m depth.
Applied rope access methods and winches to safely execute drilling and anchor installation.
Conducted pre-grouting processes, testing, and locked off anchors with re-stressable heads for long-term monitoring.
Project
Challenges
Working on 45° slopes and spillways requiring rope access and winch-assisted drilling.
Extreme weather variations, from freezing winter temperatures to over 45°C in summer.
Requirement for precision drilling and metre-by-metre video surveillance of anchor holes.
Maintaining the safety and integrity of State Water’s critical infrastructure asset during complex works.
Project
Overview
Owned and operated by State Water Corp, Blowering Dam is the sixth largest embankment dam and ninth highest in Australia. As part of a major safety upgrade, Geovert completed several specialist packages of work, including spillway strengthening, rock bolting, and the installation of permanent post-tensioned anchors.
These works were carried out under challenging conditions on steep slopes and extreme seasonal temperatures, supporting MacMahon’s construction program of raising the spillway training walls and parapet crest wall. The upgrade was immediately proven effective when the region experienced severe rainfall in December 2010, with the dam exceeding capacity without incident.