Flood team wins award

15/11/2007

AN engineering team which worked for more than a year to restore drinking water to a floodhit North-East market town has won their employer a major award.

Storms during January 2005 washed away two pipelines into Hexham, cutting off the drinking water supply and forcing Northumbrian Water to provide emergency supplies.

A civil engineering team from Gateshead-based Byzak worked to run new pipes below the River Tyne, which were ready within a month, and the £2.7m project was completed within its 64-week deadline.

The firm was rewarded with the project of the year accolade at the North-East Civil Engineering Contractors Association (Ceca) awards.

Byzak design manager Iain Foster said: "We tunnelled the Tyne without causing a ripple in the end. And precision engineering brought the tunnel in on line and level."

Douglas Kell, director of Ceca North-East, said: "The judges were impressed that the tunnel was driven in such an area of natural beauty and tranquillity. It testifies to the success."

9:32am Thursday 15th November 2007

The Northern Echo - www.thenorthernecho.co.uk