A giant stainless-steel vortex system – and a single piece of pipe large enough to house an entire Tube carriage – have been delivered to Tideway’s Hammersmith site. 

These two giant pieces of equipment will form the centrepiece of the work taking place at Hammersmith Pumping Station as part of the super sewer project. 

Around two million tonnes of sewage overflows from the pumping station and into the River Thames every single year.

Tideway is working to divert those flows into a new 25km super sewer, currently under construction deep beneath the river. 

However, at Hammersmith these flows need to drop down a 15-metre-deep shaft – which is why the vortex is needed. 

Falling that distance, the flows would wear away the bottom of the shaft; but the 28-tonne vortex generator will ‘spin’ the flows down the pipe, removing the energy and preserving the base. 

The 21-metre-long, 65-tonne pipe section of the system, which will be installed into the shaft vertically, has had over 1,000 stainless steel studs painstakingly welded onto its outer wall that will slot into place when installed.  

Both of these enormous structures were manufactured by a specialist firm in Cumbria, and made the 326-mile journey to London late last month following a meticulous six-month build. 

Hammersmith Section Manager John Corcoran said: “A huge amount of work went into producing and moving these two mammoth pieces of equipment and it is a fantastic achievement for the Tideway project to take delivery of them on site.

“I’d like to say a massive thank you to everyone involved as well as to our neighbours who live in the vicinity of the worksite at Hammersmith Pumping Station, whose patience while this vital equipment was delivered is very much appreciated.”