Breathing new life into a Norwich marina

Fencraft Marine sits on the water's edge in Norwich and is owned by Ray Hilburn. Due to its stunning setting and ample boat mooring facilities, it has been a popular destination for relaxing staycations since the late 1970s. In early 2017, Ray contacted Liniar's Technical Sales Manager Les Paternoster about a challenge he was facing at the marina, hoping Liniar's 100% recycled PVCu trench piling could provide a solution.

Deterioration of the old, timber piling which was supporting the pier along the riverbank had become a serious issue. Ray and his team at Fencraft needed a long-term solution that was environmentally friendly and wouldn't break the bank. Before they would commit to an order, Ray requested some samples of Liniar’s plastic piling and needed time to assess them and make a decision. Les sent them samples, and it took around a year for Ray and his team to make a final decision and advance the project.

When asked what made the decision so difficult, Ray explained, "You think that recycled materials are going to be cheap and there’s a perception that products made using them are going to be inferior. It was hard to justify increasing our original budget so we could go with Liniar’s trench piling, however we realised being made from recycled PVCu hadn’t lowered the quality and it’s an extremely well-engineered product. In the end, we accepted that it was more expensive than we thought and because the quality was so good (and we’d never have to replace it!) we were willing to pay for it."

The biggest obstacle during the installation was maintaining structural support while replacing all the rotten timber. We asked Ray how he overcame this, and he comments, "We ordered 25 metres of the trench piling and were worried that we'd have to have special equipment to install it.

"Surprisingly, we installed all of it by hand, with nothing but a rubber mallet. We were able to position and secure it without any loss of support.

"We're thrilled with the results of the project and still have several metres to replace in the months ahead. The neighbouring marinas have seen our new PVCu trench piling, and they're really impressed with it. I think Liniar will be receiving calls off them in the near future to replace their rotting railway sleepers as well!"

Liniar's plastic piling range includes a host of features which make it attractive for applications from peat bog preservation to marine conservation and the reclamation of land lost to erosion. The plastic piling range from Liniar doesn’t rust or rot, won't spark and isn't affected by salt water. With the ability to create curved walls, and with log pile even designed with a wood composite fascia to offer a soft engineering appearance, PVCu piling from Liniar has a wide variety of uses.