PROJECT INFORMATION
Location
Wales
Client
Mott MacDonald Bentley
End Client
Welsh Water
Year
2025
Water Sector
Mott MacDonald Bentley partnered with Hyperion Robotics to deliver a new generation of prefabricated foundations for Welsh Water’s Usk Reservoir upgrade programme. The project required the installation of 66 pipe support foundations within a constrained dam environment while maintaining strict operational, environmental and safety requirements.
Hyperion developed a Eurocode-compliant foundation system manufactured offsite using advanced construction methods, combining 3D-printed formwork with reinforced concrete casting. This approach significantly reduced material demand while enabling faster installation compared with traditional in-situ construction methods.
The optimised design delivered substantial project benefits, including a programme acceleration of three times compared to traditional construction, shortening the site programme by approximately eight weeks. At the same time, the foundations reduced concrete demand by 560 tonnes, cutting embodied carbon by an estimated 70 tonnes of CO₂.
By manufacturing the foundations offsite, Hyperion also simplified installation within the reservoir environment, reducing lifting requirements, on-site labour and construction risk while maintaining consistent structural performance across all 66 assets.
The project demonstrates how modern manufacturing approaches can help utilities deliver essential infrastructure faster, safer and with significantly lower environmental impact.
