Mumbai: BMC switches to new tech for construction of piles, to shave project cost, time

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s decision to switch to monopile foundation technology from multiple-pile foundation to construct pillars for bridge and interchanges of the coastal road project will not only help reduce its cost by Rs 12 crore but also its build time by three months, officials said.

The 10.58-km coastal road project will be constructed from Princess Street to Worli. The civic body will use the new technology for the construction of piles from Priyadarshini Park to Baroda Palace and Baroda Palace to Worli end of Bandra-Worli Sea Link, officials said.
In the monopile technology, only one pile is required for supporting a pillar, while in the case of current technology multiple piles are needed. The new technology will reduce the number of piles from 704 to 176, officials said.

Civic officials said this is the first time in India when this technology will be used. When work on the coastal road was started, the multiple pile foundation technology was finalised for pillar construction. Currently, 35 per cent of work on the project has been completed.

On Wednesday, a proposal of Rs 5.91 crore increase in contract cost of general consultant AECOM for the monopile foundation technology will be tabled before the BMC’s Standing Committee. However, the BMC has clarified that it will not have to bear the cost as contractors awarded the project will pay the general consultant for an increase in the original cost.

According to the proposal, the monopile technology will help BMC save Rs 5.10 crore for work on the Priyadarshini Park to Baroda Palace stretch and another Rs 6.84 crore from Baroda Palace to Worli. While the first stretch is being executed by L&T, work on the second contract was awarded to the joint venture of HCC-HDC.

Civic officials said that the technology will also help the civic body to complete the project three months before its deadline of July 2023.