Overview
Everything that matters happens before the concrete is placed.
Reservoirs are unforgiving structures. Almost everything that determines whether one holds water happens before the concrete is placed — cover control, waterstop continuity, joint positions, mix design and the pour sequence — and almost none of it can be corrected afterwards without considerable cost and embarrassment.
Malanc Projects builds reinforced concrete reservoirs and water-retaining structures start to finish: bulk earthworks, base slab, walls, columns and roof, followed by the mechanical and electrical fit-out of inlet, outlet, scour, overflow, level instrumentation and telemetry.
Scope of works
What this covers.
Each item is work we self-perform or directly supervise.
- Bulk earthworks and platform
- Excavation, subgrade preparation, proof rolling and compacted layer work to create a platform that will not settle differentially.
- Base slabs and kickers
- Blinding, base slab reinforcement with waterstops, kicker detail and controlled placement to limit early thermal cracking.
- Wall construction
- Wall shutter cycles with continuous waterstops, verified cover, planned pour sequence and a maintained curing regime.
- Columns and roof slabs
- Internal columns and suspended roof slabs with access hatches, vent stacks and safety provisions built in.
- Inlet, outlet, scour and overflow
- Complete mechanical arrangements including puddle flanges, valves, penstocks and pipework built into the structure at the correct stage.
- Level instrumentation and telemetry
- Level measurement and remote monitoring installed and commissioned as part of the works rather than retrofitted.
- Access and safety provisions
- Handrails, ladders, access hatches, walkways and fall protection fabricated and installed.
- Waterproofing and protective coatings
- Waterproofing systems and potable-water-approved coatings applied to specification where required.
- Watertightness testing and disinfection
- Staged filling, standing period, measured drop against the specified allowance, then disinfection and clearance before commissioning.
- Reservoir refurbishment
- Investigation, crack repair, joint replacement, recoating and structural repair of existing reservoirs returned to service.
Benefits
Why it matters who does this work.
Detailing as a controlled item
Waterstop continuity, cover and joint positions are inspected hold points, not incidental site decisions.
Placement and curing managed
Mix design, placement rate, compaction and curing controlled to limit the early thermal cracking that causes most reservoir leaks.
Mechanical built in, not cored in
Puddle flanges, penetrations and cast-in items positioned during construction rather than cut into cured concrete afterwards.
Tested to the specified allowance
Staged filling and measured drop against the specification, documented and offered as the acceptance record.
Monitored from day one
Level instrumentation and telemetry commissioned as part of the works so the asset is visible from handover.
Safe access designed in
Handrails, hatches, ladders and fall protection installed so the structure can be inspected and maintained safely.
Our process
How we deliver it.
Each stage produces something you can inspect, test or file.
Site establishment and earthworks
Setting out from survey control, bulk excavation, subgrade preparation and compacted layer work with density testing.
Base slab
Blinding, waterstop installation, reinforcement fixing with verified cover, and controlled concrete placement and curing.
Walls and kickers
Shutter cycles with continuous waterstops at every construction joint, pour sequence planned to minimise restraint cracking.
Columns, roof and access
Internal columns and roof slab constructed with hatches, vent stacks, ladders and fall protection built in.
Sectors
Industries this serves.
The same discipline applied to different operating environments.
Gallery
Reservoir Construction on our sites.
Questions
Frequently asked.
It depends on capacity, ground conditions and access, but a medium-sized reinforced concrete reservoir including earthworks, structure, fit-out and testing is commonly a six to twelve month programme. The wall shutter cycle and the curing and testing periods are the elements least amenable to compression, and we will not pretend otherwise to win an award.
The structure is filled in controlled stages, allowed to stand so that absorption stabilises, and the drop in level is then measured over a defined period and compared against the allowance in the specification, with evaporation accounted for. If the drop exceeds the allowance, the leak is found and repaired at our cost before the structure is accepted.
Overwhelmingly because of construction joint detailing and early thermal cracking, not because concrete is inherently porous. Discontinuous or displaced waterstops, inadequate cover, poor compaction around congested reinforcement, unplanned pour sequences and curing that stopped early are the recurring causes — every one of them a site discipline issue.
Frequently, yes, and it is usually far cheaper. We start with an investigation to establish whether the problem is joints, cracking, coating failure or structural degradation, then price a repair scope against it. Where a structure genuinely has reached end of life we will tell you that rather than selling you a repair that will not last.
Yes — inlet, outlet, scour, overflow, valves, level instrumentation and telemetry. Keeping this within the same appointment is precisely why our reservoirs do not require cored penetrations through finished concrete.
Related services
Often delivered together.
Combining disciplines under one appointment removes interface risk.
Civil Engineering
Layer works, reinforced concrete, brickwork, steel fixing, waterproofing and pipe laying for water infrastructure.
Learn more
Water & Sanitation
Pump houses, bulk water, treatment process works and sanitation infrastructure delivered end to end.
Learn more
Telemetry & Instrumentation
Remote monitoring, SCADA integration, level and flow instrumentation for water networks.
Learn more
Pipe Fabrication
Workshop and on-site fabrication of steel spools, bends, headers and manifolds to drawing.
Learn more
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