Huge new playground needed drones to monitor installation progress

So the brief for a new play area near Waverley Junior Academy needed to be as impressive as any other features of the development, which is emerging from a brownfield site.

The Harworth Group is the major developer for the new community emerging on the site and they called in Bentley Project Management almost a year ago to come up with a joint plan for the feature.

Expertise for the project was provided by Thermmark Ltd, an award-winning thermoplastic manufacturer, which specialises in decorative public spaces.

The result is a colourful and eye-catching design, called a Fibonacci spiral, which provides a focal point at the heart of the community, covering 435 square metres.

Their design was so complex and the site so large, they had to use drones to monitor progress from above, to ensure the design was installed with the precision needed.

Thermmark project manager Ian Dunning said: “With the design being so mathematically critical and scaled up to cover such a large footprint, we had to concentrate on a really methodical approach to this project, so we actually made use of drones to ensure it remained accurate, as it was impossible to see this in its entirety at ground level.”

Company director Vicki Robinson added: “Although thanks to weather conditions, the project took longer than anticipated, we are really proud of our whole team who approached this project with the enthusiasm and excitement it rightly deserved - from our graphics department, to manufacture, and finally to installation, the attention to detail required has been huge to drive this to a successful conclusion.

“The nature of the project showcases the Fibonacci spiral beautifully and is an area which we are sure will be enjoyed and admired for years to come. It is a real accolade for all involved,” she said.

The Waverley site is on former industrial land, which was occupied by the Orgreave coking plant previously.

It is being developed as ‘mixed use’ site, with large amounts of new housing as well as commercial centres.