BE Design offer Geo-Environmental Services to support a scheme from initial Due Diligence through to Completion. We are able to work with clients to understand their requirements and, in turn, provide preliminary site assessments and early design solutions to manage the ground risk effectively.

Our team are experts in the regulatory process and can offer planning advice at any stage of development, including expert witness services to support planning appeals. Similarly, we can undertake technical reviews and provide a second opinion with a view to delivering pragmatic value engineering and helping the client manage challenging project requirements. The team works across a variety of sectors, including industrial, commercial, education and residential, and is proud to unlock value on brownfield regeneration sites with complex ground conditions.

Our specialist team of geotechnical engineers can provide ground engineering support from recommendations on foundation options as part of the due diligence process through to detailed geotechnical advice, earthworks design and settlement analysis. We will also organise and supervise any associated ground investigations, as well as providing site presence during the validation of earthworks or ground improvement activities.

The team also has substantial experience of sites with a history of coal mining. Through extensive assessment and investigation, we can work with the client team to unlock value in these complex coal mining legacy sites. We can liaise with specialist contractors to determine the most pragmatic approach to remediation and grouting.

Our geotechnical services include:

• Preliminary Ground Conditions Report / Geotechnical Desk Study
• Geotechnical Investigations
• Geotechnical Assessment to provide recommendations on foundations, floor slabs, earthworks, settlement, road pavements, infiltration
• Geotechnical Design Reports, including analysis of specific issues such as settlement or slope stability
• Earthworks Design, Specification & Validation
• Ground Improvement Strategies

• Coal Mining Risk Assessment and Investigation
• Coal Mining Remediation Strategy, including Drill & Grout Specification

With regard to the management of contaminated land, our team can provide a full range of services to meet the requirements of planning policy and the Environment Agency’s Land Contamination Risk Management guidance, including:

• Desk-based Phase I Preliminary Risk Assessment
• Intrusive Ground Investigation & Reporting
• Phase II Land Contamination Assessment including Generic Quantitative Risk Assessment (GQRA)
• Ground Gas Risk Assessments
• Detailed Quantitative Risk Assessment (DQRA) including the derivation of site-specific assessment criteria and detailed modelling to quantify the risks identified as part of the GQRA
• Piling Risk Assessments to identify and assess the risks associated with piling or penetrative ground improvement on land impacted by contamination
• Remediation Strategy to set out mitigation methods to address any land contamination issues, and validation thereof
• Provide input to Environmental Impact Assessments

BE Design can also produce Materials Management Plans while working with design teams from a very early stage to minimise the disposal of waste and ensure the sustainable re-use of soils. Our Geo-Environmental Director is also a Qualified Person under CL:AIRE’s Definition of Waste Code of Practice for Waste Soils.