Home » Moving the earth for all-weather running track and 3G Pitch at Ammanford

Moving the earth for all-weather running track and 3G Pitch at Ammanford

When GD Harries were appointed as the principal contractor to create an all-weather running track and 3G sports pitch at the Amman Valley Leisure Centre, we knew we were taking on an interesting challenge.

The newly completed project, which commenced in May 2023, provides a 6-lane synthetic running track and all-weather football/rugby pitch. The new facility will used by Ysgol Dyffryn Aman secondary school and Actif Leisure, who operate Amman Valley Leisure Centre and will hire the facility out in the evenings to local sports teams and clubs as well as other members of the public.

Utilising the expertise of our in-house civil engineering team,. GD Harries undertook the preliminary earthworks, which involved moving 5000m³of soil. The surplus soil was used to landscape the site, significantly reducing lorry movements and disposal costs.

all-weather running track and 3G Pitch at Ammanford

We installed 1000m of filter drainage beneath the new track and pitch along with 500m of ducting to supply the new LED floodlighting system. As the installation of the all-weather rubber surfacing is weather dependent and the facility needed to be complete and ready for use by Winter 2023, we worked quickly to construct the base for the track and pitch, importing a colossal 11,000 tons of Type 3 sub-base. But this was not without its challenges and due to very tight site constraints, we first had to make alterations to the site access to allow articulated tippers to deliver the material.

The Type 3 sports sub-base was combined with porous asphalt layers to achieve a fully porous system, enabling water to attenuate in the on-site drainage system before feeding into the local drainage system by the use of a flow control manhole.

The facility was finished with 1000m of edging kerbs, footpaths and access points created for the new pitch. While our in-house team completed some of the surfacing works, the rubber surface of the track and synthetic carpet for the 3G pitch were installed by specialist subcontractors.

Designed by WSP, the facility is a huge asset for local football and rugby teams, as well as local athletics clubs and members of the public. Pupils at the on-site secondary school will be able to use the facility during the day encouraging progression into sports like football and rugby, following in the steps of the current women’s and men’s Welsh rugby team captains who attended the school.

Carmarthenshire County Council are delighted with the new facilities being delivered to communities of the Amman Valley. Cllr. Gareth John, Carmarthenshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Leisure, Culture and Tourism, said “Delivering a new 3G sports pitch at Ammanford along with developing a strategy and assessing the need for all weather pitches across the county are two objectives set out within the Council’s Cabinet Vision Statement.

“I’m therefore delighted to see these developments being realised ensuring first-class sports facilities for the whole of the Amman Valley.”

“This investment in the Amman Valley is all-important in developing the Council’s sport for all approach to support a broad range of participation in sports, from beginners to elite.”