Partnering with Thames Water for Unmatched Longevity
Our 18-year partnership with Thames Water showcases how collaboration and innovation deliver lasting results. By replacing failing manhole covers with our high-performance Unite™ range, we provided a durable, compliant solution proven to withstand London’s toughest routes. With over 100,000 units installed and zero recorded failures, Unite has eliminated common ironwork issues such as seating wear and frame instability, reducing disruption, maintenance costs and carbon impact while strengthening one of the UK’s most critical networks. The challengeThames Water manages an extensive infrastructure network, including approximately 1.2 million manhole covers across 67,000km of sewers. Historically, the company was facing issues with the lifespan of its manhole covers in high-traffic locations, particularly on London’s most demanding routes. The failure of these iron products necessitated replacements, resulting in disruptive and costly road closures. Defective street ironwork on highways is a significant problem that can lead to vehicle damage, accidents, injuries, and the premature deterioration of surrounding carriageway surfaces. Manhole cover replacement is especially disruptive to traffic in heavily trafficked areas. Thames Water required a solution that was proven to last and easy to install. The solutionThe solution adopted by Thames Water came in the form of our Unite manhole cover range, putting an end to the frequent problem of failing iron products. Unite is our flagship ductile iron range, specifically engineered for exceptional strength, stability, and whole-life value in the most demanding environments, including D400 and E600 load class areas and high-volume routes like trunk roads and motorways. The product’s design directly addresses common causes of premature failure, such as seating wear and frame instability, which accelerate deterioration can even lead to pothole formation. Results & ImpactThe relationship with Thames Water spans many years, involving collaboration in developing new products to meet Thames Water's specific needs. This ongoing engagement is a hallmark of our partnership, enabling continuous improvement and alignment with the priorities of a major utility provider. The deployment of the Unite solution across the Thames Water network has yielded outstanding results, showcasing the long-term value of investing in high-specification ironwork. We have now supplied well in excess of 100,000 units of the Unite manhole cover to Thames Water. Over the 18-year period of installation, the product has achieved a critical performance milestone: not one recorded failure. This track record aligns with the product's broader success, as the Unite range has demonstrated zero reported failures across over 500,000 installations in the last 20 years. By selecting the Unite range, Thames Water embraced a whole-life cost approach, resulting in significant long-term savings by reducing replacement frequency and minimising maintenance interventions. Avoiding a single, unnecessary three-hour manhole replacement saves an estimated £9,000 in social costs due to reduced traffic delay and disruption. The long-term success and importance of this collaboration are highlighted by Caroline Chapman, category manage at Thames Water, “We have worked in partnership with Wrekin for many years, developing new products to our needs. The relationships are very important to us - they enable us to deliver excellent service to our customers. We look forward to continuing to work with Wrekin for many years to come.” Related products
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