Hydraulic Works at Jalan Bantayan Damat Sawah, Tuaran Sabah

A recent project site, located next to the Sg Damit bridge in Tuaran, Sabah, experiences high water turbulence. The area needed a robust solution to stabilize the soil and protect the riverbank both upstream and downstream of the bridge. A key challenge was the shortage of large stones required for traditional riprap.

To address these issues, we used a combination of Gabion and Terramesh structures. These structures are effective for soil stabilization and riverbank protection, even in high-turbulence conditions. They require smaller stones (6” x 9”) compared to riprap, making them suitable given the local stone availability.

We assessed the hydraulic and geotechnical stability using Maccaferri’s in-house software, MacRa Studio and MacStar. The flexible nature of Gabion and Terramesh allows them to accommodate small settlements, and with a combination of polymer and metallic coatings, they are designed to last up to 120 years.

Additionally, as permeable facia walls filled with granular material, Gabion and Terramesh do not require an extra filter layer between the riverbank and the wall.