Mainmark’s re-levelling of a 20,000-square-metre warehouse shows a shift in how Australia’s infrastructure is maintained: prioritising efficiency, safety and minimal disruption.
Across the country, subsidence is gradually impacting infrastructure performance, leading to increased costs due to operational delays and safety concerns.
Mainmark’s advanced technologies and solutions demonstrate that effective remediation doesn’t have to involve total replacement.
“The traditional approach was to cut it up, dig it out, and start over,” explains Laurie Andrews, one of Mainmark’s Technical Engineers, “but that’s invasive, costly, and slow.”
“We focus on precise, non-invasive repairs that restore the asset’s integrity quickly, economically, and with the least amount of operational disturbance.”
With 36 years of ground engineering and asset preservation expertise, Mainmark quietly supports Australia’s built environment. Its innovative proprietary solutions – including Teretek®, a resin injection system for re-levelling and ground improvement – enable councils, engineers, and asset owners to re-level critical structures with minimal downtime.
Large-scale re-levelling success
In a recent project, Mainmark was engaged to address severe subsidence to a 20,000-square-metre industrial warehouse.
The challenge was significant: 120 millimetres of differential settlement limited the warehouse’s operational function, deteriorated floor slabs, and distorted and stressed the superstructure.
“This is a large structure that supports manufacturing equipment, heavy truck and vehicle traffic,” explains Andrews.
“It wasn’t safe for forklifts or racking systems, and the client’s plans to lease the space meant that every day it remained unusable, financial losses increased.”
Mainmark’s approach involved precise Teretek® resin injections beneath the building’s pad footings to raise, realign, and restore the superstructure. Injection points were drilled to 2.5 metres deep, and the building was gently raised in carefully planned stages – an approach designed to control stresses and prevent new cracks or damage.
“We don’t just lift and hope for the best,” Andrews emphasises.
“Each sweep is monitored carefully, and the lifting is done evenly across the structure.”
While levelling and supporting the footings, multiple Teretek® injection rigs simultaneously injected across broad floor sections to ‘float’ the slabs back to target levels. The final phase involved working on slab joints to prevent future differential movement.
The result was that Mainmark successfully met the client’s timeline within a budget significantly less than the cost of the alternate traditional demolition and replacement method.
The Teretek® application successfully level-corrected a 120-millimetre differential settlement of the slabs and footings, ensuring that the facility is now ready to safely use forklifts and high-level racking within operational level tolerances.
Beyond warehouses: Roads, bridges, rail and runways
Andrews says the similarities between the warehouse project and broader infrastructure applications are quickly highlighted.
“Whether it’s beneath a warehouse, a freeway or bridge approach, a railway line or airport runway, the core challenge remains the same,” he explains.
“You must understand the problem, consider the operational requirements, and find the most effective, cost-efficient solution. Once injection is complete, the treated area is ready for use… that’s the game-changer.
“You can correct an approach slab on a busy road at night and have traffic flowing over it immediately – instead of waiting for curing or delays.”
This has proven especially valuable for public projects where extended closures are simply not an option. For example, a project at Canberra’s Federation Mall involved re-levelling sunken bridge approach slabs over five nights, scheduled around parliamentary sittings, with no daytime disruptions.
“It’s all about working with the asset, not against it,” Andrews says. “No one wants to shut down roads, ports, or airports. With this method, that’s usually unnecessary.”
Restoration over replacement
Andrews explains that the warehouse case study reflects a broader industry shift away from traditional rebuilds.
“We’re moving past the mindset that if something’s broken, it must be demolished and replaced. If we can address the cause, without removing or dismantling the structure, we gain significant advantages in budget, timeline and impact on the environment. In many cases, the structure can be preserved and rehabilitated,” he notes.
The cost savings are significant. At the warehouse re-levelling project, Mainmark’s solution eliminated the need for months of demolition and slab replacement. This reduces the overall repair costs and minimises the asset’s downtime, allowing it to return to operation sooner. An additional key benefit is the reduced environmental impact – an increasingly important consideration for governments and infrastructure operators.
“It’s about more than just money,” Andrews adds.
“We use fewer materials, generate less waste, and cause less disturbance. It’s a solution that balances sustainability, speed, and savings.”
Technical precision with a light footprint
Teretek® is applied through small, keyhole-sized injection points. The expanding resin fills voids, re-establishes contact with the subgrade, and gently lifts the structure without imposing increased loads on the underlying soils.
“This isn’t just about pushing things up,” Andrews explains.
“Teretek® is often used for targeted ground improvement as part of the overall correction process. And since it’s lightweight, it doesn’t add extra weight to already weak soils.”
Mainmark’s ability to scale allows it to undertake large infrastructure projects. The company often deploys multiple field crews and mobile rigs, operating several injection guns simultaneously. These are carefully sequenced to control the lifting process and prevent the introduction of new stresses to the target structure.
Adapting to any ground, any asset
Mainmark’s technologies have demonstrated versatility across various infrastructure types and geologies – from warehouse structures to roads, airports, utility and government assets.
“In Australia, we encounter all sorts of challenges,” says Andrews.
“Every kind of structure, geotechnical profile, environmental condition, and operational demand.”
Mainmark’s international experience, working in Japan, New Zealand, and the UK, amplifies this adaptability.
“The fundamental principles are universal,” Andrews notes, but seldom are two projects the same.
A key strength is flexibility. Mainmark doesn’t rely on a single solution – instead, it customises interventions using Teretek®, JOG computer-controlled grouting, or Terefil (a lightweight cementitious fill), depending on the specific conditions.
As Andrews puts it; “We don’t go into a site with a hammer looking for nails. It’s about selecting the right tools for the right job.”
Lessons for asset managers
Andrews has blunt advice for asset managers trying to prevent subsidence and ground movement issues: don’t wait.
“Act early,” he urges, “if you notice signs like cracks, movement, water pooling, or slab displacement, address them before they worsen. We’ve seen too many cases where delays end up doubling the costs.”
He also encourages infrastructure operators to view ground remediation as more than just a repair – it is also a very useful form of preservation.
“Think of it like preventative maintenance,” he advises, emphasising proactive care to protect assets long-term.
Looking forward
With infrastructure demands rising due to urban expansion and extreme weather, Andrews views non-invasive remediation as a key element of Australia’s infrastructure future.
“Every year we delay, the problem gets bigger,” he said.
“But we have the tools to address issues before they lead to failure. And we can do it quickly, cleanly, and cost-effectively.”
For more, visit mainmark.com
