We are proud to have provided a custom-engineered composite solution for a wild hyena animal enclosure at a certain world-renowned theme park located in Central Florida.
ESP Composite Sheet Piling Selected for Strength & Non-Tastiness
Our Composite Sheet Piling was singled out for its industry-leading strength and durability. How does it get so strong? Our marine-grade resin system locks in thousands of interwoven rovings and mattings to produce a sheet piling that can withstand even the toughest conditions over time.
Composite material is so strong and relatively lightweight that it makes up 50% of materials used in a Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
A Suitably Un-Tasty Wall Option
As it turns out, strength wasn’t the only reason our composite sheet piling carried the day on this project. The theme park needed an enclosure wall that continued underground to discourage the hyenas from trying to dig underneath the walls or eating it. That meant a pretty uncommon taste test!
Part of the mandatory materials selection process actually included a test to make sure the hyenas wouldn’t eat our composite piling. Fortunately, our product was deemed suitably un-tasty by the hyenas destined to live within its walls.
According to ESP associate Carl Hazenberg, aside from having no taste for composite sheet piling, “hyenas also make terrible house pets.”
Project Challenges Overcome
One of the design requirements called for a special, extended concrete wall cap to accommodate the jumping prowess of hyenas and the aesthetic demands of the “safari” environment. ESP is the industry leader in wall cap systems, so our team had no trouble engineering a custom solution for the project that addressed both design needs.
Additional project challenges overcome included:
- Night-only Construction – All work was performed at night while the park was closed.
- Fast-track Timetable – Animals shipped in from abroad meant the project needed to be ready fast, made possible through the use of light materials and the relatively ease of installing our engineered solution.
Protecting you from water, erosion…or Hyenas
ESP is an international leader in seawall design, engineering, and installation. Please use the “Ask the Experts” box on this page if you have any questions, or use our Free Estimate Form if you’re ready for a quote!
Hyena image courtesy of Brittanica Advocacy for Animals