A gabion is a mesh basket filled with stone on site: a flexible, free-draining gravity structure. Boxes for retaining walls and slope toes, mattresses for river beds, banks and scour protection. We weave the mesh and make the baskets in our own factory.
What it does
A gabion is a basket of hexagonal double-twist mesh, assembled and filled with stone on site. The result is a gravity structure that is flexible, permeable and repairable: it tolerates settlement instead of cracking, drains instead of building up water pressure, and can be extended or repaired with the same material years later.
Two forms cover most of the work. Box gabions are used for retaining walls, stepped fills and slope toes. Mattresses — long, shallow units of the reno type — are used in river beds, at culvert outlets, on banks and on slope faces exposed to scour.
Made by us
The mesh is woven and the baskets are made in our own factory, to the dimensions of the project. Mesh opening, wire diameter and coating are stated in the order file; every batch is delivered with wire and coating test reports.
Data
| Property | Box gabion | Mattress |
|---|---|---|
| Mesh opening | 100 × 120 mm | 60 × 80 mm |
| Wire diameter (mesh) | 2.70 mm | 2.00 mm |
| Mesh tolerance (short side) | + 16 % / − 4 % | + 16 % / − 4 % |
| Wire strength | 350 – 550 N/mm², elongation at fracture ≥ 8 % (250 mm gauge) | same |
| Coating | Zinc or Zn95Al5, EN 10244-2 class A | same |
| Optional PVC | ≥ 0.50 mm to EN 10245-2 | same |
| Stone | Hard, frost-resistant, larger than the mesh opening | same |
| Measurement | m³ | m² |
Assembly and acceptance
Baskets are assembled on site, corners and neighbouring units laced, bracing wires placed layer by layer and lids laced down. Exposed faces are hand-placed so the wall face is even. A geotextile filter goes behind retaining structures. At acceptance the mesh, wire, coating, lacing and stone are checked — and the measurement rule (m³ for boxes, m² for mattresses) is the one written in the contract.
Related
The mesh itself is described on the hexagonal double-twist mesh page; slope work that combines gabions with anchored systems is on the slope stabilization page.
