Production of concrete segments for a vital part of Britain’s HS2 rail project has been completed at a huge factory in Kent.

Husband and wife Saad Aarab and Loubna Samih were among those casting the final part which will be used to build the five-mile Northolt Tunnel running between London Euston and Ruislip.

Pacadar UK will be manufacturing every major element of the 880 metre-long Thame Valley Viaduct for the high speed railway scheme at its factory on the Isle of Grain.

Work on the first of 68 precast concrete pier started in May 2023 at the firm’s base in Medway.

Now, the company has completed the production of 59,129 segments, which make up 8,447 tunnel rings – seven segments per ring.

Each segment weighs seven tonnes on average and 130 precast segments have been produced daily by the Kent based factory.

The segments are installed by the tunnel boring machines after the ground has been excavated, creating the inner and outer lining of the tunnel.

They are then fed to the segment erector through the back of the machine and are installed through automation.

Once complete, the elements are being transported to the site in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire to be slotted together “like a giant Lego set”.

The design team decided on a simple structural solution with two 25m long hollow beams per span, which cuts the amount of carbon-intensive concrete and steel.

The 97 tonne beams, and the 42 tonnes piers that support them, are being manufactured at the Kent factory which is also producing ten miles of wall segments for HS2’s London tunnels.

HS2’s project client for the London Tunnels Malcolm Codling said: “We are making significant progress on constructing HS2’s London Tunnels and the work is a team effort across a number of contractors, including PACADAR UK.

“We are pleased to work with UK based companies to complete the Britain’s newest high-speed railway”

Project manager at Pacadar UK Antonio Díez Barral said: “Pacadar UK is immensely proud of this milestone and grateful to be awarded such an important contract.”

James Richardson, managing director of Skanksa Costain STRABAG joint venture, added: “This is an important step in the programme as we continue tunnelling underneath London using four tunnel boring machines.

“As we power ahead with building Britain's new high-speed line, we're thankful to Pacadar, for their knowhow and innovation to produce the concrete segments being used to construct the five mile Northolt Tunnel West."