PROTECT COMMUNITIES WITH FLEXMAC TEMPORARY FLOOD BARRIERS

Leading geosynthetic specialist, Geofabrics Australasia announces the launch of Maccaferri FlexMac® Temporary Flood Protection Barrier; a fast-to deploy solution used to protect infrastructure, lives and the broader community during flood events.

The intensity of Australia’s weather has considerably evolved over time with climate change. Warming temperatures and atmosphere have led to severe weather conditions from torrential rainfall, flash flooding and storms. In 2022, flooding was the costliest natural disaster in the country. The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) reported $5.45 billion in insured losses across 234,000 claims in flood affected regions: south-east Queensland and coastal New South Wales.

Floods cannot be prevented but it can be managed by FlexMac, a lightweight and flexible unit made of hexagonal double-twisted wire mesh that is reinforced with steel rods and internally lined with a non-woven geotextile. The units are connected to each other with pins and filled with locally available materials such as sand and gravel to create a longitudinally safety barrier around critical infrastructure.

For flood mitigation and control, FlexMac is 40 times faster to construct than traditional sandbags; enabling quick response times and rapid deployment in emergency situations.

Geofabrics CEO & Managing Director, Dennis Grech comments “We have all witnessed the devastation caused by flood events along the east coast of Australia and deep into the western regions of our country. With rising temperatures, we will continue to face increasing challenges from extreme weather events.

For many years, Geofabrics has sought to provide geosynthetic solutions to build and protect infrastructure, and most importantly, to protect lives. The addition of Maccaferri Flexmac Temporary Flood Protection Barriers to our portfolio provides our communities with a low-cost and quick-to-deploy solution during flood events. FlexMac has been used successfully around the world for many years, and we are pleased that it is now available in Australia.”