Gabions and Rock Mattress structures are generally formed by the weaving of wire (of varying diameter) into mesh which is then factory fabricated into box cages (of varying size) which are then site filled with stone to form dry-land structures such as retaining walls or in wet-land structures such as weirs or riverbank linings.

The wire that has been traditionally used in the manufacture of these gabion and mattress products supplied into Australia has been heavily galvanised and then may have extruded to the core wire a coating of PVC to provide additional protection. More recently there have been other coatings applied to the wire that purport to enhance the resistance of such wires to corrosion.

Gabions are box like units, generally of length either 2m or 4m and with a height of either 0.5m or 1m. Rock Mattress product is generally of larger plan area, typically 6m x 2m, but are much thinner in depth with typical dimensions ranging between 0.*7m and 0.5m. All units are supplied folded flat to site and the customer must fabricate the supplied unit to size, join one unit to another to form the required structure, fill with suitable stone and complete the closure of the unit such that a stable structure is constructed. Gabions are ideal for use in retaining structures that have unfavourable foundation conditions. Gabions are quite flexible and can accommodate significant ground movement without catastrophic failure. Rock Mattress is an alternative to replace traditional rock armour treatments of structures against water erosion and scour. By encapsulating rock within a mesh layer, the effective shear capacity of such rock is increased providing additional protection against potential scour or erosive forces generated by water.

Retaining Solutions are highly experienced in the design and construction of structures using these products and can provide engineering advice, design and construction certification from project inception to completion.

The contractor designed a shoreline protection solution using gabions as an anchor and Reno Mattress as a durable shoreline protection.