In recent weeks, the crew from the contractor SBJV has been working to get both bridge girders and bridge piles ready so that the first bridge girder can be mounted between two bridge piles. On Friday morning, the operation lasting several days began with setting out and hoisting.
– Tugs pull the barge out into the Storstrømmen and anchor it between two piers. Next, we have to hoist the bridge girder up and fasten it to the special element, which is placed on top of the two bridge piers, so that it is ready to be cast together with them, says project manager in Vejdirektoratet (The Danish Road Directorate, ed), Niels Gottlieb in a press release.
Built on Masnedø
The bridge girders are the elements that connect the bridge piers and support the carriageway and the railway itself. Apart from the two northernmost and the two southernmost closest to land, they are all built on Masnedø before they have to be sailed out and hoisted up.
The first bridge girder is hoisted onto bridge piles 300-400 meters from Falster’s coast.
Decisive moment
– We have planned this day for a long time and now we are ready to begin the next phase of the project with the installation of the prefabricated bridge girders. Visually, it will be something of a defining moment for the project and it will be a spectacular sight to see the 73 meter long girders being transported and placed. The focus is now on the operation, which requires a very precise and coordinated team effort from all parties involved. This is what we do, and we are now ready to carry out the task, says project director Barry Crouchman from SBJV.
The overall process
1. Tugs pull the barge with the girder to the two piers
2. The barge is anchored between the bridge piers
3. The lifting arms are prepared, and the lifting wires are attached to the arms
4. The bridge girder is hoisted up with a specially built hoist
5. The bridge girder is steered into place using special steering brackets
A large working scaffold is then mounted to be able to cast the bridge girder together with the special element on top of the bridge piers.
