Haringvlietbrug Lifted, Turned and Laid Down by Bonn & Mees at Hollandia Infra in Krimpen aan den IJssel

February 14 was a big day for the ‘Renovation Haringvlietbrug’ project.

The bridge on the A29 motorway between Rotterdam and North Brabant dates back to the early 1960s and has reached the end of its design life. The motorway is an important road connection between the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp.

The lifting bridge section opened in better days. Courtesy of Rijkswaterstaat

After a stringent test period it was found that the lifting part of the bascule bridge on the A29 motorway, the Haringvliet Bridge, needed to have the movement mechanism and the technical installations and systems replaced.

Temporary measures were introduced on the bridge in August 2021, because clamps on the bridge deck vibrated loose due to the large number of heavy vehicles driving over the bridge. The maximum speed was reduced to 50kph and the traffic lanes narrowed.

In January 2023 the Rijkswaterstaat, the ministerial department responsible for road and water traffic, started with the renovation of the lifting part of the bridge. From January 1 until the completion of the renovation, the bridge cannot be opened for high shipping traffic through the bridge.

So why was 14 February so important?

The construction of the new lifting part, the 725t road bridge, had been awarded to a combination of Hollandia Infra and Machinefabriek Rusthoven B.V. to be built in Krimpen aan den IJssel near Rotterdam, and on 14 February the new section was ready to be moved for the next stage in their fabrication yard.

A bridge section is always built upside down because most of the welding takes place at the underneath the bridge. Beams and so-called troughs are installed under the road deck to strengthen the bridge. As soon as this work is finished, the entire construction must be turned over in order to be able to carry out work on the road deck side. Due to the usually enormous dimensions and weight, complex calculations and unique auxiliary structures are required in advance to safely perform the turning over operation.

On 14 February the newly constructed 725t bridge section was rolled out of the construction shed on SPMTs ,lifted upright, turned and laid back on to the SPMTs.

This lifting and turning operations were carried out by the floating sheerlegs crane from Bonn & Mees, the ‘Matador 3’, with a lifting capacity of 1800t. A colossal job that was successfully completed thanks to the efforts of the entire team from engineers to the skilled employees of Bonn & Mees.

That is why this is a major milestone within every project.

Photographs are courtesy of the Maritime, Port, Industrial and Wind Photographer, Danny Cornelissen for Hollandia Infra BV unless otherwise stated

Source Rijkswaterstaat and Hollandia Infra B.V.