Mammoet assisted Rijkswaterstaat and contractor combination KWS – VES – DDM to successfully remove the steel arch bridge at Vianen, the Netherlands. The work started at 8:30 am and lasted until 1:00 am attracting a large audience digitally and on location. The bridge arch has a weight of approximately 5000t and a height of approximately 30 meters making this job no ordinary project. To complete the task, Mammoet built a large gantry system that would support and lift the arch. Eight masts were mounted on a pontoon that was placed under the bridge, which were linked to the eight lifting towers on the bridge. The pontoon took over the weight of the bridge at high tide.
Environment manager for Rijkswaterstaat Sascha Oskam commented: “I am extremely proud that we managed this extensive operation together. The removal was safe and controlled. Our contractor combination KWS – VES – DDM has done a great job.”
Over the next 17 days, the steel arch construction will be cut into pieces in the outer harbor of the Princess Beatrix lock. Mammoet is working on this 24 hours a day.The bridge will soon be small enough to pass under the adjacent Jan Blankenbrug bridge for final demolition at the Mammoet shipyard in Schiedam. Here, the steel parts are made even smaller and transported to a recognized processor. There, the steel will be further processed into raw material.
