19.01.12

The Saints Bridge, St Helens

Representatives from F&N were delighted to attend the official opening of the Saint Helens Stadium Footbridge. The well-received bridge provides an important pedestrian link between the town centre and Langtree Park, the new St Helens rugby league stadium. Working for the main contractor, Galliford Try, F&N carried out the detailed design of the arch footbridge concept previously developed in conjunction with Moxon Architects. Steelwork fabrication and erection was by Rowecord Engineering Ltd.

24.11.11

West Gate wins the National Engineers Australia Award for Engineering Excellence

The award was presented last night to John Cunningham (VicRoads) and Alan Platt (Alliance Project Manager) at Parliament House in Canberra. This is the highest engineering award in Australia and is a very significant achievement.

http://www.excellenceawards.org.au

24.10.11

The West Gate Bridge Strengthening Project has won the top title at this years' National Civil Contractors Federation - Earth Awards for projects over $75million.

Following on from the Alliance's win of the state of Victorian CCF Excellence Award for Category 5 toward the end of August (see news 24.08.11), the Alliance has gone on to win the national Victorian CCF Excellence Award for Category 5 which is for projects of more than AUS $75M.

We had some stiff competition, which included the winners from each state, one of which was Brisbane's Gateway project.

Once again congratulations to the entire team for your ongoing work that has earned this nationally recognised award.

Media statement released by the Civil Contractors Federation:

WEST GATE BRIDGE MAKEOVER WINS TOP AWARD FOR ALLIANCE

Increasing the capacity of Melbourne’s West Gate bridge by 25 per cent and achieving a 100 year bridge life has won top honours for the project team at the Civil Contractors Federation (CCF) national Earth Awards.

The West Gate Bridge Alliance drew from the expertise of leading London steel bridge design experts, Flint & Neill and employed a peak workforce of 700 to deliver the challenging project in just two years, an unprecedented feat for a bridge of this size.

CCF CEO Robert Row said the project showcased world class engineering and demonstrated that Australian projects are at the leading edge of global construction performance.

“The Earth Awards are all about recognising the innovative ways Australian contractors meet the challenges of delivering quality infrastructure projects safely, cost-effectively and with consideration for both the community and the environment,” Mr Row said.

“This was an incredibly complicated project, involving the development of new engineering materials, designs, ideas and implementation, and also delivered outstanding results in terms of project management, community benefits and delivery timeframes,” he said.

The Alliance – comprised of VicRoads, John Holland, Flint & Neill and Sinclair Knight Merz – was also faced with the legacy of the 35 construction workers who died when the bridge collapsed during its construction in 1970, as a constant reminder to “get it right”.

Alliance project manager, Alan Platt said, “It is a honour to receive such recognition for the West Gate Bridge project especially considering the outstanding quality of all the projects nominated for the awards this year.”

The West Gate Bridge Strengthening Project was one of five category winners, judged by the same criteria and separated according to project dollar values. 

06.10.11

Izmit Bay Bridge, Turkey

Flint & Neill will be collaborating with their parent Company COWI A/S on the detailed design of the Izmit Bay suspension bridge in Turkey. With a 1550m main span Izmit will be the 4th longest clear span in the world upon completion. Flint & Neill were heavily involved in the tender design and will be undertaking detailed design of the suspended deck.

This 3km long crossing presents a number of major technical challenges arising from the deep water foundations, high seismicity of the area and the required aerodynamic performance criteria. The pylons are supported on concrete foundations that rest on large gravel beds reinforced with inclusions driven into the underlying strata such that the pylons can slide on the gravel bed in the event of a major earthquake. The overall construction will require some 85,000t of steel and about 125,000m3 of concrete and will be completed in just three years. Detail design will be carried out over the course of the next year and will take place in COWI’s head office in Lyngby, Flint & Neill's office in London and will utilise specialists from COWI’s offices in San Francisco. The overall price for the bridge will be about US$1.1bn. Construction is expected to start in early 2012. Dissing+Weitling is the architect for the bridge.

22.09.11

Compiègne Bridge, France, Formal Opening

Flint & Neill are delighted to announce that the Compiègne Bridge was formally opened in mid-September (see Noticeboard 17.05.2011).  The bridge opening was celebrated through a day long event that included a fire-work display.

24.08.11

West Gate Bridge Strengthening Project Wins Australian Industry Award

The project to strengthen Melbourne's West Gate Bridge has won the Category Five Earth Award at the Civil Contractors Federation (CCF) Victoria 2011 Earth Awards dinner. This award is in recognition of environmental, construction and project management excellence.  

It was noted that the project presented a range of complexities, including high traffic volumes and the extreme risks involved with working at the site.

The CCF Awards are in their 18th year and are the premier awards in the civil construction industry. Celebrating the use of the best technologies and improvements in practice on an environmental and management level, the awards help to improve the civil construction industry. 

Flint & Neill would like to congratulate the Alliance including VicRoads, principal contractor John Holland and Australian consultants Sinclair Knight Mertz.

27.06.11

West Gate Bridge Strengthening Project Fifth Lane Opening

The 22nd June marked the significant milestone of the opening of the fifth
lanes across the full length of the West Gate Bridge.  The milestone was reached
ahead of the original scheduled completion date of 30th June 2011.  

  

 http://www.iabse-iass-2011.com/ 

 
17.05.11

Compiègne Bridge, France, Installation of Superstructure Spans

Completion of the Flint & Neill designed Compiègne Bridge took a dramatic step forward with the installation of the two superstructure spans during May. The bridge is located in the rural town of Compiègne approximately 70km north east of Paris and is being constructed across the River Oise in order to provide better access to the north side of the river for development.

The design was selected by the client Agglomération de la Région de Compiègne  (ARC) through a design competition. It was developed from concept through to detailed design in conjunction with French architects Explorations Architecture, the team also includes French engineers Terrell International and landscape architects Agence Ter. It will carry a 3-lane highway,  2 cycle tracks and 2 footways over the river.  Flint & Neill were responsible for design of the superstructure.

The bridge is a steel structure consisting of an orthotropic deck plate with two box girders along the edges of the carriageway stiffened by a shallow arch over the main river span and an underslung  catenary in the side span. The resulting form is a smooth and sinuous curve which responds to the topography of the site, keeping the top of the arch below adjacent building levels.  The footways are cantilevered on the sides of the structure to maximise enjoyment of the river and open views for pedestrians and to physically separate them from the busy roadway.

After assembling each span on the adjacent river bank, the steelwork contractor Victor Buyck, assisted by specialist heavy lift contractor Sarens, moved the spans onto barges during river closures. Multi axle SPMT's were used to move the 700tonne and 400tonnes loads which required careful ballasting of the barges to maintain stability throughout.   Site restrictions called for delicate manoeuvring of these massive loads including turning one of the spans through 90⁰ once loaded on to the barge.

 Main  contractor, Demathieu Bard, is responsible for construction of foundations, substructures and approach spans. The bridge is set to open later in 2011.

Taunton, Third Way Bridge Lift

 
The Third Way Bridge, a landmark highway bridge was installed over the River Tone in Taunton Thursday 24th March in front of a large crowd of excited onlookers. Construction is by Galliford Try for client Somerset County Council, with Mabey Bridge as specialist steelwork contractor. The design is by Flint & Neill, working with Moxon Architects.  

The 218 tonne bridge is a subtle reworking of the classic arch form that compromises two filigree steel arches carrying a road deck and two pedestrian walkways. The bridge was placed with millimetre accuracy by a 600T crawler crane - one of Europe's largest. Designer Ian Firth is delighted with the result. "It looks great and exactly like the first sketches we produced nearly 4 years ago."

The overall form is lightweight with carefully balanced proportions and slender edge detailing to minimise the visual mass of the bridge, in keeping with the picturesque nature of the site.

The bridge deck is an orthotropic steel deck with crossbeams spanning between two closed box girders which act as ties to the arches. The footways are cantilevered on both sides and have timber decking and high quality stainless steel parapets. Night time lighting is provided by discrete low level light sources illuminating the pedestrian walkways, whilst the arch is lit by low voltage LED strips that trace the arcs of the structural members.

The bridge needed a shallow profile to provide sufficient clearance over the riverside footpath on one side, and this was one of the reasons for the tied arch solution. "We considered other solutions" says Firth, "including various cable stayed alternatives, but everyone loves an arch and we felt that an arch was better suited to this site."

 

The bridge is due to open in June.

Visit Somerst County Council website to read more.

 

15.11.10

The IStructE Structural Awards 2010

The Stonecutters Bridge wins Supreme Award & Award for Transportation Structures

Front row third from left Ian Firth (F&N), Lars Hauge (COWI), Tina Vejrum (COWI) together with other members of the project team, and the President of the Institution. The Stonecutters Bridge received the Supreme Award and the Award for Transportation Structures at the Structural Awards in London on 5th November 2010.

 Flint & Neill prepared the concept design for the bridge, together with Dissing+Weitling Architects, Halcrow and SMEDI, back in 2000, which was the winning entry in the international design competition held by the Hong Kong Highways Department. Since then the detailed design of the cable-stayed main span, which is   the second longest in the world at 1018 metres, has been carried out by Flint & Neill’s parent company COWI as principal sub-consultant to Arup who collected the award.

To read more on the judges comments and the awards visit the IStructE and COWI. 

02.06.10

  J A Neill 1927 – 2010

 

Tony Neill was a founding Partner of the firm, setting up the Practice with Dr Flint in 1958 having both practised as individuals before joining together in offices in Wilton Road, Victoria.

 

Tony Neill, a graduate of Imperial College, became Partner in charge of a wide range of building projects including Cheltenham Grammar School, Lillington Housing Development in Victoria,  Leeds University and Bracknell College, to mention a few. The most significant project however, and the one in which Tony was engaged for many years, was when the firm was appointed to be the structural and mechanical engineering consultants to The National Theatre – a project in which we are still engaged with extensions and modifications.

 

Tony was a specialist in his own right on cranes where he was frequently called as an expert witness. He was also the mastermind behind the ‘Computer Consortium’, a company formed with other firms to produce computerised reinforcement detailing programs many years ahead of its time.

As a person Tony was unique. As well as being a first class engineer he was a master of anecdotes that seemed to spring from him with effortless ease and on endless subject matters. These ranged from amusing stories about the latest political fiascos to classical quotations from Shakespeare and Sophocles.

Tony was a member of the Drapers Company rising to become Master; this was an interest that he followed well after his retirement from the firm in 1980. His ability to provide engaging and intellectual conversation provided an ideal platform for the Drapers to develop their charitable causes that he held to be so important.

His legacy lives on in the firm today; an innovative engineer; an educated man in the true sense of the word, a delightful companion and a loving family man. He will be sadly missed.

Brian Smith

   

Padma Category III Independent Design Check

Flint & Neill has been appointed to undertake the Category III Independent Design Check of the Padma Bridge in Bangladesh. The mighty Padma is formed downstream of the confluence of the Ganges and the Jamuna Rivers and is one of the largest rivers in the world. The new bridge will carry highway and railway and will form a critical link connecting the two halves of the country. The bridge, designed by AECOM, is around 6km long and consists of 150m long composite truss spans supported on piles driven up to 90m into the underlying strata. Extensive river training works are included within the scope. Scour channels up to 50m deep, cyclone winds and seismic load cases will all be considered within the check. Flint & Neill will be assisted by COWI A/S and DHI for the river training works.

St Helens Stadium Footbridge

Flint & Neill has developed the concept design of a new footbridge on behalf of St Helens Council. The new bridge forms a link to a new multi-purpose stadium planned for construction on disused land to the south of the town. The design has been developed in conjunction with Moxon Architects and Flint & Neill has undertaken the preliminary analysis and section sizing. A planning application has been submitted. Rather unusually given the limited budget available for the scheme, the project is being procured under an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) scheme with Flint & Neill working for Morrison Construction Limited. We expect to develop the detailed design later in the year.