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Balfour Beatty lifts bridge into place over UK’s M54

In the UK, Balfour Beatty has lifted a new bridge into place over the M54 motorway as part of a €14.56 million (£12 million) project to connect a new high-tech business park to the road network and to provide access for the new Jaguar Land Rover plant. The bridge, which will serve the i54 business park in South Staffordshire, was delivered for Staffordshire County Council, Wolverhampton City Council and South Staffordshire Council, as part of the Midlands Highways Alliance framework.
May 14, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
In the UK, 1146 Balfour Beatty has lifted a new bridge into place over the M54 motorway as part of a €14.56 million (£12 million) project to connect a new high-tech business park to the road network and to provide access for the new 6337 Jaguar Land Rover plant.

The bridge, which will serve the i54 business park in South Staffordshire, was delivered for 4798 Staffordshire County Council, Wolverhampton City Council and South Staffordshire Council, as part of the Midlands Highways Alliance framework.

The bridge lift was carried out during a full road closure overnight on Saturday 11 January. Balfour Beatty raised the bridge to the required height at its site compound adjacent to the motorway and then transported it along the M54 on self-propelled modular transport units so that it could be slotted into position.

The bridge is a composite structure comprising of four 155cm weathered steel beams underneath an in-situ concrete deck, which weighs 411tonnes with a Span length of 40.8m. The bridge deck was constructed on site, using beams supplied by Mabey Bridge. Pre-assembly of the beams and deck at Balfour Beatty’s site compound prior to the lift reduced the amount of time the motorway needed to be closed for installation.

Mark Farrah, Balfour Beatty managing director for the North and Midlands Division, said, “I’m delighted to have delivered this important milestone for the Midlands Highways Alliance. This was a complex operation and the smooth delivery was the result of meticulous planning by Staffordshire County Council and the Balfour Beatty project team on site.”

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