Piling for a road project in tough conditions

Machines from Liebherr have been brought in to carry out a piling job in Colombia in tough conditions. The road network between Mosquera and Balsillas is being upgraded at a cost of some US$199.15 million. Mosquera lies on the outskirts of the capital, Bogotá, while Balsillas is to the south-west and close to the borders with Ecuador and Peru. Work started on the project to improve the 230km route in January 2016 and is expected to take until December 2021 to complete. One of the contractors involved in th
January 11, 2019 Read time: 3 mins
The LRB 355 is said to deliver high performance even under difficult conditions

Machines from Liebherr have been brought in to carry out a piling job in Colombia in tough conditions. The road network between Mosquera and Balsillas is being upgraded at a cost of some US$199.15 million. Mosquera lies on the outskirts of the capital, Bogotá, while Balsillas is to the south-west and close to the borders with Ecuador and Peru.

Work started on the project to improve the 230km route in January 2016 and is expected to take until December 2021 to complete. One of the contractors involved in the project, Mincivil, is utilising deep foundation equipment from 718 Liebherr to help stabilise the ground conditions, which can be challenging in some of the sections along the route.

The ground conditions can be extremely hard, but in spite of this, the LB 36 and LRB 355 rigs are being used to drill 57,000m of piles and are said to be working productively and dependably.

The aim of this construction project is to improve the infrastructure links for freight traffic between Tolima Department and Cundinamarca Department. The work also involves the construction of 16 bridges, which will help to deliver an improved road link between Tolima and Cundinamarca.

Mincivil is working on the project with another contractor, Topco. To install the piles for the bridges, Mincivil is using the LB 36 and LRB 355 deep foundation machines supplied by Liebherr. The two piling machines are being used for Kelly drilling and full displacement drilling, depending on the specific requirements of each location.

Piles with diameters of 1.5m have been driven to depths of 26m by the LB 36 rig, using the Kelly drilling method. Meanwhile, 600mm diameter piles have been driven to depths of 33m using the LRB 355 piling and drilling rig utilising full displacement drilling equipment. By the end of the piling portion of the contract, the Columbian company will have drilled a total of 57,000m.

The project is substantial and forms part of Colombia’s national road development programme, currently underway. A portion of the upgrade work has already been completed and while the LB 36 finished its work in December 2017, the LRB 355 will be operating until March 2019.

The deep foundation specialist, Mincivil, is located in Cundinamarca, Antioquia and Boyacá. Daniel Rodriguez is Foundation Unit business manager. He said that at a part of the job in Mosquera, nearly an hour by car from Bogotá, the soil conditions have proven hard and challenging due to the nearby mountains. Rodriguez explained, “These are difficult conditions and a real challenge for the machine.”

However, he added that the machines have proven both productive and dependable in the application.

Road Structures

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Ethiopia’s challenging cement market: consumption stimulation
    January 26, 2018
    Ethiopia’s cement industry has enjoyed substantial growth in the past decade. However, challenges linked to the government’s investment policy could erode these gains, as Shem Oirere reports With nearly 16.5 million tonnes of cement capacity and 10% average growth in annual consumption, Ethiopia is among the top cement producers in sub-Saharan Africa. Only Nigeria and South Africa rival it.
    Read More
  • Philipp Swarovski lays down the marker
    June 10, 2019
    Swarco’s chief operating officer Philipp Swarovski shares his thoughts on highway safety and infrastructure in an age of uncertain future needs. David Arminas reports It was in Austria in 1969 when Manfred Swarovski opened his first glass bead factory. Five years later, operations started in the US. As the years rolled by there followed acquisitions and expansion of manufacturing facilities as well as a shift into intelligent transportation systems globally. Fast forward to 2019 and the family compan
    Read More
  • Superlative formwork’s global appeal
    April 25, 2013
    The latest formwork solutions are enabling some tough bridge-building projects to be delivered in South America and Europe, while the world’s largest construction equipment show is seeing the merits of other cutting-edge formwork. Guy Woodford reports. Taking a road and rail link across one of South America’s largest rivers, together with its swamps and floodplain, calls for a new crossing of superlative dimensions. Two 135.5m pylons for the third bridge across the Orinoco River in Venezuela are taking shap
    Read More
  • Liebherr unveils THS 110 D-K crawler concrete pump
    April 10, 2018
    Introducing its new THS 110 D-K crawler concrete pump, Liebherr says the model offers a maximum delivery rate of 102m³/hour and features a six-cylinder engine. The concrete pump, which is fitted onto a crawler running gear, is moved and controlled via a radio remote control. The three models in the series of Liebherr crawler concrete pumps are the THS 80 D-K, the THS 110 D-K and the THS 140 D-K, with maximum delivery rates ranging from 65m³/hour to 135m³/hour. Liebherr says the during the design phase it
    Read More

Highlighted Content