GEWI piles for Blankenburg Connection

BAUER Funderingstechniek is installing GEWI micropiles with threads as part of Rotterdam’s new 4km-long A24 highway that includes two tunnels under the Scheur River
June 17, 2020 Read time: 2 mins
BAUER is installing the deepest GEWI piles in the Netherlands to date

The work by BAUER Funderingstechniek - the Dutch subsidiary of German parent firm BAUER Spezialtiefbau - is for the Blankeburgverbinding (Blankenburg Connection) tunnel project west of the city between the A15 and A20 highways.

Rotterdam, with a population of around 650,000, is the second largest city in the Netherlands and Europe's largest seaport, making it an important freight transport hub. The Blankenburg Connection will relieve truck and general traffic congestion.

BAUER has been delivering GEWI material to the site since July 2019 and by May is due to have installed 4,500 piles. But preliminary pile load tests were conducted in 2018 to investigate the primary friction properties of the three soil strata at the site. Soft clay, followed by firm clay and medium-dense to dense layers of sand were detected down to a depth of up to 20m.

The design of the GEWI piles for the tunnel ramps was adjusted based on the results of the pile load tests. Installation of the pile foundation for the southern ramp of the future 30m-deep Maas Delta Tunnel began last summer.

"In total, 11 teams with 11 KLEMM KR 806 rigs are currently being used in the joint project with our partner De Vries Titan," said Maarten Daalmeijer, project manager at BAUER Funderingstechniek. "This way we are sure to keep to the tight schedule.”

BAUER is installing the deepest GEWI piles in the Netherlands to date. Penetration of 64m below the NAP (Normaal Amserdams Peil - Amsterdam Ordnance Datum) -  a height reference point for the Amsterdam water level.

Road Structures

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Major project to construct landmark Bay Bridge in California
    October 31, 2012
    Iconic California crossing will offer seismic safety – Adrian Greeman reports A unique single-span single-tower suspension bridge is the iconic centrepiece of a dramatic renewal of the eastern Bay Bridge in California, crossing from San Francisco to Oakland. Tourists in San Francisco sometimes mix up their bridges, identifying as the famous Golden Gate, the double suspension bridge which runs across the wide San Francisco Bay. These serially linked bridges in fact form the Bay Bridge east to Oakland whereas
    Read More
  • Building a replacement bridge in record time
    March 13, 2023
    The construction of a new bridge in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to replace a collapsed structure has been carried out in record time
    Read More
  • New version of world’s longest floating bridge
    August 12, 2014
    The creation of a new version of the world’s longest floating bridge in Seattle, in the US state of Washington, is among the world’s most eye-catching current bridge engineering projects. It is an impressive example of the health of the bridge replacement sector, particularly in the US, leaving it well placed for growth. Guy Woodford reports Already the world’s longest floating bridge at over 2,310m long, the Governor Albert D Rosellini-Evergreen Point Floating Bridge in Seattle in the United States is g
    Read More
  • France: bicycle usage up in Ile-de-France in past 10 years
    December 15, 2014
    The number of bicycle trips in Ile-de-France, Paris, doubled to 650,000 trips between 2004 and 2014, according to the IAU, a local urbanisation think tank and policy adviser. Bicycles are used mainly for commuting to work and the average trip is 2km. In Paris, where bicycles were almost non-existent 15 years ago, they now make up 3% of trips in the city and 8% of work-home trips. But half of trips of less than 2km are still made in cars, the IAU noted. Despite an increase in bicycle usage, the number of
    Read More

Highlighted Content