Skip to main content

New bridge surfacing

A new wearing course applied by Bolidt on the entire eastern section of the Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam is helping improve the surface for road users. The bridge forms an important link in the centre of the city of Rotterdam and using its equipment Bolidt was able to apply 3,000m2 of new wearing course on Erasmus Bridge in 4 hours. The Rotterdam authorities commissioned Bolidt again after the previous surface the firm applied, its Bridgedeck Up product, lasted over a decade. This time the work was carried o
February 6, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
Using Bolidt's technology to resurface a Rotterdam bridge cut installation time
A new wearing course applied by 2291 Bolidt on the entire eastern section of the Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam is helping improve the surface for road users. The bridge forms an important link in the centre of the city of Rotterdam and using its equipment Bolidt was able to apply 3,000m2 of new wearing course on Erasmus Bridge in 4 hours. The Rotterdam authorities commissioned Bolidt again after the previous surface the firm applied, its Bridgedeck Up product, lasted over a decade. This time the work was carried out using a machine developed by Bolidt, speeding installation.

Although the previous wearing course was still intact, the decision to replace it was made as part of a maintenance operation. Over one weekend, the entire eastern section of the bridge was resurfaced with a new wearing course and lining. The work was carried out in less than 36 hours due to the equipment used and this high productivity was of key importance as Rotterdam has a heavy traffic load and a prolonged closure would have resulted in serious congestion.

The Bolimix machine was developed by Bolidt originally for the application of wearing courses on concrete bases. The Erasmus Bridge has a steel base, which requires a different type of wearing course and Bolidt had to adapt the machine especially for the work. Exchangeable tanks, allowing a short conversion time, were made to achieve this. Where in the past it was necessary to have several days of dry weather, this has now been reduced to approximately 1.5 days. After the wearing course has been applied, rain no longer forms a hindrance.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • 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
  • Concrete barriers help to minimise accidents
    July 12, 2012
    Concrete barriers offer a highway safety solution - Mike Woof writes. Concrete safety barriers are being installed on many of Europe's major highways, particularly for use as centre lane dividers. The strength and durability of concrete barriers can help reduce the risk of cross over accidents, one of several topics raised at a conference in Brussels on concrete highway barriers organised by the European Concrete Paving Association, EUPAVE. The conference was opened by Yves Deceoene of the IRF's Belgian ex
  • Formwork innovations help bridge building
    July 7, 2015
    A series of formwork developments are helping with challenging bridge construction projects around the world - Mike Woof writes In the Polish city of Krakow, a cost-effective cable stayed bridge is being constructed using a balanced cantilever technique. The current expansion of the Krakow metropolitan railway network (KST) requires the building of a crossing of the Krakow-Plaszow railway junction. Ensuring that daily rail operations remained unaffected during the construction of the 252m long crossing w
  • Rebuilding the busy Frankfurt Airport in Germany
    September 12, 2017
    Handling up to 450 take-offs/day, Runway West is Frankfurt Airport’s busiest runway. Over 50% of the aircraft taking off from the airport uses Runway West, and a point worth noting is that this German airport is one of the busiest in Europe. In 2016, Frankfurt Airport handled nearly 61 million passengers, surpassed by Schiphol in Amsterdam and Charles de Gaulle in Paris, Europe’s third and second busiest airports respectively. Meanwhile London’s Heathrow remained Europe’s busiest airport