Posted by Russell Hitchen on Mar 1, 2019
Protecting the Environment one cut at a time
A main highway in New Zealand has been undergoing a multi-year improvement and expansion project, and in winter 2019, a section with over-water bridges in New Zealand needed to be expanded. It was determined there was only one way to complete the job quickly and safely.Concrete cutting with diamond tools would allow for pre-planning of cut sections and a fast, clean removal of roadway sections. As this series of bridges and roads also spanned a tidal creek, it was imperative that no debris or slurry be allowed to fall into the creek, and also that no fly rock would strike vehicle traffic. The SH1 Southern Motorway on the North Island of New Zealand is part of State Highway 1, the longest and most significant road in the country. SH1 runs for 2,033 km (1,263 miles) and is primarily a two-lane single carriageway. It is an essential part of Auckland’s transport network and is the primary route between Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga. The Southern Corridor Improvements Project, which will cost $268 million (USD$183 million) and runs for over four years, covers the stretch of SH1 from the SH20/SH1 connection at Manukau down to Papakura in the south. CSDA member A1 Kiwi Cutters & Drillers Ltd. of Auckland was selected as the cutting contractor on the Southern Corridor Improvements project by the general contractor and the New Zealand Government. Roughly four months of planning took place before any work commenced, which contributed to the successful outcome of the project. The entire project was to convert a two-lane section of motorway to a three-lane by constructing a temporary bridge, widening some existing bridges, removing other existing bridges and building a new wider bridge. The temporary bridge was constructed first to allow for southbound traffic to be diverted while the northbound traffic was diverted to the old southbound lanes. Then, the existing northbound bridge was removed, and a new wider bridge was constructed in its place. Both north and southbound traffic was then diverted to the new bridge while the old southbound and temporary bridges were removed to allow for construction of the new, wider southbound bridge. A1 Kiwi Cutters was tasked with removing the existing southbound bridge and temporary bridge, including head stock and bridge beams. Concrete cutting was determined to be the best option for removing the old bridges primarily for...
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