Tapering bridge piers with grace and style
Project data
| Project | Bridge crossing the Zwickauer Mulde Valley |
| Completion | 2010- 2011 |
| Location | Penig |
| Purpose | Extension of the over 50-year-old A72 motorway between Chemnitz and Leipzig. The biggest bridge on this section of new road crosses the Zwickauer Mulde Valley at Penig and has a length of 710 m. |
| Formwork systems |
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| Special features | The sophisticated pier formwork concept devised by the Cottbus subsidiary of NOE Schaltechnik, Süssen, allowed the outside shape of the pier to be tapered uniformly from the top of the pier downwards and local adjustments to be made to the form to create a flat recessed feature. The recess was formed with prefabricated boxes. Tapering gaps were filled with wedge-shaped boxes. The NOE H20 beam formwork in combination with special formwork and climbing scaffolds were used in ensuring each concrete element was the correct shape. The challenge for the NOE engineers was design a formwork system optimised for the site so that the formwork could be used efficiently despite the individuality of each concrete element. |
| Main contractor | ARLT Bauunternehmen GmbH, Frankenhain |
"The NOE formwork system allowed us to greatly reduce the time required to build the structures. Outstanding competence and well thought out solutions to ensure the optimum use of formwork on the site saves time and money for the main contractor.”
Mr Höpping, Site Project Manager for ARLT Bauunternehmen GmbH, Frankenhain