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The longest bridge on the sea
The bridge from China (Zhuhai and Macao) to Hong-Kong became a legendary construction. It is the biggest bridge located on the water, which is also very stable. The engineers used 400,000 tonnes of steel to complete the construction. Just to compare, it is equal to 60 times steel applied for the building of the Eifel Tower.
The firmness of the bridge is really impressive. It is able to face:
- earthquakes (with up to a magnitude of 8)
- typhoons
- cargo ships strike (with the weight up to 300,000 tonnes).
The latest is essential because every day about 4,000 ships cross the location of the bridge, which is connected with certain risks. The senior engineer for the construction became Lu Huaying. The length of the bridge totaled 55 km.
The first cooperation
The Hong-Kong to Macao bridge project opening became the first time when those local government decided to cooperate. It is vital to mention that China and Hong-Kong have 2 separate political systems. That’s why both parties doubted they could cooperate.
The key contractor was selected by three local authorities. Lu Huaying claimed that they were confident in their work because of the great experience in bridge construction. They were accountable for the similar works in Hangzhou and north China. However, it is amazing that the life of the recent project should reach 120 years, while the others are designed just for 100 years. For the construction of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the contractor cooperated with many other companies including the international equipment suppliers.
According to the project, the bridge consists of 3 parts: Ling Road, a border crossing facility, and the main bridge. The latest is 23 km long. The largest components were manufactured on the land and assembled on the location.
As the specialists said, the weather was also challenging during the construction. Some works had to be canceled. The waves and water current direction during that time were important. Hong-Kong-Macau bridge opening date is scheduled for 2018, while the completion date has already come. In general, the construction is a great example of safety, technological progress, and reliability.
More information about the process of construction and amazing features of this legendary bridge connecting the main cities is available in Breakbulk Magazine 2018 edition.