Major steel structures arrive for Gull Wing bridge

New sections for the construction of the Gull Wing bridge in Lowestoft have arrived.
Published: 29 Mar 2023

The second and third major steel sections of the Gull Wing bridge in Lowestoft have arrived.

The North Approach Viaduct (NAV2 and NAV3) sections arrived at the construction site on Lake Lothing on Wednesday March 29 following an eight-hour crossing on a barge from Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

Leading building and civil engineering contractor Farrans is constructing the bridge for Suffolk County Council.

The barge arrives into the inner harbour at Lowestoft.
The barge arrives into the inner harbour at Lowestoft.

Fabricated by Victor Buyck Steel Construction, NAV2 is approximately 42m long and NAV3 is 50m long. On delivery the steel on NAV 2 weighed 221 tonnes and NAV 3 weighed 182 tonnes.

Crowds and photographers eager to capture the arrival of the sections lined the quayside as the barge, with a tugboat at either end, inched through Lowestoft’s Bascule Bridge and into Lake Lothing.

The complex process of navigating the barge into the inner harbour and then transferring the steel structure from the barge on to the site was overseen by a team of experienced civil engineers, port masters and marine experts.

With a tugboat at either end the barge is manoeuvred into position to navigate through the Bascule Bridge.
With a tugboat at either end the barge is manoeuvred into position to navigate through the Bascule Bridge.

In the coming days the sections will be lifted from the barge and positioned on to the pier so they can be joined together.

This will be done by bolting the splices before lining and levelling the sections into the correct position.

Following this, the concrete decks will be cast before the street furniture and surfacing are placed.

As with the arrival of NAV1 in March 2022, the barge’s arrival was dependent on weather conditions remaining favourable and it needed to arrive during a slack tide to travel into the inner harbour.

Crowds look on from the quayside as the barge eases through the Bascule Bridge.
Crowds look on from the quayside as the barge eases through the Bascule Bridge.

Simon Bretherton, Suffolk County Council Project Director, said: “This is another major step forward for the Gull Wing project and we continue to make good progress with construction.

“The arrival and installation of these two sections over the coming weeks are further signs of the bridge taking shape and which, once complete, will deliver a structure that will not only be iconic but also a positive and long-lasting legacy for jobs, businesses and connectivity for the town of Lowestoft and the wider area.”

Neil Rogers, project director on Gull Wing bridge for Farrans, said: “The arrival of NAV 2 and 3 marks another major milestone in the progress of this important infrastructure project for Suffolk County Council. Moving large steel structures such as these take months of planning, and we are pleased that they have arrived safely to their permanent home.

“This week we have also had the arrival of the crane that we will use to lift these sections of the bridge. The crane for NAV2 and 3 is a Liebherr LR1600. This is a 600-tonne capacity crane that is a little over twice the capacity of the crane currently working on the control tower (250t). It uses a super-lift system which means that it has a much greater lifting capacity at the same radius.”

The crane was delivered on 18 articulated lorries and took three days to assemble.