Dillinger heavy plate for the new Moselle Bridge

A mammoth project

Superlatives abound...The 33,000 t giant viaduct located in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate is, according to the German Minister of Transport, "the superlative work for the region, for Germany and for Europe". Twice as high as the Mainz Cathedral and six times as long as the London Bridge, it is the second biggest steel viaducts built in Germany, under which even the Cologne Cathedral would have room. Rising to a height of 160 m (518ft) over the river, it stretches more than a mile (1.7 km) over the hilly and picturesque Moselle valley, crossing over some of the country’s finest and most historic vineyards. It is the centerpiece of the newly constructed 25 km section of the B50 highway and part of an international road axis connecting the Belgian and Dutch North Sea ports and Belgian metropolitan areas with the Rhine-Main area and south-west Germany.

Innovative planning, installation and organization

The size of the project, its rural location, difficult soil conditions in the Moselle valley, piers height and spans of up to 210 m (689ft) required a multitude of planning, assembly and organizational innovations. The bridge rests on only ten piers - in relation to the length of the bridge this is a comparatively small number. The highest pier measures about 150 m, the lowest about 20 m, each of which has been driven about 50 m deep into the ground. The distance between the piers varies between 105 and 210 m. They feature a special cross-section – a conical shape in longitudinal direction and a strong side cut in transverse direction. All basement structures have been founded by means of large bored piles with diameters of 1.50 m to 2.00 m. The almost 25,000 t single-part superstructure has been realized as a steel beam bridge spanning 11 fields with an orthotropic deck.

For this gigantic structure, Dillinger supplied more than 25,000 t of heavy plate in the qualities S355J2+N, S355J2C+N, S355N/NL and S460M in thicknesses between 8 and 125 mm.