NORTH WEST
RAIL LINK
his win couldn't have come at a better time. In a time of slow activity in the construction industry SMEC was fortunate to secure this work.
The SMEC team will provide services in bridge, roadworks and geotechnical design together with drainage, durability and traffic assessment and staging services with in-house resources.
The project includes a 4km long rail viaduct between Bella Vista and Rouse Hill in Sydney’s northwest and a 270 metre long cable-stayed bridge over Windsor Road at Rouse Hill.
SMEC’s winning design for the viaduct is a precast segmental box girder bridge deck to be erected span by span using a large overhead travelling gantry. The design for the cable-stayed bridge was led by a team from SMEC in South Africa and includes two pylons and a single plane of cables in a modified fan arrangement, as pictured, right.
The project also includes:
• Bridges over the rail line at Bella Vista and Balmoral Road
• 2km of rail formation and drainage works
• Roadwork and intersection designs at Balmoral and Windsor Roads
• Local road and T-way adjustments
avid Jefferson tells us his thoughts on the process to success.
Q1. What do you think it was that set us apart from the competition?
TfNSW’s NWRL Project Director, Rodd Staples, has advised ISJV and SMEC that the quality of the design submission was the major factor in ISJV being awarded the project. The approach taken by the design team was to build upon and improve the reference design prepared by TfNSW. The design submission included a detailed methodology as to the engineering services being offered and identified significant design improvements for the Bella Vista to Rouse Hill Viaduct.
Q2. What was the most challenging aspect of preparing this tender?
The most significant challenge was assisting ISJV in the interpretation of the tender requirements as the JV companies had not worked in Australia for more than 20 years.
Q3. What is happening now? What are the next steps in moving this project forward?
SMEC is working with the JV to establish points of contact and interfaces across the project team.
The critical steps moving forward are finalising the management plans, the design program and the scope of work for the design options.
The skytrain and new bridge are the most visible elements of the 36km long North West Rail Link project and a key priority has been to ensure final designs are integrated with their surroundings.
Congratulations to the design team for submitting a high quality tender submission that has been praised by TfNSW and was a major factor in ISJV securing this win. Well done David Jefferson (Project Manager), John Anderson (cable-stayed bridge design), Teng Khoo and Ng Chun (lead viaduct designers), Chris Lawton (civil works design), Jane Gibson (project controls), Edoardo Fusina (design interface coordination) and all the other team members for all their efforts.
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SMEC alongside Impregilo and Salini changing Sydney
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COVER STORY