CMAC designs a moving bridge platform for Durgam Cheruvu in Hyderabad which has the longest cable stay bridge on any lake in the world with a length of 233.8 meters.
A whatsapp message looking for a bridge platform got Team CMAC moving briskly on designing of the platform. Within two months of the initial discussions, the company got the purchase order for the platform.
CMAC took up the challenge to provide this suspended platform. The span of the bridge is 28 meters; the cable stay bridge is 234 meters long between two pylons. CMAC equipment is designed to enable work on the underside of the bridge. The client also asked for a floating mechanism to help them work under water.
The design of the platform took shape on a 3-tier basis; the span of platform is 30 meters and the raised height on the ends is almost 5 meters. The tiers (levels) help the technician/artisan to reach the parabolic under the bridge surface. Access onto the platform is given by well-crafted stairs from the bridge deck.
The automation team worked on a 4-motor control panel. Given the importance of the project, the design team at CMAC set the safety systems in place for synchronous tilt and power factor variations, and such like.
When the time finally came to erect and demonstrate it, team CMAC celebrated the first suspended bridge platform on 15 Jan 2020.
Since the client wanted a moving bridge platform, the CMAC team was faced with a huge challenge as the entire system needs to be pulled or pushed while the platform is hanging. Realising the difficulty, the design team went back to the drawing board, and did a lot of structural changes for the top mechanism.
Two counter-weight structures were used instead of one to enable the movement. The wheels of the mechanism were replaced by channels for guiding the movement, instead of rails. After two interactions at the site, Team CMAC proved the effectiveness of the new machine by moving it while the bridge was hanging with the technicians working on it. In a day, the team could work around 15 running meters. Thus the designing gave birth to a new machine – the Moving Bridge Platform.
