The new bridge over the Weerwater near Almere will connect the Lumièrepark and the future Floriadewijk neighbourhood. Thousands of Almere residents were given the opportunity to vote for their favourite design for this sustainable connection across the Weerwater. The construction was entrusted to Strukton Civiel West, which approached Hendriks for the pier formwork.
When designing the new bridge, Quist Wintermans Architekten drew inspiration from nature and its flowing forms. This is immediately apparent in the bridge's route, which is draped over the water in a winding movement. The construction is beautiful, with an elegant bridge deck and graceful pillars in flowing organic shapes. The bridge will feature striking places to linger. The balustrade is reminiscent of reeds, while the bamboo seating elements are enriched with a mix of grasses and rapeseed flowers.
The piers and deck are made of concrete, a construction material that lasts for decades and therefore contributes to the desired sustainability. For the construction of the piers, Strukton Civiel Civiel West is using footings that are sunk onto the piles. Special pier formwork developed in collaboration with Hendriks is placed on top of these.
Jelle Huntjens of Strukton Civiel West explains the choice of column formwork: “Nine columns are being cast for the bridge in five different heights, so that the bridge deck rises flat at first and then slopes downwards. We deliberately chose steel for the formwork. It is quick to work with, allows complex shapes to be created and can be used several times without compromising on quality. We also had the formwork calculated in wood, but the additional costs for the steel formwork are fully recouped by the savings in labour hours. With this steel pier formwork, a pier can be erected in 8 to 9 days, including formwork, pouring and curing.”
Because not all pillars are the same height, the formwork must also be adjustable in height. Jelle Huntjens: "Normally, we solve this by placing spacers at the top, but in this case they are placed at the bottom. After the semi-circular formwork box has been placed, the reinforcement is installed and the closing box can be mounted. Any fitting pieces continue at the same angle as the rest of the column formwork.”
The steel design of the column formwork also guarantees a very smooth concrete finish. The column formwork is equipped with a secure pouring device with integrated cage ladder at the top.
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