The washers, manufactured from Tufnol’s high performance glass laminate, are forming preloaded connections with the bolts that attach critical components to the bridge construction and have been specially designed to cope with the forces that will be placed upon them every day.
Gerard Kiely, head of section for Forth Crossing Bridge Constructors, said: “We needed the bolt washers manufactured from a material that would be robust enough to stand up to the rigours of being installed on a bridge situated in one of the UK’s harshest environments. This is not only in terms of strength, but also includes resistance to all kinds of weather conditions and corrosion from sea salt.”
The new 1.7mile bridge is the longest three tower, cable stayed bridge in the world.The project is part of a major upgrade of the cross-Forth transport corridor in the East of Scotland, representing an investment of up to £1.35bn from the Scottish Government.
Roy Thomason, managing director for Tufnol Composites, said: “We’ve provided products and solutions to a wide range of projects such as this over the years including Birmingham’s New Street Station and London Underground and it is great to be part of yet another high-profile infrastructure project.”
