New Mabey Atlas™ bridge that can carry up to 400 tonnes enabling access for critical oil and gas operations

Leading bridge and engineering specialist Mabey has secured a contract to build a new road bridge for an oil and gas company, which can carry loads of up to 400 tonnes – ten times the weight of the heaviest vehicle allowed on British roads.

Subsea 7, a leading seabed-to-surface engineering firm and construction and services contractor to the offshore energy industry, has ordered the Mabey Atlas™ bridge to enable road access for heavy vehicles and pipeline structures to the company’s pipeline bundle fabrication site near Wick, Caithness in North East Scotland.

Replacing an ageing access bridge, the Atlas™ is 27 metres long and comprises a 5.25-metre-wide carriageway. The bridge can carry loads of between 300 to 400 tonnes to allow access to where Subsea 7 launches its pipeline bundles – the structures, values, pipelines and controls necessary to operate an oil and gas field in one single system that is pre-assembled onshore before being towed offshore.

Willie Watt, General Manager of Subsea 7, said: “We chose Mabey and its Atlas™ bridge because of the reliability of its products and its experience installing bridges in challenging locations. This new bridge enables quicker, safer and improved access to our site ensuring we can accommodate the ever-increasing sizes and requirements of our subsea pipeline solutions for the North Sea.”

The site, just south of John o’ Groats, runs 7.8km inland and covers a total area more than 300,000m². It includes a sheltered bay in which the company launches its pipeline bundles, some of which can measure over seven kilometres in length and which are then towed out for use in the North Sea.

Michael Treacy, Chief Executive of Mabey Bridge, said: “This project will be delivered more efficiently and more safely because the Atlas™ bridge is a pre-fabricated modular system, meaning it is entirely manufactured off-site, and is easy to transport and install.

“Our Atlas™ bridge is named after the Greek titan who held up the sky for eternity. The bridge can be tailored to meet clients’ specific loads requirements, taking up to 400-tonne loads in this case, so this bridge is living up to its reputation.”

The bridge will be installed by Mabey in Spring 2017.

Mabey’s Atlas™ bridge is a lightweight pre-fabricated steel bridging system that combines the benefits of a unique pre-engineered, modular deck with the simplicity of plate girder construction. Available in both standard and bespoke designs, the Atlas™ can be configured as a conventional permanent bridge for both urban and rural applications, or as a permanent flyover to ease urban traffic congestion.

The bridge can accommodate up to four lanes of traffic and can be used in multiple span applications with no length restrictions, and supported on intermediate piers where required. Alongside meeting specific load requirements, the Atlas™ can be tailored any for all environments, extremes of high temperature, high wind loads and seismic conditions.