Cross-border ambitions for innovative SA bridge solution
Local engineering solutions company SureGO officially installed its demon- stration installation for its patented innovative floating bridge solution at the Richards Bay Ski Boat Club, in KwaZulu-Natal, earlier this month, with plans to further promote the innovation in Mozambique.
The SureGO Walk, a bridge solution, was created for the engineering and mining industries and aims to improve the safety of walkway bridges.
The bridge is designed with uninterruptible flooring, railing and roofing for any position, even while it changes direction. This is useful in water applications, as the bridge can change direction horizontally to 360º while adapting to changing water levels.
It can also be used during the construction of roads and bridges when sand, mud or swamp surfaces have to be crossed.
SureGO designer and patent holder Tex Neveling says the bridge can be designed to last longer than ten years and it can be stored and reused.
“The results from the demonstration installation at the Ski Boat Club show that the motion of the bridge on the water while walking over it was smooth. The load distribution and free bore were also better than we expected and we will continue testing,” he says.
SureGO has also appointed agents in Mozambique to promote the bridge concept and to find possible applications for future projects. The agents are obtaining information from possible locations to allow for the creation of proactive designs.
Meanwhile, Neveling adds, there are employment benefits, as the bridge’s fabrication process does not require specialised skills.
SureGO will inspect all bridges it installs on a regular basis, which includes maintenance and servicing.
In support of SureGO’s design philosophy, modular units can be fabricated in South Africa for export to other countries.
Further, the SureGO Walk bridge solution can be used in water sampling and plant harvesting in catchment dams where stormwater from suburbs is collected.
This system provides a safe work platform for the workers, with uninterrupted walkways for the removal of plants using wheelbarrows. As the walkway changes profile, new harvest and sampling areas can be reached.
SureGO is also working on the creation of the SureGO Drive, a vehicle bridge, which the company is designing for quick deployment during unforeseen circumstances for use by a disaster management team.
Comments
The
content
you are trying to access is only available to subscribers.
If you are already a subscriber, you can Login Here.
If you are not a subscriber, you can subscribe now, by selecting one of the below options.
For more information or assistance, please contact us at subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za.
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation