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Bangabandhu Multipurpose Bridge

Cracks come under fixing

M ABUL KALAM Azad, back from Bangabandhu Bridge
The repair of cracks on the Bangabandhu Multipurpose Bridge is going on in full swing with a target to complete the work by March.
China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) is doing the job under aTk243 crore project. It is also replacing the damaged expansion joints of the country's largest bridge connecting northern region with the capital.
Supervised by a team of Buet (Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology) experts, 500 workers including 106 Chinese are carrying out the repair work. They are being assisted by Chinese experts.
During a recent visit to the bridge, this correspondent found that highly sophisticated methods and materials are being used to fill the cracks.
Epoxy, a type of glue, is being injected first into the cracks, followed by pasting of Carbon Fibre Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) to make sure no more crack develops. A kind of epoxy resin is being used to level off the CFRP with the bridge's deck. For waterproofing, epoxy and asphalt are being used.
Finally, the entire bridge deck is being covered with a layer of 50 millimetres carpeting with mastic stone, bitumen and wood fibre.
“We have so far completed repairs on a one kilometre stretch of the bridge. Another one and a half kilometres will be completed by this month,’’ Wu Guangsheng, general manager of CCCC, told The Daily Star.
The company sees the job as a challenge since this is the first time it has taken up such a sophisticated work in Bangladesh. He hoped to maintain the standard of the repair.
The 4.8 kilometre bridge on the Jamuna was built by South Korean Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co Ltd and was opened to traffic in 1998.
In 2006, an inspection of the bridge by experts detected faults in Hyundai’s design and construction that led to the emergence of cracks both on and below the surface of the deck. The cracks put the lifespan of the structure in jeopardy.
Experts suggested urgent repair of those cracks to ensure the bridge's 100-year lifespan is not cut short. The government in 2011 picked CCCC for the repair work.
Asked about the standard of the repair work, Jamilur Reza Choudhury, head of the supervisory team, expressed satisfaction. “The result of the repair is better than our expectation.”
The repair, he said, was delayed by a few months as several trials were carried out to see whether the mending method was perfect.
"All the materials were tested in Singapore before carrying out trial repairs on the bridge. But the initial trials proved ineffective with the change in weather.
Thus we had to pick the perfect design for the work," he mentioned.
Wu hoped the bridge would regain its full strength once the repair is done. He emphasised regular monitoring and maintenance of the bridge.
The repair will conclude with road marking and installation of traffic lights. CRACKS INSIDE
A lot of inner cracks have developed in the bridge, which should be repaired to make sure those do not widen in future.
“Though the inner cracks are minor, those also need repair. We have already discussed it. The CCCC can be given the responsibility,” said Jamilur Reza Choudhury.
Wu Guangsheng said it would be easy for them to repair the inner cracks as all the equipment, materials and manpower required are already there.