Norway鈥檚 New Sotra Bridge project (Photo: Norconsult)

In recent years, Europe has become a hub for bridge projects, driven by the demand for advanced infrastructure to improve connectivity and economic growth across the continent. These projects often involve complex engineering feats, large-scale budgets, and cutting-edge technology.

A leading example of innovation is Norway鈥檚 New Sotra Bridge project which is claimed to be the world鈥檚 largest fully digital bridge design project. As part of the National Road 555 Sotrasambandet, the bridge is part of a 9.4-kilometre national road connecting the island of Sotra with Bergen, Norway鈥檚 second-largest city. The bridge will improve transport capacity, support pedestrian and cyclist traffic, and facilitate the export of fish, oil and gas.

High requirements

The project, valued at 19.8 billion NOK (鈧�1.74 billion), is one of the largest infrastructure contracts in Europe and is being executed as a Public-Private Partnership (PPP). In September 2021, Sotra Link (a consortium made up of Italian contractor Webuild, Spain鈥檚 FCC Construcci贸n, and Korean firm SK E&C) was awarded the contract, and Norconsult started the detail design for area 08 New Sotra Bridge, one of the 11 subareas of the project. The bridge is planned as a four-lane suspension structure with an integrated pedestrian walkway and is being designed and built using digital processes.

Norconsult developed new digital methods and selected tools to ensure efficient design and construction on the complex project, which involves around one million objects and 60 million data points for the New Sotra bridge alone.

The New Sotra Bridge project is expected to set a precedent for digital infrastructure projects, utilising advanced digital tools and sustainable solutions to streamline large-scale infrastructure design and construction in Europe.

Thomas 脴stgulen, BIM manager and developer for bridges at Norconsult (Photo: Norconsult)

Thomas 脴stgulen, BIM manager and developer for bridges at Norconsult, outlines the importance of rigorous information management in the New Sotra Bridge project. 鈥淭his is a BIM Level 3 project,鈥� he explains, 鈥渁nd we have very high requirements for the models and the information.鈥�

Given the extensive data involved, standardisation across properties and data points is essential to prevent confusion and maintain accuracy throughout the project. 脴stgulen notes that significant work went into defining property sets. Having structured data for each element, makes it easy to view and identify various parts of the bridge.

Norconsult developed its own automated validation system to ensure that each model update aligns with required properties, correct formatting, and allowed values.

Due to its innovative approach, Norconsult鈥檚 design for the bridge won the 鈥楳ost Innovative Use of Autodesk Platform Services鈥� category at the Autodesk Design & Make Awards in San Diego, US, in October.

脴stgulen highlights the language and cultural challenges of working on a project where the contractual requirement is to provide all official documentation in Norwegian. Since most of the team members from Sotra Link are from outside Norway, Norconsult incorporated dual-language support鈥攂oth Norwegian and English鈥攊nto the project model.

This approach reduces language and cultural barriers and ensures that both local and international teams can collaborate more effectively. 脴stgulen notes, 鈥淭he model makes us able to break down language barriers by including both Norwegian and English in the model and cultural barriers since models follow ISO standards and not national guidelines,鈥� which also aids communication with subcontractors from the local area who may lack experience with large-scale digital projects.

Using BIM, the project has addressed most issues before they reach the construction site, saving time and limiting the potential for construction errors. Issues that previously could result in costly delays have been identified early and improved upon for a more efficient and higher quality construction process.

Eirik Wie Furunes, leader of bridge engineering at Norconsult (Photo: Norconsult)

Eirik Wie Furunes, leader of bridge engineering at Norconsult, emphasises the importance of having government and client support to achieve a project at such a high level of digital sophistication. Reflecting on the New Sotra Bridge project, he says, 鈥淚t probably wouldn鈥檛 be the same digital scale as it has been without the government and the client actually demanding this level.鈥�

Furunes highlights the value of clients who 鈥渂elieve in the system鈥� and understand that this investment in digital processes provides added value in the long run.

Furunes observed that Norway鈥檚 approach to digitalisation in construction is unique. He shares an experience from a US conference, where American design firms asked him why they couldn鈥檛 get their clients to support the same level of digital advancement as seen in Norway. Furunes attributed this to Norway鈥檚 digitisation strategy, enforced by authorities through binding contracts.

鈥淵ou have to be innovative,鈥� he says, pointing out that recent contracts have demanded innovative solutions that often aren鈥檛 commercially available. Norconsult has adapted by developing custom solutions, working with commercial software that offers new, flexible tools. 鈥淭he software companies have made it more possible now than ever to do these kinds of connections between a large sphere of programs,鈥� he adds, noting that Norconsult鈥檚 in-house systems also support these innovations.

Transporting bridges

In the UK, momentum on the stalled HS2 (High Speed 2) rail project is getting back on track, but the sprawling transportation programme will rely heavily on bridge connections throughout the 225km expansion.

Due to the transport needs of the public, not all bridges can be built on-site, and this was the case for an 84m-long crossing in Birmingham, England, called the Aston Church Road bridge.

Aston Church Road bridge (Photo: HS2)

Instead, a joint venture of the British firm Balfour Beatty and France鈥檚 Vinci, enlisted the help of heavy-lifting and transport specialist Mammoet. The Dutch contractor utilised two 128-wheeled self-propelled modular transporters to relocate the 1,600-tonne steel and concrete bridge to its permanent position.

Dan Binns, project manager with Balfour Beatty Vinci said the method was used to reduce impact to ongoing rail travel. 鈥淲e purposely chose to move the bridge on wheels, so it could be built offline first, then moved across in just five hours, greatly reducing the impact on rail passengers,鈥� he says.

At the installation site, crews built a 9,000m2 platform and 62 piles to support concrete structures. It took some five hours of overnight work to move and fix the bridge over the existing Birmingham to Derby line, which will be part of the future HS2.

Binns adds, 鈥淭his was a complex operation, made even more challenging because the bridge needed to be driven over four existing Network Rail lines, requiring years of precise planning and preparation.鈥�

Appproximately 4,000m3 of concrete and 490 tonnes of reinforced steel was used in the operation, says Balfour Beatty. Over the next year, crews will dismantle the former Aston Church Road to create more space for future HS2 trains.

Sustainable bridge construction

While innovation is a key consideration in the building of modern bridges, sustainability in bridge construction is also crucial for enhancing the structural longevity of Europe鈥檚 mega bridges and minimising environmental impact.

Cameron Archer-Jones, associate and carbon lead from engineering consulting group COWI (right) (Photo: COWI)

By integrating sustainable practices, engineers ensure that bridges are built to last, reducing the need for frequent repairs or replacements that consume additional resources and generate waste.

Sustainable materials and low-impact construction methods can significantly lessen the environmental footprint of new infrastructure projects, from decreasing carbon emissions during construction to preserving local ecosystems and waterways.

Cameron Archer-Jones, associate and carbon lead from engineering consulting group COWI explains his company鈥檚 approach to integrating sustainable practices in bridge engineering by keeping these practices engineer-led.

He describes how their carbon management process is a core component of each project, rather than an external add-on. 鈥淥ur point,鈥� Archer-Jones says, 鈥渋s that it鈥檚 got to be done by the right person in the team.

鈥淎t COWI, the engineers themselves conduct the carbon assessments, directly identifying opportunities for reducing the project鈥檚 carbon footprint. This immediate feedback loop allows engineers to spot potential carbon savings early in the design process, leading to tangible reductions that influence the project鈥檚 overall sustainability.鈥�

Archer-Jones further explains COWI鈥檚 structural carbon rating system, developed with the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE). With a database of nearly 150 bridges, the system allows them to benchmark each design, track improvements, and set higher standards for each new project.

COWI鈥檚 approach to rating has brought carbon assessment into everyday practice for engineers, making them more confident and capable of independently identifying and implementing carbon-saving strategies.

David MacKenzie, chair of COWIfonden, adds that achieving sustainable solutions requires close collaboration with clients, as many are eager to support eco-friendly practices but uncertain of where to start.

By working with clients to share industry knowledge and best practices, COWI helps bridge this gap. 鈥淚f we鈥檙e all doing it, then there鈥檚 a benefit,鈥� MacKenzie states.