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‘How I became a Launching Gantry Operator’

...in the meeting with the construction manager, I mentioned that I had never operated a ‘Launching Girder' machine like this. He told me that he knew exactly what I did before, what kind of experience I had, and that he thought that I was the right guy for the job...
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‘Present engagement’

At the moment I work in Dubai (UAE) on the Dubai Metro Project for ‘VSL Switzerland LTD Special Project Department (CEME)’
After completion of the project in Hongkong, VSL tranferd me to the Special Project Department (CEME) in Switzerland who send me first to Jordan/Amman and than to Tunisia/Tunis as Technical Advisor and now to Dubai (UAE).

The Dubai Metro Project a US $120 million (AED32.7 million) contract to build a viaduct to carry one part of Dubai’s light rail transit (LRT) system. The VSL unit, which specializes in the construction of bridges, has already started precasting and soon erecting segments using 9 brand new state of art ‘Deal Overhead Launching Gantries’ on the Red Line a 50-kilometer (31-mile) line with 35 stations from Jebel Ali Port, the American University in Dubai, through the city center, and to the Airport Free Zone. The work, being carried out in a joint venture with the French counterpart of VSL Freyssinet International and Italian-based Rizzani de Eccher and will result in two separate lines. The contract also includes an option to build a viaduct on a second LRT line, the Green Line a 20-kilometer (12.4-mile) line with 22 stations from Festival City, through the city center, Dubai International Airport Terminals 1 and 3, and to Rashidiya.. The red and green line together have a length of approximate 60-70 km.
Here in the VFR-JV I work as ‘General Site Superintendent’ in charge for the assembling and erection of the ‘Deal Overhead Launching Gantries’ and later the erection of the superstructure respectively train the operating crew how to do.

Before that I was in Tunis and worked on the La-Goulette Stay-Cable Bridge Project Tunis to advise and assist the sub-contractor Sumatra Tunisia and main-contractor the Japanese construction company Taisei to assemble and lift the Pier-Table Steel-Structure and formwork. I was responsible for the assembling and lifting the Pier-Table Steel-Struckture and Formwork, Heavy-Lifting and Stressing of the Hinge-Brackets that support the Pier-Brackets and Formwork.

Before that I worked in Jordan/Amman on the Wadi-Abdoun-Bridge, a Stay Cable Bridge in free balanced cantilever segmental building for ‘VSL Switzerland LTD Special Project Department’ who sent me to the project as a Technical-Advisor to assist the Main-Contractor Larsen & Tubro an Indian construction Company who faces serious problems in the segment erection and the launching of the erection machine.
This bridge across the Abdoun valley is 390 metres long and the deck is 41 metres above the ground. Highway alignment dictates that the bridge is on a reverse curve. The deck girder of the bridge is designed to be built with glued, match cast, precast concrete deck segments using a balanced cantilever construction technique.
The deck is supported primarily by cable stays anchored to 3 reinforced concrete Y-shaped towers located on either side of the deck, and extending 26 metres above the deck. The prestressing of the girders is by internally bonded prestressing cables. Prestressing is provided both longitudinally and transversely.

‘From Hong Kong to China’

Here with VSL Construction Hong Kong on the ‘Shenzhen Western Corridor ’ we build the ‘Deep Bay Highway Link’ and the ‘Shenzhen Western Corridor Bridge’. I operated and supervised one of the largest ‘Launching Gantries’ in the world. It is 184.4 metres long, equipped with two winches to lift segments up to 128 tons. We assembled ‘balanced cantilever’ spans of 75m between piers. For end-spans the launcher was built to take a weight of approximately 900 tons, and able to hang 9 segments with special stress-bars...
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‘Resume - Launching Gantry / Heavy Lifting Supervisor’

...Since 1997 I am working as a ‘Launching Girder Operator’. First for ‘Bilfinger & Berger International’ in Bangkok (Thailand) on the ‘Bang Na - Bang Pakon Expressway Project’ where I assembled, erected and operated ‘Launching Gantries’ and was responsible for the erecting and placing of the segments for Spans up to 1300 tons and 43.20m long, stressing of the spans, installing and grouting bearings and supervising heavy crane lifts. Originally I was a ‘Heavy Lift Crane Operator’ and ‘Heavy-Transport’ supervisor since 1987, and previously worked for the international British Company ‘Grayston White & Sparrow (U.K.)’ in Thailand Rayong. My responsibilities there were rigging, operating and supervision for a 400 ton Mobile Crane, 300 ton Crawler Crane and I was the second operator for a 1300 ton ‘Lattice-boom-Crane’...
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‘Stay in Korea’

In June 2001, just after I started with ‘H.B.P. JV (Hoch Tief Construction International)’, I was sent to Korea to receive training and get some experience on the ‘High Speed Rail Project Korea’ constructed by Ingerop & Daewoo. After my time there, the construction manager asked me to write a article about the project.
here you can read what I wrote for the company newspaper published in Korea...