Denmark's bridges

© Robert Schuler

Under the motto "Discovering creates knowledge", students of the 8th semester were able to deepen their acquired knowledge on the annual bridge excursion and see the practical implementation up close.

The study trip took the twelve students and two supervisors from the Institute of Solid Construction to what is, according to the study, the happiest country in the world, our neighboring country Denmark. The eight-day excursion, which was co-organized by the students, was a journey through the development of structural systems and associated spans.
Starting with countless bascule bridges, steel truss bridges, beam and arch bridges, through cable-stayed bridges to kilometer-long suspension bridges, the students were able to marvel at, analyze and in some cases even experience the multitude of load-bearing systems. In addition to a guided tour of the construction site of the new Rethe Bridge, the dizzying ascent of the Rendsburg steel high bridge and the inspection of the anchor blocks of the suspension bridge over the Little Belt, the visit to the longest suspension bridge in Denmark over the Great Belt was a highlight. After numerous bridges, the capital city of Copenhagen, which has been named "Most Livable City in the World" several times, was explored for a change.

After leaving the picturesque and architecturally highly recommended city of Copenhagen, the focus was again on the bridges. A guided tour along the Öresund Bridge, which connects the Danish capital Copenhagen with Malmö in Sweden, showed the students that, in addition to design and construction, the maintenance and upkeep of such a project play a major role. The final point and at the same time a special experience of the excursion was climbing a 40 m high pier of the Strelasund crossing, the shape of which resembles a drop and forms the substructure for the cable-stayed bridge and the foreshore beam bridge. At the end of the climb, the students were able to inspect the bearings, the three-cell steel hollow box girder of the cable-stayed bridge and the externally prestressed hollow box girder of the beam bridge. The tendon guidance of the beam bridge had caused plenty of discussion among the students.