Temporary modular steel system being used during repair of 120-year-old Marchand Bridge

(Bolton, Ontario) – 03 October 2018 – Acrow Bridge, a leading international bridge engineering and supply company, announced that it has recently completed the installation of a temporary modular steel truss system to enable the renovation of the historic Félix-Gabriel-Marchand Bridge in Mansfield et Pontefract, a municipality of Western Québec.

The Marchand Bridge spans the Coulonge River and was built in 1898. It is Québec’s longest covered road bridge and among the longest in the world. It is notable for its unique combination of Town Lattice and queen post trusses and is the only surviving covered bridge in Québec built in the 19^th century outside of the Eastern Townships. A mainstay of the region’s tourism industry, despite ongoing repairs, the bridge was closed for safety reasons in May 2014 after a structural evaluation found that the structure was sinking.

Rehabilitation work on the structure began in January 2018 to strengthen it, replace the roof and deteriorated supports, and realign it both vertically and horizontally. Six temporary Acrow structures of 80 feet (24.6 meters) each were installed in late June and are being used to lift the bridge and provide support during the renovation.

Because of the poor state of the covered bridge, installation posed a problem as launching rollers were prohibited on the existing floor of the structure. Instead, the floor was opened at the five piles and steel supports installed to receive the rollers. A cable was used to pull the complete structure to the full length of 146.3 meters (480 feet). Once the structure was completely launched, pins were removed every 24.6 meters (80 feet) to create the six spans. Acrow’s DS structure is 2.74 meters (8.99 feet) wide, narrower than the existing bridge, to allow 915 millimeters (three feet) of access for workers on either side.

Acrow supplied the rental bridging components to contractor Eurovia Québec Inc., working under the direction of the Ministère des Transports du Québec. The design engineer is CIMA+. Acrow’s temporary system is expected to be in place until the completion of the job, now anticipated for early 2020.

“It is always gratifying to work on historic restoration projects such as this,” said Ken Scott, President, Acrow Ltd. Added Bill Killeen, CEO of Acrow Bridge, “Acrow systems can provide innovative solutions to difficult situations and provide value to contractors and government agencies alike.”

About Acrow Bridge
Acrow Bridge has been serving the transportation and construction industries for more than 60 years with a full line of modular steel bridging solutions for vehicle, rail, military and pedestrian use. Acrow’s extensive international presence includes its leadership in the development and implementation of bridge infrastructure projects in over 80 countries, covering Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, please visit www.acrow.com.