To good health and happiness!
Afconians achieve multiple firsts in Kuwait’s iconic roads & bridges project dedicated to healthcare and wellness
Infrastructure development is fundamental to Kuwait’s growth strategy, but what is unique about the Middle Eastern country is its willingness to keep healthcare at the centre of its planning. As soon as the Jaber-Al Ahmad Al Sabah hospital was planned in South Surra area, a simultaneous road network was parallely envisaged to ensure citizens coming for treatment and while exiting the hospital to have a smooth signal-free driving experience. There should be no waiting time, or, convoluted entry and exit. Just around this time, the RA-256 project was planned and Afcons became the first Indian infrastructure company to undertake this unique project solely dedicated to facilitate healthcare in the state.
But what does it take to deliver one of Kuwait’s largest and most complex infrastructure projects? How complex it must be to operate within an area littered with ministry zones? What must it take to demolish a bridge over the country’s busiest highway? What must it take to construct segmental bridges on some of the busiest and speediest highways? There are no easy guesses.
Quantum of Work
It took minute planning, definite scheduling, proper sequencing, appropriate resourcing, crafting innovative solutions, assuring perfect methodology, backing a dedicated team of engineers, and finally bold decisions to execute the project. This urban development project, dedicated to wellness for its connection to the country’s largest hospital, included construction of 39km of road network across a six lakh sqm area, construction of three interchanges, including nine elevated bridges, three signalised intersections, four troughs, six over-trough wide bridges, two pedestrian bridges over busy highways, four pump stations, laying of more than 10,000m water pipelines, high tension & low tension electrical works, use of trenchless technique for utility installation by microtunnelling (for 6720m length), laying of more than 25km storm water network, and constructing a 750m underground stormwater detention tank, which is arguably the largest such tank in Kuwait, among other features.
“I think this project is in one of the most critical areas in Kuwait. Also, it contained so many ministries in this area. There are more than seven ministries in this zone, and it was a big challenge for us to work in this crowded area (for traffic).”
- Mohammad Esmail Alsaffar, Project Engineer, PART
First time in Kuwait
One of the unique achievements was the erection of bridge precast segments with balanced cantilever methodology by using segment lifters with a curve and super elevation. This was done for the first time in Kuwait.
“Some of the bridges were located on busy roads such as the Sixth Ring Road and Highway 40. So, it was not possible to halt traffic for construction works. To avoid any inconvenience, balanced cantilever methodology was used for bridge construction. It ensured free traffic flow even during construction,” said Afcons’ project manager Gonugunta Punnaiah.
All construction activities were carried out without increasing waiting time for traffic, which indicates that the traffic management was well planned and effective.
“In one of the bridges (IC52-A Bridge 3), there was a horizontal and vertical curve along with variable height of segments. The maximum height of the segment was 4.5m and minimum height was 2.4m. This bridge also had the longest span of 85m and the pre-cast segments were cast on long-line method instead of the normal short-line method. It is first time in Kuwait that such a balanced cantilever bridge has been constructed,” the project manager added.
Fastest bridge demolition
The demolition of the existing old IC-44 Bridge No 3 was yet another example of efficient planning & execution. “Afcons created a record in Kuwait by demolishing a bridge, removing debris, and clearing way for traffic within 47 hours as against a deadline of 60 hours. The entire execution was done with topmost safety and ensuring that there was no harm to adjacent roads and structures,” Punnaiah said.
Largest stormwater detention tank
Another first conquered by Afconians was the construction of the longest, and, probably, the first stormwater detention tank in Kuwait. The tank is 750m long with 22m width and 2.5m height. “The tank’s storage capacity is 41,250 cum. This is the biggest flood water detention tank constructed for the first time in Kuwait. The location near the hospital has witnessed flooding due to heavy rains in previous years. With this arrangement, there will be no disturbance to traffic, or, any disruption on the road in future,” Punnaiah said.
“This project contains a lot of bridges and ramps with very complicated work. And it also contains a very long stormwater storage tank, which will solve our flood season problem. Afcons did their job according to the tender or the recommended highway standards following all our decrees and specifications and recommendations.”
- Suha Jassim Ashkanani, MD, PART
Impeccable safety record
The team notched up an impeccable safety record of 18 Million Safe Man Hours despite the harsh climatic condition, working adjacent to live roads and highways, and working in close proximity to fast moving vehicles.
“We are grateful to our client, PART, for their guidance in project execution and their cooperation in creating a healthy work environment. There were plenty of challenges, but a strong collaboration between all the ministries, PART, and our teams helped us to overcome the obstacles and fulfil an infrastructure dream that caters to a noble cause like healthcare and wellness. I am really proud of this team that worked tirelessly to finish RA-256 that will be remembered for its complex and unique features,” Punnaiah said.
It is not for nothing that RA-256 has received the International Project of the Year award at the 2022 Construction World Global Awards. The felicitation vindicates the hard work of Afconians to create an infrastructure marvel in an unforgiving and highly competitive Middle East market.
