Five of the World’s Biggest Concrete Construction Projects

Concrete is one of the strongest, versatile and long-lasting materials around. Advances in technology, and the 21^st Century world’s needs, mean that it is being used in increasingly larger and more complex construction projects around the world.

Madmix are leading reinforced concrete suppliers in Cambridge and the surrounding areas. Here we look at five international projects which needed more concrete than your average patio or driveway.

Hinkley Point, Somerset

In June 2019 a French company poured 9,000 cubic metres of reinforced concrete onto the site of the new nuclear power station in Hinkley Point, making it the biggest ever ‘pour’ in the UK. The admixture contains 5,000 tons of steel and will form the base of the first of the site’s two reactors, which are due to start generating electricity in 2025.

Because of the large amounts of concrete required for the project– there are also large amounts needed for two tunnels which bring in seawater to cool the reactors – the main contractors, EDF Energy, have their own concrete mixing plant on site.

Polavaram, Andhra Pradesh, India

Hinkley Point has been well and truly dwarfed by the dam which is currently under construction in Andhra Pradesh, India. Some 32,315.5 cubic metres of concrete, which will form the dam’s spillway, were poured by the Navayuga Engineering Company in a 24-hour period. This has been rewarded with an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records.

The dam, which is expected to be complete by the end of 2019, is part of a wider government project which aims to combat the region’s ongoing water shortages.

The Gotthard Base Tunnel, Switzerland

This is the longest and the deepest concrete rail tunnel the world has ever seen. It has been built under the Swiss Alps, and it runs for more than 57 kilometres (miles), over 2,3km (miles) under the mountains. It needed to be so deep to ensure the rail tracks were as level as possible.

The reason behind this project was to encourage freight companies to switch from road to rail, and to protect the natural beauty of the mountain range which it runs underneath. The tunnel, which has used more than one million cubic metres of concrete, was finished in 2016.

The Danyang-Kunshan Grand Bridge, Eastern China

This is the longest bridge in the world, a title which it has held since 2011, at 102 miles (165km) long.  The bridge, which took 10,000 workers four years to build, forms part of the Beijing-Shanghai High-Speed Railway route, and it crosses the Yangtze River Delta.

More than 2.5million cubic metres of concrete, and 0.5million cubic metres of steel, were used in its construction.

The Three Gorges Dam, Hubei Province, China

This hydroelectric dam has two claims to fame. The 27.2million cubic metres of concrete used to build it make it the heaviest concrete structure in the world, and it’s also the largest.  The dam is 2,335 m (7,661 ft) long and the top of it is 185 m (607 ft) above sea level. Most of the concrete was used in the main wall.

The dam currently holds a third record as well – although this doesn’t have any direct concrete links. Since 2012, when it went operational, it has been able to generate more electricity than any other power station in the world

Reinforced Concrete from Accredited Supplier Madmix

While we appreciate that, when you buy ready mix concrete, you won’t be building huge bridges and dams, you can be assured that if you order from Madmix, your concrete will be of the very highest quality. We offer a variety of admixtures, including pumpable, waterproof and fibre-reinforced concrete, from our base near Cambridge.

Whether you want just one cubic metre for a domestic project such as a foundation or driveway, or 1,000 cubic metres or more for a major agricultural or commercial job, we can supply it.

Our website also has an inbuilt concrete calculator, which makes it easy to work out how much concrete you will need. And if you do get it wrong, then don’t worry, because we will take away any excess at no extra charge. We deliver regularly to St Ives, St Neots, Newmarket, Huntingdon, Ely, Royston and Cambridge. Follow this link to get in touch if you would like to learn more about our products and services.