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Engineering solutions provider Bennett Associates is
celebrating its role in the creation of the Falkirk Wheel following this year's
Structural Steel Design Awards.
Launched in 1969 the purpose of the awards is to recognise the
high standards of structural, architectural and engineering design attained in
the use of steel and this year the judges singled out the world's first rotating
boat lift for an Engineering Award.
Commenting on this year's awards Nick Cooper, managing director of
Bennett Associates said; " It is very rewarding to have your efforts in such a
project recognised in this way. Very few people who will see the Wheel working
will ever realise just what has been achieved and the problems that have been
overcome by the engineers, designers and fabricators.
What was so unusual about this whole project was that everyone
involved was working in relatively unknown territory. It is the first ever
rotating boat lift that has been designed and as such nobody had any prior
experience of building such a machine. We had to come up with solutions for
watertight lock gates and their associated controls as well as the mechanism
that drives the whole wheel and also keeps the gondolas stable. In providing
these solutions we had to draw on our experience gained in other fields
including tunnelling machinery and the sub sea oil industry.
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