Bay bridge island near HK Airport up to snuff

The main portion of Eastern Artificial Island near Chek Lap Kok (Hong Kong) International Airport received a surface of fair-faced concrete on Aug 31.

After more than 800 days and nights of construction involving nearly 1,000 workers, the landmark structure is a crucial Hong Kong-Zhuhai Macao Bridge (HZMB) link section on the Pearl River Estuary. The main building of more than 40,000 sq m with two floors underground and another four above, looks like an aircraft carrier comfortably integrated with natural surroundings.

It is almost a month since Western Artificial Island was capped on July 28. The two engineered islands connect a subsea tunnel and are key parts of the 29.6-km HZMB Main Bridge.

The east island serves as the Hong Kong entrance to the tunnel and has a 12-km connecting line. It houses an integrated operation center for transportation, management, service, rescue, and sightseeing.

Main body of Eastern Artificial Island [Photo by Wang Baiwen / Zhuhai Daily]

Despite presenting more difficulties than construction on land, stringent demands were put on the project by requiring each floor to be of superior quality, according to Lin Ming. Lin is chief engineer at China Communications Construction Co Ltd and general manager of the Tunnel-Bridge Project Department of HZMB.

Multiple measures were taken to standardize and streamline procedures, including applying an advanced Japanese 6-S management method which ensures proper sorting, straightening, scrubbing, standardization, sustainability, and safety.