Soletanche Bachy, a subsidiary of Vinci, has formed an equal joint venture with its South Korean partner Sambo E&C to carry out ground reinforcement work at Hong Kong International Airport.
The companies will conduct soil reinforcement using the Geomix technique in height-restricted conditions near the airport’s existing north runway.
According to Vinci, Geomix is a patented Soletanche Bachy process, which enables the characteristics of the soil in place to be improved using a soil-cement mix. It offers a more economic and safer solution that has lower environmental impact, due to the reduction in natural resources used and spoil produced.
The €380M contract also involves the construction of a temporary 1,500 sq m metal platform on piles around the approach beacons on the north runway. Work will be carried out from the sea using barges fitted with advanced monitoring systems, and without interrupting the airport’s activity.
Work has already started. The initial measurement and test phases, and maritime operations are expected to be concluded in two-and-a-half years.
The ground reinforcement work is part of the airport expansion project to manage the increase in traffic. It includes the construction of a third runway on 650ha extending over the sea.
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