Tonnage fan club

The bridge deck was largely created in 122 sections, in Rosyth. From their marine yard home, these 750 tonne segments were barged out into the Forth to be lifted by special movable hydraulic lifting equipment called erection travellers.

The process was highly sensitive to wind and tide, taking around 4 hours to carefully lift each section around 80 metres to deck level. They were then held in place by the traveller before cable stays could be attached, tensioned and the section welded and “stitched-in” with concrete.

Each deck fan was created with sequential north and south lifts that balanced the structure. Before being connected to the rest of the structure, the Centre Tower fan was the longest free-standing balanced cantilever ever constructed.

Watch the video below to learn more from John Redpath.