Royal HaskoningDHV FRP lock gates

On behalf of Rijkswaterstaat, Royal HaskoningDHV has deployed its knowledge of fibre reinforced polymers for the design principles, the design review and quality control of the gates at Lock III.

Liesbeth Tromp, FRP expert at Royal HaskoningDHV, said: “This project demonstrates that we are increasingly making better use of the benefits of RFP in infrastructure and that the Netherlands has a leading position in this field!”

The FRP lock gates are said to be the largest in the world with dimensions of 6.2m by 12.5m. The mitred gates can control a water level difference of no less than 7.90m.

Strong, light and requiring little maintainable, the fibre has many sustainable benefits that can give the gates a longer lifespan than conventional wood or steel gates.

The FRP material does not corrode and there is said to be very little wear on the pivot points on the gates because they have the same specific weight as the water.

Use of FRP for the lock gates was a joint decision of the province of North Brabant and Rijkswaterstaat, in cooperation with the knowledge of Royal HaskoningDHV.

Dutch company FiberCore Europe produced the gates while construction company Hillebrand was responsible for the assembly.

The Wilhelmina canal near Tilburg will be made wider and deeper, new dam walls will be constructed and environmentally friendly embankments will be built.

Widening of the Wilhelmina canal will enable larger ships (class IV ships) to sail through the canal in Tilburg faster.

By Alice Mason