Welding 5,500,000 kg of steel safely and efficiently.

When the world exhibition opens on June 14th 2008 in Zaragoza, the limelight will also be on a 275 m long structure spanning the Ebro. The Bridge Pavilion will be an eye catcher, an entrance, a focal point and also a multi-storey exhibition space at Expo 2008. At its heart lies 5,500,000 kg of steel. The welding for the supporting structure was carried out exclusively by the Spanish company Urssa, who used Fronius welding technology. 

Urssa, a company with an international reputation in the field of exposed steel construction, has been working on the imposing Bridge Pavilion since January 2007. The welding equipment was hired from Galaelectronic, Spanish partner of Fronius International, and comprised 42 TransPulsSynergic 4000, VarioSynergic 5000 and TransSynergic 5000 welding systems. Galaelectronic employees were also on hand with technical support twelve hours a day, seven days a week. They ensured that 80 Urssa welding specialists, working in a two-shift system, were able to complete the job on schedule and to the highest quality. At peak periods there were over 160 welders on site. The steel, of which 95% was delivered as sheet bar, is 6 to 100 m thick, and that's not the only impressive fact: The finished steel construction has 10,000 m of welding seams, for which the welders used a total of 100,000 kg of filler material to bridge weld gaps of up to 2 mm.

"Before we signed the lease and service order, we had a close look at the technical capabilities of Fronius welding systems in practice", says Pedro Arredondo, technical project manager for steel constructions at Urssa. He explains: "We have successfully completed previous projects with Galaelectronic and their specific on-site service offer made the decision to go for Fronius systems an easy one."
When the first visitors step onto the bridge at Expo 2008 on June 14th, the Urssa welders and the equipment hired from Galaelectronic will already be busy welding other thick sheets and supports.

 

Fronius International GmbH

In 2006, Fronius and its 1900  employees achieved a turnover of  235.12 million Euros. The family-owned company is an international leader in arc welding technology. Applications can be found in all areas of the metalworking industry. Fronius offers its customers manual to fully automated welding systems for high-quality, cost-effective processes. Users are supported by 10 subsidiaries and 82 sales and service partners worldwide. In addition to welding technology, the company's other divisions are solar electronics and battery charging systems.       

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