| 37 REGIONAL HEB Construction Proud to support HEB Construction TRU-LINE CIVIL bring these key aspects when partnering on construction projects: 0800 TRULINE | www.trulinecivil.com We’ll work with you on your project. We’ll bring our skills, knowledge and reliability to the table. We’ll execute the works with excellence. • Sub-division Works • Earthworks & Roading • Pipeline Systems • Water Reticulation Systems • Concrete Structure Works T T Russell Fredric Moana bridge project up for top award The Bridge 89 project won the $5m–$10m category at the 2025 Civil Contractors New Zealand (CCNZ) Canterbury Westland awards HEB Construction’s Bridge 89 replacement near Moana has won national recognition after a demanding project on the Midland Line required the team to redesign its pile foundations during construction. Bridge 89 won the $5m–$10m category at the 2025 Civil Contractors New Zealand (CCNZ) Canterbury Westland awards before being selected as a national finalist in the 2026 awards. The award judges described it as a “highrisk, complex, technical piling project” over a volatile river, recognising HEB’s contractor-led redesign, real-time design approvals, communication and collaboration with KiwiRail. HEB construction manager Todd Wilkins says the award reflected the way the team responded when piling began and ground conditions differed from the original design assumptions. Glacial till required the pile foundations to be reconsidered while HEB was already working on site. Additional ground investigation and testing was undertaken as the design developed. The piles ultimately changed from 30 metres to 52 metres long, with a 1200mm diameter, while HEB worked with the newly engaged designers to establish how the piles would perform over the bridge’s life. “The design was getting further developed as we started piling. We undertook testing on the permanent piles and collaborated quite closely with the newly engaged designers for the pile design.” The replacement bridge uses weathering steel ballast-trough spans, an unconventional design for New Zealand rail bridges. The large U-shaped steel spans carry the railway ballast within the structure, allowing the track formation to remain continuous over the bridge; this provides a smooth ride and means standard rail maintenance equipment can operate across it, reducing specialist structural maintenance over the bridge’s life. The spans were fabricated in Napier and transported to site, where HEB completed associated concrete work using locally supplied concrete and a combination of its own staff and local contractors. The project was completed beside Arnold Valley Road, close to Moana and Lake Brunner, with HEB maintaining good relationships with neighbouring farmers throughout the work. “We consider our skill set pretty bespoke. We get around the South Island and do a lot of tricky piling and structural work.” “It was awesome to step back, see what others were doing, recognise how good a job we did and then be recognised by the judges as an outstanding job as well.” HEB brought two Grey High School leavers into apprenticeships during the job; both remain with the company, with one progressing towards a leading-hand role and the other moving into its Christchurch maintenance work. The bridge’s Midland Line location added another constraint. The route runs between Lyttelton and Greymouth and carries coal, logs and Westland Dairy freight as well as the TransAlpine passenger service. The passenger service makes the timetable particularly difficult to change, with rail work planned six to 12 months ahead. Construction had to be carefully coordinated around the operational corridor and available block-ofline periods. Construction began in September 2024, with the bridge commissioned in mid-May 2025. A temporary bridge beside the main structure provided construction access over the water, while two cranes of about 280 tonnes capacity were used for the major lifting work. Your West Coast Earthmoving Specialists steegh.contracting@xtra.co.nz
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