Lateral Thinking the Pathway to a Good Result

Patton Engineering has been involved in completing one of the last, yet most important, sections of the Rotary Pathway between Napier and Hastings.

The object was to create a network of pedestrian and cycle paths linking Napier, Hastings and Taradale.

A major obstacle along the way, however, was the Waitangi bridge, north of Clive.

The narrow nature of the bridge, along with it being a major heavy vehicle traffic route, made pedestrian and cycle crossing of the bridge a dangerous option.

To overcome this issue, and ensure the full potential of the Rotary Pathway was reached, a pedestrian and cycle “Clip-on” was proposed.

With Downer EDI Works Limited as the principal contractor, Patton Engineering was part of the team that designed and built the 300m x 2.3m clip-on made of 145T steel. Patton Engineering produced a 3D model of the project which it then used to produce the clip on frames, beams and hand railing. Patton also designed and produced a drilling jig that enabled the fast and accurate drilling of the 11 holes needed in each of the concrete piers to support the clip-on frames.

One of the main technical challenges of this job was that the 11 piers under the bridge were at slightly different heights and not in a straight line.

In order for the finished clip-on to be straight and level this had to be allowed for in the drilling jig which used an adjustable measured slide that was set to match the variation from each pier.

This then meant that although the piers were zig-zagging, the holes drilled in them were in a straight line and level.

Downer EDI Works Limited contract manager John Patten says it was a challenging project, and having Patton Engineering on the job helped enormously.

“Pattons did a great job right from early on in the planning and pricing stages. They had lots of good ideas, suggestions and were able to turn these into reality once the contract commenced.

“Their involvement in the contract made our job as main contractor much easier and the client is very pleased with the completed pathway/cycleway.”