The cooperation with Öresundsbron focus on safety, sustainability and long-term maintenance

− Jernbro is our supplier of predetermined maintenance on a range of complex plant parts such as expansion joints, bridge bearings and inclined cables. Maintenance of galvanized steel such as guardrails, lampposts and inspection platforms is also carried out. Projects are also part of the delivery, says Pekka Öhrstedt, Contract manager for the steel and concrete maintenance contract, Øresundsbro Konsortiet.

The Öresund Bridge is 16 km long and is mostly above water, but to some extent also underwater. The facility also accommodates motorway and railway. This means that good planning is required regarding safety, environment, quality, time and costs, but also based on weather.

− Jernbro has taken this to heart and builds maintenance rounds in an optimized way so that the work can be carried out quickly, correctly and cost-effectively. A round tells you where to go and when, as well as what activity to do. The biggest advantage of Jernbro is that they maintain our high customer focus, that the crossing is safe and secure and that there are no barriers on the road. Jernbro is not hindered by the weather either, because they have backup plans and solve situations that arise, says Pekka.

Henrik Hoffer at a stay-cable inspection

− Quality assurance is an important part of our ongoing work with maintenance development. It is about compressing the rounds when we perform preventive maintenance. Quality assurance also means tying the round to a description of the inventories, correct facility data and work instructions in the Maximo maintenance system. The routine allows us to find problems with, for example, street lighting or road barriers and can then pick them up earlier in the rounds. We do this to make it easier for the customer and to prevent future major problems and costs, Henrik Hoffer explains, Supervisor at Jernbro.

− Managing Maximo is a big part of our work. We use it for road closures, rescue plans, risk analyses, work orders, inventories, position on the bridge, change rounds, create instructions and more. We are also responsible for criticality classification, i.e. urgent remedial action or deferred remedial action, says Jonas Lauritzen, Supervisor at Jernbro.

One of the more time-consuming tasks Jernbro performs is measuring all bridge layers based on the movement of the bridge. In connection with that, they also look at how the Teflon discs are worn, so a plan for replacing them can be made with good foresight.

− An example of a work is to create an image of the facility’s status is an internal ultrasound inspection of the welds in the truss. It is a complex task as we move far into the latticework which is like a labyrinth. This requires a good security plan, says Henrik.

− By installing cameras, Jernbro has effectively helped us increase surveillance. The solution contributes to the fact that Jernbro does not have to go to the specified area, but can simply look at the images instead. It is a step in the right direction, where together we find new effective ways with new technology, says Pekka.

Another initiative with new technology is to QR code inventory. By scanning an inventory, Jernbro’s service technician can see its latest service, service history and position directly on the mobile without looking in the computer system. Jernbro has also been involved in a pilot project with new technology, where they with the help of a robot with magnetic wheels, have 3D-scanned hard-to-reach spaces in the truss.

Jernbro also prepares for other suppliers who will do work at the facility. Among other things, they have built a platform that hangs from the pylon and created inspection holes in the cable’s protective tube, so the supplier can inspect with an optical camera. Jernbro, in turn, sometimes sends up a robot in the hollow arms that hold the bias cables to measure movements. Another intensive and large project that requires little customer influence and a lot of coordination is the replacement of sign portals. As the road needs to be closed, it is carried out at night.

− We must have a high level of safety thinking and Jernbro has a good understanding of that. Jernbro also acts as our eyes and ears out on the plant. They are aware of their surroundings and have given us good deviations and risk observations, says Pekka.

The Øresundsbron has high climate targets, which means that they constantly think that they must be energy efficient. In the agreement with Jernbro, they have therefore ensured that transport must, as far as possible, take place with electric vehicles. If there is not, the vehicle must be fueled with HVO diesel instead, to constantly reduce the climate footprint.

− For us, it is important to provide good service and useful and accurate reports and perform our work as cost-effectively as possible. We want to build a long-term and positive customer relationship with the Öresund Bridge and be a skilled partner that offers smart solutions and high safety standards with a focus on continuous improvement. We look forward to developing and growing together with the Øresundsbron, says Jonas.

− We aim for the facility to live for 200 years, which means that future generations will understand what, when and why we have done things. This makes us a different client in terms of our processes, work methods and how we want Jernbro to report in our systems. Here, Jernbro has quickly found a way to adapt its delivery to our requirements. They have quickly understood what we want and adapted to it, concludes Pekka.