The people from asbestos removal are making us proud once again with this challenging project. They are currently working on the E40/E314 interchange in Heverlee. Here, they are removing the asbestos-containing paint on all surfaces under the bridge deck as well as the asbestos-containing paint on the post-tensioning cables of the bridge. A particularly difficult project that requires a number of special techniques.

The works are carried out in a hermetically sealed room, a kind of tent enclosing the interchange. The air pressure in this room is kept low by means of special equipment. Each workspace has one ventilation window for the supply of fresh air. What makes the work even more difficult is that there are many slanting sides and corners in such an interchange.

In order to get rid of the asbestos-containing paint completely, our people even have to crawl into hollow walls under the bridge that are up to 3 metres deep! They use sanding machines with diamond disks in combination with a dust extraction system to carry out this mammoth task successfully. The bridge itself is 121 metres long and 70 metres wide. In total, 23,500 m2 of surface area is being worked on under the bridge and removing the paint on the post-tensioning cables involves 12.000 linear metre of pipe!

In order to keep traffic disruption to a minimum, the works are being carried out in 3 different phases. The first phase ran from 7 February to 25 April. During this period, work was mainly carried out on the E314 loop to the E40 in the direction of Liège. The second phase started on 27 April and will last until 27 June. Here, our people will tackle the loop from the E40 to the E314 in the direction of Leuven/Lummen. During the final phase, we will mainly be working on the central reservation under the bridge. This phase will start in September and continue until the end of the year.
Heartfelt congratulations to the whole team for their work! We realise that this is not an easy job, and we are all the more proud of your daily efforts!