Applus+ carries out quality control of the world's largest caisson ship

A major Spanish infrastructure-management and renewable-energy company has awarded Applus+ the contract for the quality control of the concrete and construction materials on the world's largest caisson ship, currently located in the Langosteira dock at the outer port of A Coruña, Spain.

Caisson ships are massive floating structures capable of building large-scale concrete blocks in situ, which are often used for the expansion of ports and other infrastructures.

This caisson dock is named Kugira, which has been catalogued as the world’s largest at a height equivalent to an 18-storey building (56 metres). It is being used to manufacture six large concrete blocks, called caissons. These have a large number of hollow cells within and the caissons will be exported to the Philippines following their manufacture in Galicia.

The manufacture of each caisson begins with a solid reinforced-concrete base measuring approximately 60 x 24 metres and one metre thick, and then the entire elevation is manufactured, which rises to a height of 24 metres. Once the elevation has been completed and the concrete has set, the caisson is removed from the caisson box, which is prepared for the manufacture of the next caisson.

To assess for quality control, a technical team at Applus+ works exhaustively to test construction materials and to evaluate the concrete that arrives at the quayside. At the manufacturing of each caisson, our team analyses in situ all the requirements and specifications relating to the consistency and resistance of the material.

An extreme and exhaustive quality control is essential to guarantee the correct development of the construction, as well as the safety and functionality of the works and their adequate structural behaviour.

Through our technical services, Applus+ provides clients with a professional quality-assurance control of the materials used for the project’s huge infrastructure.  This peace of mind for clients, and the trust required on projects of this size, reaffirms Applus+ as a global leader with over 30 years’ experience in the testing of construction materials.