Commissioned by Rijkswaterstaat, SealteQ is collaborating with Solidd Steel Structures as a subcontractor of Siemens on the large-scale renovation of the Nederrijn and Lek weir complex. The weir complex consists of three weir complexes in the Nederrijn and Lek rivers. SealteQ is responsible for the preservation of the enormous visor gates.
Renovation of the Lower Rhine and Lek sight slides.
Weir complex
The Nederrijn and Lek weir complex consists of three weir complexes: Driel, Amerongen, and Hagestein. With the Driel weir complex, Rijkswaterstaat distributes the river water over the Nederrijn and Lek rivers and the IJssel river. This ensures that sufficient water flows to the IJsselmeer, the largest freshwater basin in the Netherlands. The three weir complexes ensure that the water level is high enough for smooth and safe shipping on the rivers. With the Nederrijn and Lek weir complex, Rijkswaterstaat contributes to a liveable and accessible Netherlands. The weir complex has been undergoing renovation since 2015. By replacing technical installations, moving structures, and introducing central operation, the weir complexes can continue to perform their important tasks safely and reliably in the future.
Six Visor Gates
In total, six visor gates will be replaced, with the last one scheduled for next year. Each visor gate consists of four parts. This is because the surface area of one visor gate is 4000m² with a weight of 270,000kg. The replacement of the northern visor gate of the Hagestein complex is a special replacement in itself. The weir was granted the status of a national monument in 2015. Therefore, the visor gate has been replaced by the renovated gate that was removed from the Amerongen weir in 2017.
The five other visor gates were designed by Solidd Steel Structures in its workshop. A complex process, as it involves extreme precision in dimensional stability. Subsequently, the parts were blasted by SealteQ to a cleanliness of Sa 2½ and preserved with a three-layer coating system. After this, the visor gates were shipped to the weir complexes. Once arrived, the visor gate parts were hoisted into the construction by
Hebo Maritiemservice
and assembled with millimeter precision.
Shipping
Approximately 39,000 ships pass through the locks at Driel, Amerongen, and Hagestein annually. During the replacement of the visor gates, the weir channels of the weir complexes have been completely closed for periods. During the renovation, shipping traffic has used the adjacent locks. These locks are also open for shipping in times of high water levels.