B 247, Mühlhausen-Bad Langensalza

The 24.2km long section of the national highway B247 between Mühlhausen and Bad Langensalza is being upgraded and widened to 2 to 4 lanes. The project is scheduled for completion by June 2025. The construction scheme was awarded to the project company Via Mühlhausen Thüringen GmbH & Co. KG as part of a public-private partnership (PPP). The total project includes the construction of seven bridges near Mühlhausen. PORR was awarded the contract for the pile foundation work for the bridge structures. The team of experts at Spezialtiefbau Planung are providing support in the form of structural design and execution planning.

A focus on meeting the client’s safety needs

Foundation work is being carried out for two bridges spanning the Unstrut River and five railway bridges on the B247, a large section of which between Mühlhausen and Bad Langensalza is being re-routed. The client’s safety needs are paramount – it was important for them to work with a company that has decades of experience in the design and manufacture of Franki piles for challenging bridge construction projects. The project involves a wide variety of difficult tasks: these range from the logistics and ensuring an optimal construction process to the numerous challenges posed by the geological conditions and the existing road and rail infrastructure.

The specialist foundation engineering team is responding to the challenges with years of experience and expertise, thus building on previous successfully completed projects and a strong working relationship with the client.

Frankipfahl NG® piles minimise carbon emissions

A total of 242 Frankipfahl NG® piles with a diameter of 61cm and 290 Frankipfahl NG® piles with a diameter of 71cm, also known as mega piles, are being manufactured for the pile foundations of the bridge structures. Despite their small shaft diameter, mega piles can bear pile resistances of up to 12,000kN, depending on the subsoil. This makes them the perfect solution for bridge pile foundations, which require minimal settling. Their excellent load-bearing capacity, even under high vertical loads, means that foundations and abutments can be significantly reduced in size compared to other pile systems. This offers a double benefit: the reduced concrete consumption lowers costs while also making a substantial contribution to climate protection.