Source of the Nile

Crossing the Nile River where it flows out of Lake Victoria in Uganda, the New Jinja Bridge, dubbed “The Source of the Nile Bridge”, is equipped with a modern, noise-reduced TENSA®MODULAR expansion joint at one end – a first for Africa!

The Nile River, which flows through eleven countries in Africa on its way to the Mediterranean near Cairo, is generally considered to have its source at Lake Victoria, starting its long journey near the Ugandan city of Jinja on the lake’s northern shore. The New Jinja Bridge, which opened in October 2018, crosses the river outside the city, and we are proud to have set a new milestone on this project with the supply of Africa’s first noise-reduced TENSA®MODULAR expansion joint. The joint, unusually long with a total length of 22.6 m, was delivered to site in two sections, enabling it to be transported in a 40-foot shipping container – thus avoiding delays and minimising the risk of damage during transport. However, this required a certain amount of additional work to be carried out on site:

  • First, the joint sections had to be welded together on site using the special Secheron welding technique

  • Then the joint’s rubber seals had to be inserted into the gaps between the surface beams over half of the joint’s length (since the rubber seals must be continuous along the full length of the joint)

  • Finally, the noise-reducing surface plates (“sinus plates”) required to be connected to the surface of the same half of the joint (since these may only be added to the joint after the rubber seals have been inserted).

With two experienced mageba installation specialists on site, this work – and the entire installation process – could be carried out properly and efficiently, giving the expansion joint the best start possible to its long service life on this special bridge.

Engineering consultants: Oriental Consultants, Eight-Japan Engineering Consultants and Pyunghwa Engineering Consultants
Contractor: Zenitaka Hyundai joint venture
Employer: Uganda National Roads Authority

The bridge crosses the River Nile near its source on the northern shore of Lake Victoria, and is therefore also known as “The Source of the Nile Bridge”

The bridge was inaugurated on 17th October 2018, with many locals taking the opportunity to walk across the bridge before it was opened to traffic

Once the joint’s steel surface beams had been welded together on site, it was necessary to insert the joint’s rubber seals in the newly connected section of joint, and then to screw noise-reducing surface plates to the same section

The presence of two mageba installation specialists ensured that all on-site assembly and installation work could be carried out properly and efficiently …

… but many hands make light work!

View of the expansion joint following completion of the required on-site assembly, before concreting in place

A fine spirit of cooperation and a job well done – a source of great pride for mageba at the source of the Nile!