Dutch-owned Flatiron wins major NC highway contract for bypass

Bridge to span wetlands and river

WASHINGTON, North Carolina - Longmont, Colorado-based Flatiron Constructors has secured a $192 million joint venture contract to build the new Washington Bypass in North Carolina. Flatiron, a subsidiary of Dutch construction giant BAM leads the project with a 60% share.

The new four-lane bypass along U.S. Highway 17 has a length of seven miles and includes an elevated bridge structure spanning nearly three miles over environmentally sensitive, heavily-wooded wetlands and the Pamlico-Tar River.

Utilizing a new patent-pending span-by-span construction method, Flatiron will use the newly constructed permanent structure for personnel access and material deliveries. The process consists of a self-contained piece of equipment capable of performing all tasks associated with the bridge construction, including driving the precast piles, building the bent caps, erecting the 120-foot-long precast girders, and pouring the deck. All of these operations will be performed without the use of temporary access trestles, thus significantly reducing environmental disturbances.

Construction will start in February 2007 and take an estimated three years.