Engineering marvels: One bridge, four demolition methods

Simon Hébert, Civil Works Manager and Project Director at Delsan-AIM, reveals how the company dismantled Montreal’s 3.5-km-long Champlain Bridge.

Connecting the Island of Montreal to the Canadian mainland, the Champlain Bridge ran 3.5 km long and comprised a total of 50 spans.

With 30 of those spans located over the St. Lawrence River – a protected environment for wildlife and a source of drinking water for millions of people, the dismantling of the 1950s Champlain Bridge was an engineering challenge like no other.

Requiring four distinct demolition methodologies - each a marvel in their own right, and almost 40 months to complete, “it was one of the biggest professional challenges I have ever faced,” says Simon...