Denso Paste^™ & 80mm Denso^™ Tape Control Brunel Bridge Corrosion

Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s Swing Bridge was constructed of riveted wrought iron plates in 1849 to provide a crossing over the entrance lock for growing vehicular activity in Bristol Docks. It is a rare survivor of Brunel’s Bristol work and predates the Clifton Suspension Bridge.

To hold back corrosion in the early days, linseed oil and resin based paint coatings were regularly applied, but after 50 years of neglect the Grade 2 Listed structure has rusted seriously.

In the Bridge’s 170th year the volunteers of the Avon Industrial Buildings Trust have turned to Winn & Coales (Denso) Ltd for a well-tried protective system to help preserve important parts for the future.

The structure weighs almost 70 tonnes and is supported by a turntable ring running on just four wheels.

Denso Paste^™ has been applied to the underside of the ancient bridge’s 4m diameter forged iron ring to seal against water entering the deep rust-pits. Then the 3mm thick soft aluminium packers were wrapped with 80mm Denso^™ Tape, bedded on to the new 20mm thick steel ring. This was then jacked up to bed on the underside of the old, heavily-corroded ring to provide a new track for the bridge to run on.

Geoff Wallis, the Avon Industrial Building Trust’s project manager, said: ‘We chose Denso products because we know of their proven performance, and believed they will serve the Bridge well for years to come.’