Recently, with the smooth completion of staged drilling by the Sunward SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig at Pile No. 12 of the Xihoumen Road-Rail Dual-Purpose Bridge on the Ningbo-Zhoushan Railway, the bridge's pile foundation construction has come to a successful conclusion, far ahead of the planned schedule, marking a phased victory in the bridge's construction.

The bridge's rapid "growth" would not have been possible without the strong technical support and scientific management of the construction party, nor without the powerful assistance of our "national treasure"—the Sunward SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig. On this project, with fearless valor, it has fought battle after battle, conquered again and again, and set new records time after time.

First Battle!On February 18, 2023, super "pile" equipment assisted the construction of a super project. The Sunward SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig began drilling the first pile of the Xihoumen Road-Rail Dual-Purpose Bridge, marking the start of the main tower pier foundation construction and making the SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig the "world's largest rotary drilling rig in actual combat."

Strength First Demonstrated!On April 19, 2023, Sunward successfully held the "Global ** Drilling · Sunward SWDM1280 Super Rotary Drilling Rig Promotion Conference." Nearly 100 customer representatives from the pile foundation industry, technical experts, and media reporters from all over the country gathered in Ningbo, Zhejiang, and observed the super rotary drilling rig's construction operation on site at the Xihoumen Road-Rail Dual-Purpose Bridge project. Everyone marveled at the spectacular scene.

Far Ahead!On June 10, 2023, with the start of drilling for the first pile of the 18 anchor piles at Pier No. 5 of the Xihoumen Road-Rail Dual-Purpose Bridge by the Sunward SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig, the bridge's main construction shifted from a single point to full-line advancement. It also meant that Sunward once again broke its own record of 4.5 meters for the largest drilling diameter, setting a new record of "6.3-meter ultra-large diameter drilling." On July 19, 2023, the Sunward SWDM1280 completed the first pile hole of the world's largest diameter 6.3-meter rotary drilled pile, achieving a major breakthrough in ultra-large diameter drilling for China's rotary drilling rigs.

Hardcore Showdown!On August 17, 2023, after nearly 20 hours of continuous effort, the Sunward SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig completed the concrete pouring task for the first "6.3-meter ultra-large diameter drilled pile" at the No. 5 main tower pier, marking that the project's water-based main tower pier had fully entered the pile foundation construction stage.

It is reported that the first pile in this construction was Pile No. 15 of the No. 5 main tower pier, with a pile diameter of 6.3 meters and a pile length of 84 meters. It is an end-bearing pile, and the SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig was used for staged hole formation. The geological conditions at the pile location are relatively hard, with slightly weathered rhyolite reaching 22.9 meters and micro-weathered rhyolite reaching 7.5 meters, making drilling difficult. During drilling, the operation was hit by typhoons several times and was affected by changes in water flow and tidal range, making construction challenging. With advanced technology, stable performance, and reasonable construction methods, the SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig overcame difficulties such as "strong winds, high waves, deep water, rapid currents, and bare rock."

From the completion of the first pile hole to the successful completion of underwater concrete pouring, this not only provided reliable technical parameters for large-diameter pile foundation construction and set a benchmark for the project's pile foundation construction, filling the gap in China's construction technology for deep-water ultra-large diameter bored piles, but also demonstrated the "China strength" of "made-in-China" underground engineering equipment in construction at depths of more than 60 meters in complex marine environments.

Perfect Conclusion!On December 29, 2023, the Sunward SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig successfully completed the pile foundation construction task of the Xihoumen Road-Rail Dual-Purpose Bridge.

It is reported that the Xihoumen Road-Rail Dual-Purpose Bridge has a total length of 3,118 meters. It is a cable-stayed suspension cooperative system bridge with a main span of 1,488 meters, currently the world's largest-span road-rail dual-purpose bridge. It is a controlling project of the Ningbo-Zhoushan Railway under construction, connecting Jintang Island and Cezi Island in Zhoushan. After the project is completed, it will be of great significance for accelerating the integration of Zhoushan and Ningbo into the "Belt and Road" and the Yangtze River Economic Belt.

In July 2020, Sunward, China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group, and the Wuhan Lecheng team began research on super rotary drilling rigs and construction techniques based on the pile foundation construction environment, pile types, and stratum characteristics of the Xihoumen Road-Rail Dual-Purpose Bridge, combined with construction experience from offshore pile foundation projects such as the "Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link." In the early stage of the plan, 12 expert technical seminars were held. In January 2022, under the leadership of Sunward chief expert He Qinghua, the R&D team overcame multiple technical difficulties in large equipment construction stability, ease of loading, unloading and transportation, riveting and welding deformation of ultra-large components, and machining accuracy of ultra-large machined parts, and the SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig officially rolled off the production line.

In the construction of the Xihoumen Road-Rail Dual-Purpose Bridge, the Sunward SWDM1280 super rotary drilling rig took less than one year to successfully complete the construction of several ultra-large diameter deep-sea piles, with the deepest reaching 116 meters, fully demonstrating the strength of a "national treasure."

Next, Sunward will continue to leverage its pioneering innovation advantages. Under the philosophy of engineering pulling equipment development and equipment supporting engineering realization, it will continue to make efforts in cutting-edge technology and advanced construction method research, create complete solutions for underground engineering equipment, and contribute to infrastructure construction in the motherland and the world.