VSL NEWS

NUMBER ONE 1991

VSL

VSL

Editorial

The VSL Licensee network:

Providing local service on a global scale
he topics of the last two editorials reflected some major changes within and
around the VSL Group. In today's Editorial we would like to present significant
changes and developments in our license network which again demonstrate VSL's
expanding rote as a transnational organization and as a leader in the field of
post-tensioning and other specialized construction activities.

We are pleased to announce that Killick Nixon Ltd. have joined the VSL posttensioning family as the exclusive licensee in India. Based in Bombay and represented with nine branches throughout India, this company has some 25 years of
experience with post-tensioning. As one of the market leaders, Killick Nixon Ltd.,
under the leadership of Mr. J.N. Jambusaria, will soon be in a position to offer full
subcontract services with modern technologies and act as a competent partner
for engineers and contractors.
In Spain, VSL is now represented by its subsidiary VSL lberica S.A. Under
the leadership of Mr. Luis Perez de Medina, the Madrid based company will play
an increasingly important rote in the very promising Spanish construction market.
By establishing this subsidiary, Western Europe is now completely serviced by
local VSL representatives.
In Portugal, Prequipe, our previous licensee is now a VSL subsidiary. With
Joaquim Rodrigues as manager, the company has become a leader in the field of
post-tensioning, lt is now in an even stronger position and will continue to be a
valuable partner in the construction industry.
Last but not least, the license situation has also changea in Greece where
VSL Systems SA has been established as a VSL subsidiary. The company, lead by Mr.
George Armoutis is not only active in post-tensioning and rock anchoring but
is also marketing VSLS Retained Earth System.
These and future developments will strengthen VSLS position as a locally
rooted, globally present transnational organization, capable of creating and executing
innovative solutions as your project partner anywhere in the world.

Contents
3
Historical Perspectives
4
Converting Research
Into Reality
6
Australia
8
USA West
10
USA East
12
Europe
13
Far East

Franck Fischli, Vice-President

PR & Licensing Division
Berne, Switzerland

Cover: VSL Corporations latest

automated transit system at the
Primadonna Resort and Casino, near
Las Vegas, Nevada. The system is
the first privately owned peoplemover to cross a U.S. Interstate
Highway. Story on page 8. (Photo by
Philip Thompson, Los Angeles).
2

Historical Perspectives

VSL

Passing the test of time: VSL Organizations celebrate anniversaries in Australia, United States and Far East
ince the first commercial application of the VSL Post- Tensioning System in 1956, the VSL Organization has grown from
a small, Swiss-based post-tensioning subcontractor to an acknowledged world leader in special construction methods.
Today, the VSL Group is a transnational organization, locally represented in 32 countries throughout the world.
As time goes on, the VSL Group continues to grow and excel. The following historical briefs are in honour of the four VSL
organizations who are celebrating significant anniversaries in 1991. Congratulations!

25 years in the United States

25 years in Australia

20 Years of VSL in Singapore

VSL Corporation was founded in

1966 for the purpose of developing the
US market for post-tensioned concrete
structures. Through the innovation and
hard work of its people, VSL became the
largest and most experienced post-tensioning firm in America. Today the company serves its clientele from 12 facilities
strategically located throughout the country. The history of VSL Corporation is
highlighted by many achievements which
both advanced the technology standards
of the industry and added value for the
Company's clients. During the course of
its 25 year history, VSL has diversified by

VSL Prestressing (Aust.) Pty Ltd.

was incorporated in Sydney in 1966 with
the vision of applying post-tensioning
with professional engineering design,
direction and central.
In the early 1960's prestressed concrete
was beginning to find acceptance as an
economical and attractive solution for
civil and building structures. At that time,
the engineering profession lacked specialist construction organizations with
sufficient design, construction and
mechanical skiffs to develop and skilfully
apply this new technique. VSL
Prestressing (Aust.) Pty Ltd. satisfied this

The award for the post-tensioning

of the slabs of Ming Court hotel's carpark in 1970 prompted VSL Prestressing (Aust,) Pty Ltd, to open a branch
office in Singapore which became a
subsidiary under the name of VSL
Singapore Pte. Ltd. In the 20 years
since the first VSL application prestigious projects have followed including
the post-tensioning of 21 km of elevated structure for the M RT project.
With the end of the recession in
1988, VSL has surged forward. Today
VSL has a dynamic management and a
young and motivated staff with skiffs in
designing complicated structures and in
carrying out projects either as a specialist subcontractor, construction manager, or even as a turnkey contractor.

Giovanni Crivelli,
VSL Far East Pty. Ltd.
15 Years of VSL in Indonesia

bringing several other innovative and

specialized systems to the construction
market. Notable among these are VSL
Retained Earth, VSL Transit Systems,
VSL Heavy Lifting, and VSL Structural
Modification and Life Extension. Focusing
on responsive local service combined
with value-added solutions, VSL
Corporation stands ready to meet the
challenges of the next 25 years.

need. The VSL System found immediate

success in Australia and has been used
on many prestigious bridge, dam and
building projects. The motivated team at
VSL has earned an enviable reputation in
Australia as a specialist contractor of
superior performance with a high degree
of design and construction expertise.

Guida Schwage VSL Western

Richard Watts, VSL Eastern

Graeme F Pash,
VSL Prestressing (Aust.) Pty Ltd.

PT VSL Indonesia was established

in 1976 when post-tensioning in Indonesia coula only be found in text books.
Today VSL is a respected and
reputable company that is played a major
rote in enhancing the development of
local construction technology PT VSL
Indonesia has extensive experience in
post-tensioning of bridges, buildings
and silos while also worked in other
specialist fields like heavy lifting, slipforming and ground anchoring.
Projects range from simple span posttensioned bridges in rural areas to
highrise buildings in the cities, PT VSL
Indonesia provides a national service.

Johannes Himawan,
PT VSL Indonesia

VSL

Converting Research into Reality

The VSL Monostrand Stay Cable System typical strand and anchorage details.

New VSL Stay Cable System offers major advancements

in corrosion protection, durability and inspectability

SL has developed a new bridge

stay cable system which possesses the most thorough level of
corrosion protection available today.
The system incorporates several active
corrosion barriers that encapsulate the
steel along the entire length of the
tendon, including the anchorage zone.
To assure reliability, the new system
allows individual strands to be easily
inspected and adjusted, and, if necessary, extracted and replaced.
The VSL Monostrand Stay Cable
System arose from today's heightened
requirements for bridge stay cables.
Chief among these concerns is corro-

sion protection and durability. Additional

requirements addressed by the system
include inspectability, the ability for
monitoring and adjustment, replaceability of individual strands, easy installation procedures, and fatigue
and static tensile efficiency.
A combination of new approaches
In recent years, two basic approaches for addressing the corrosion
problem have evolved :
a) The use of multiple robust
protection barriers, whereby one or
more materials provide backup protec

tion for a barrier which has failed. This

approach improves reliability and life
expectancy, but has typically made
direct inspection of the steel difficult.
b) Concentration on inspectability.
In this case, a bundle of single strands
without external tubing or grouting is
used. This allows easier detection of
corrosion, however at the expense of
actual corrosion protection, reliability,
and life expectancy.
VSLs new system combines the
advantages of both approaches, providing four layers of robust corrosion
protection as well as easy inspection
and replacement of individual strands.

VSL

Uniform protection from anchorhead

to anchorhead
As shown in the drawing to the
lleft, the tensile elements of the new
VSL Stay Cable consist of a bundle of
parallel monostrands. The number of
monostrands which make up the stay
cable can range from 4 to 91 strands.
Each 0.6 inch diameter monostrand is
individually greased and sheathed in
high density polyethylene IHDPE).
Specially-designed strand sleeves cover
the unsheathed strand ends at the
anchorheads.
The cable is completely encased
from anchorhead to anchorhead in a
thick-walled HDPE pipe. After installation and stressing, the pipe is filled with
corrosion-inhibiting cementitious
grout. This approach provides four
active layers of corrosion protection (i.e.
grease, sheath, grout, and outer pipe).
In addition to their corrosion protection
properties, the cement grout and thickwalled outer tubing furnish excellent
mechanical protection from impact,
fire, vandalism, and abrasion.
The stay cable design also provides a high degree of corrosion protection in the anchorage. After the
cables are installed, stressed and grouted, a specially compounded, thixo-tropic gel is injected into the anchorage

Newly-designed plastic sleeves protects monostrands at the anchorhead.

zone to completely encapsulate the

strand. This compound has been extensively tested for its protective properties under low and elevated temperatures (-50 to +70 C) and for its
void filling properties.
The injection procedure utilizes a
vacuum technique which assures that
virtually all internai spaces in the
anchorage and the strand sleeves are
filled. Air bubbles and gaps do not
occur. Tests have shown that even the
smallest cavities in the gripping
wedges are thoroughly filled by the
corrosion preventive compound.
Easy strand inspection and replacement
The composition of monostrand
tendons makes inspection and/or
replacement of individual strands a
relatively simple procedure. Although
the monostrand bundles are grouted
within the outer tube, they remain
unbonded within their plastic sheathing
This allows individual strands or the
entire stay cable to be detensioned,
removed, and replaced. Trials and tests
have proven these procedures to be
simple, fast and re-fiable. The technique
makes it possible for bridge authorities
to establish a regular surveillance program to monitor the condition of the
stay cables.
Adequacy of strength and performance has been confirmed
by static and dy-namic testing.

Recent testing
The monostrand stay cable
system is designed to withstand a
fatigue loading of 200 MPa at an upper
load of 45% of the guaranteed ultimate
tensile strength (GUTSI of the strand
under 2 million load cycles. Full-scale
testing has recently been conducted in
Munich, Germany, with a 55-strand
stay cable. After successfully undergoing two million cycles at a 200 MPa
stress range, the cable was subjected
to static ultimate loading. It was shown
that the cable meets the high requirements of the PTI's Recommendations
for Stay Cable Design, Testing and
Installation.
Previous tests have also confirmed the adequacy of the system.
Component testing has been successfully performed with stress
ranges significantly higher than the
targeted 200 MPa.
VSL'S new Monostrand Stay Cable
System offers an excellent combination
of new ideas and proven materials
and methods. It meets today's high
requirements for corrosion protection,
inspectability and performance. It also
imposes no limitations on the use of
galvanized strands, polyurethane grout,
or other materials sometimes specified
by bridge engineers.'
Peter Buergi

VSL International Ltd.

Berne, Switzerland
5

VSL

Australia

Work has begun to strengthen Burrinjuck Dam.

VSL Rock Anchors secure Burrinjuck Dam

urrinjuck Dam is located 360 km
south-west of Sydney on the
headwaters of the Murrumbidgee
River. Vihen construction of the dam
commenced in 1907 it was rated as the
fourth largest concrete gravity dam in
the world. Due to revised peak maximum flood levels it was decided to
raise the height of the main wall by a
massive 13.2 metres, which will result
in a greatly increased spillway capacity.
The New South Wales Department of Water Resources has designed the dam raising to be secured
by the use of permanent, restressable
rock anchors. VSL pioneered the worldwide use of permanent, restressable
rock anchors in the mid 1960's. The
major research and development
programme was carried out in the early
1970's between VSL and The Sydney
Water Board on the Manly Dam strengthening project near Sydney. As a direct
result of this work the VSL permanent

restressable rock anchor is now the preferred medium for streng-thening and
securing dams by most dam authorities
in Australia.
The VSL permanent restressable
rock anchor is designed to outlast the
life of the structure that it is securing.
In the case of monumental structures
such as dams this life span could
exceed 500 years. In order to check on
the performance of the anchor thioughout its life the anchor design allows full
load monitoring and load adjustment if
required.
Thiess Contractors Pty. Limited
were awarded a contract to carry out
the flood security works on Burrinjuck
Dam in February, 1990. Subsequently,
a subcontract was awarded to VSL to
carry out the permanent rock anchoring
and other ancillary post-tensioning
works on the project.
The major rock anchoring works
consist of 159 no. VSL permanent

restressable rock anchors, each consisting of 63 no, 15.2 mm diameter

strands (U.T.S. 261 kN/strandl. The
average anchoring force based on a
wall crest length of 144.0 metres and a
design working load equal to 65 % of
the rock anchor breaking load is
11,780 kN/m. The VSL rock anchors are
arranged in two parallel rows along the
crest in order to provide an acceptable
spacing.
In all, approximately 1400 tonnes
of high tensile 15.2 mm diameter
prestressing strand will be used. On
completion, this project will represent
one of the largest concentrations of
anchoring force ever carried out in the
world.
Duncan MacDonald

VSL Prestressing (Aust.) Pty Ltd.

Thornleigh, New South Wales .

VSL

VSL provides speed and economy for new grandstand in Melbourne

Post-tensioning combines with precast and structural steel elements
to speed erection

he Melbourne Crickel et Ground is

known the world over as the venue
of the 1956 Olympic Games. A major
redevelopment of the southern grandstand is currently underway. The new
grandstand will have a seating capacity
in excess of 47,000 people.
A contract was awarded to John
Holland Constructions Pty. Limited in

March, 1990, for the design and construction of this facility. VSL have worked closely with the design team to
ensure that an optimised structural
system is specified, that will provide
major benefits in speed of construction
and maximum cost reductions.
A precast post-tensioned floor
system has been adopted for the

amenities areas, with post-tensioned

connections at the interface of structural steel beams supporting the seating
decks to the main concrete support
structure. The post-tensioned structural
steel elements provide construction
flexibility coupled with erection speed
and reduced costs. The speed of
construction is important to ensure
minimum interruption to the facility as it
is in high demand for various sporting
functions throughout the year.
VSL has detailed the post-tensioning so that minimum backpropping is
required. This allows early access for
finishing trades and services, which
adds to the overall speed of construction.
Peter J. Tilley

VSL Prestressing (Aust.) Pty Ltd.

Melbourne, Victoria

A Royal job for VSL

he Rivage Royale, a $ 175 million
luxury apartment complex, is
located on Queensland's Gold Coast,
Australia's foremost holiday destination.
Construction commenced in
February, 1990, and is due for completion fate 1991. VSL have been awarded
the post-tensioning of the floors in this
project.
The post-tensioned floor design
provides a 10.0 metre clear span to the
living areas by utilising a curved spine
beam containing 3 no. 5-7 tendons on a
25.0 m radius. The shallow depth posttensioned beam provides the most
economic solution to the large clear
span requirement of the structure.
The podium roof slab with an area
iin excess of 3,000 m2 will be landscaped with soil depths in excess of
1.0 metre. The roof slab is post-tensioned with the VSL 5-4 slab system to
provide a watertight structure without
the need for a membrane.

Eric Schwarz

VSL Prestressing (Aust.) Pty Ltd.

Brisbane, Oueensland

VSL plays its part in Gold Coast

development.

VSL

USA West

New VSL Transit System now in service near Las Vegas

SL Corporation's latest automated
transit system in Stateline, Nevada, is now complete, operating 22
hours ver day, seven days ver week.
The custom designed, 60 passenger vehicle connects the new Primadonna Hotel and Casino with Vihiskey
Pete's Castle in the Desert, a long-time
Nevada landmark located 1,800 feet to
the west of Primadonna, on the opposite side of U.S. Interstate Highway 15.
The vehicle rides on an elevated
concrete guideway for the point-topoint trip between the two resorts and
spans the interstate with a clearance of
19.5 feet. Passenger boarding stations
are integrated into the architecture. all
functions are fully automated, including
door and gate operation, vehicle,
acceleration, cruising speed, deceleration and stopping.
VSL was the single-source
turnkey contractor for the project,
responsible for all aspects of system
design, construction, start-up and

VSL transit system combines modern styling, passenger, comfort and workhorse
efficiency. The system can transport 32,000 passengers per day between points.

operator training. The system was put

into operation in fate 1990 and has
been operating at full capacity since
that time.

Precast water siphons repaired by VSL

Post-Tensioning

Corroded prestressing wire was replaced by corrosion-protected VSL

monostrands. The monostrands are
epoxy coated, grease coated and
encased in high-density polyethylene sheaths.
8

riginally constructed in the mid

1970's, the 21-foot-diameter
siphons of the Central Arizona Project
carry Colorado River water into the arid
regions of central Arizona. The siphons

Rainer Kuehborn

VSL Western Campbell,

California
are built of precast concrete, externally
prestressed with spiral-wrapped wire
and covered with shotcrete.
In early 1990, workers discovered
substantial corrosion of the original bare
prestressing wire in two siphons, accompanied by cracking of the con-crete. A
repair contract was subse-quently awarded by the United States Bureau of
Reclamation.
The repair design consisted of
removing the earth cover, shotcrete
and corroded wires and replacing the
damaged wires with 0.6 inch diameter
VSL monostrands. The monostrands
are individually epoxy coated, greased,
and extruded in 100 mil thick polyethylene sheaths. In addition to supplying the post-tensioning strand for
this unique application, VSL Viestern
also developed special anchorages
and wedges for the circumferential
post-tensioning.
Manly Jackson

VSL Western Campbell,

California

VSL

The Caguanas River Bridge, built by the VSL Incremental Launching Method.

VSL complete segmental bridge superstructure

n February, 1991, the Engineering
Structures Group of VSL Western
completed final launching operations on
the 385 m Caguanas River Bridge in
Central Puerto Rico.
This single-cell box girder bridge is
only the second incrementally launched
concrete bridge built in the United
States. (The Wabash River bridge, the

first, was also a VSL project.) The

superstructure geometry is a helix,
combining a horizontal radius of 360
meters with a 7 % cross slope and a
4 % longitudinal grade.
The remoteness of the site,
roughness of the terrain, and height of
the structure made incremental launching particularly attractive. While the

original old documents were based on

a precast balanced cantilever solution,
the design anticipated the possible use
of incremental launching by selecting a
structure of constant geometry.
17 Andrew Micklus

VSL Western Campbell,

California
9

VSL

USA East

Water treatment tanks given second life by VSL

wo aging 6.8 million litre11.8 million
gallon) concrete water treatment
basins at the Ullrich Viater Treatment
Plant Expansion in Austin, Texas, were
rehabilitated by VSLS Dallas office.
External post-tensioning, with some
9 km (29,000 ft) of extruded monostrand, was used to close existing
cracks in the tank walls, and provide a
residual hoop compression stress of
1.7 MPa (250 pst). A custom tendon
support system, designed by VSL, allowed the tendons to be routed around
large existing openings in the basin
walls. The walls were sand-blasted
prior to post-tensioning. Afterwards, a
shotcrete cover was used to provide
mechanical protection, and additional
corrosion protection, as well as to
enhance the appearance of the tanks.

Michael G. Powell
Tank life extended with VSL monostrand system.

VSL Eastern
Grand Prairie, Texas

Six months of winter and five million gallons later

SL Denver recently completed the
fabrication, installation, stressing
of all post-tensioning materials, labour
and rebar labour on a 19 million litre
(5 million gallon) buried water storage
tank for the City of Arvada, Colorado.
To provide for maximum corrosion
protection, the fully encapsulated VSL
CP+ system was used for the unbonded tendons in the floor and roof
slabs while fully bonded multistrand
tendons were used in the 0.3 m
(12 inch) thick walls. The structural
work was executed in the six month
period from October 1990 to March
1991 . What makes the construction
speed even more impressive is that it
was achieved during the Colorado
winter months.

Robert Allen

VSL Eastern
Lakewood, Colorado
10

Colorado tank has post-tensioned floor, wall and roof.

VSL

VSL post-tensioned solution beats structural

steel and reinforced concrete
irst Union Capitol Center is a 31
storey office building in downtown
Raleigh, North Carolina. The project
was originally designed for structural
steel, and later for ordinary reinforced
concrete.
VSL'S value engineering proposal
with post-tensioned two-way flat plate
floor was accepted as it provided
additional savings compared with the
other schemes. The combination of
post-tensioning with punching shear
20 reinforcement at the columns permitted the use of thinner than normal slabs
without sacrificing safety, economy or
performance.
In spite of changing to the VSL

alternative, construction delays were

avoided and the building "topped out"
one week ahead of schedule.
Miroslav Vejvoda,

VSL Eastern Norcross,

Georgia

First Union Capitol Center, a

faster and more economical
project as a result of VSL
Post-tensioning.

Post-tensioned residential foundations on expansive soils

Typical Texas single family rsidential housing (Courtesy of David Weekley Homes).

he VSL Monostrand Post-Tensioning System has proven to be an

excellent solution to the problems
associated with the design of soil
supported foundations on expansive
soils. In 1990, over 25,000 single family
residential homes were constructed in

Texas utilizing post-tensioned foundations. These homes range in size from

1,500 [Link]. (140 m2) to over 6,000
[Link]. (560 m2) with a median price of
115,000 US dollars.
21 Locally, the expansive clays
are vulnerable to significant volumetric

changes induced by moisture variation.

The clay particles have the ability, due
to electrical charges, to attract and hold
water to their surfaces. The attraction of
available water during the wet seasons
and loss of moisture during the dry
seasons results in cycles of shrink-age
and swelling.
A typical post-tensioned project
consists of a monolithic "waffle type"
foundation with a 4 in. (101.6 mml slab,
a perimeter beam and interior beams
spaced in both directions at 15.0 ft. (4.6
ml maximum centers. Post-tensioning
is accomplished using 0.5 in. (12.7 mm)
monostrand tendons distributed in both
directions to provide a residual compressive stress of approximately 75 psi
(517 kPa). These compressive stresses
counteract the anticipated tension stresses induced by the soil movements.
VSL annually provides monostrand post-tensioning material for over
6,000 foundations in the Texas Residential Market.
Jack W Graves, Jr

VSL Eastern
Grand Prairie, Texas
11

VSL

Europe

Aircraft hangar trusses lifted and laterally braced

onstruction of a maintenance
hangar at the new Munich Airport
required lifting of the two main trusses
which span over the hangar doors. The
150 m, 500 tonne trusses were lifted
22 m.
During lifting, lateral stability of
each truss was assured by a combination of temporary steel frames (white
on the photo) and post-tensioning
cables. After lifting, lateral stability was
provided by guy cables. This allowed
the white frames and cables to be
reused for the second lift.
VSL was responsible for the lifting
as well as materials and services for
temporary stabilization and guy cables.

Erich Mschler

VSL International Ltd.

Lyssach, Switzerland

Lifting of 150m long hangar doorway truss

Composite bridge leaned and launched by VSL International

onstruction of the bridge across
the spectacular la Dala Gorge in
Switzerland was accomplished with an
innovative application of VSL Heavy
Lifting technology. The 210 m bridge
consists of steel indined piers at each
end, two longitudinal steel girders and
a composite concrete deck.
The inclined piers were constructed vertically then lowered or leaned
into position with temporary strand tie
backs. The girders were launched from
each end and spliced at midspan.
Leaning of the piers and launching
of the associated girders was done
simultaneously by VSL. This was an
operation requiring the ability to push
and pull at various stages of movement
and the ability to control the movement
of the piers and girders independently.
This method of erection reduced the
project cost considerably.'

Erich Mschler
Heavy Lifting techniques feature in bridge construction.
12

VSL International Ltd.

Lyssach, Switzerland

VSL

VSL Korea Co., Ltd. proud of their success

ard work, dedication and client
satisfaction are essential ingredients for good business. For the
people of VSL Korea Co. Ltd. these
attributes have been well recognized by
their clients who have seen fit to
formally acknowledge their contracting
skill, as is apparent by their impressive
collection of awards.

1 Mr. H.W. Shin (Manager Director)

2 Mr. C.B. Choi (Deputy Manager Directro)
3 Mr. M.S. Lee (Chief Engineer)
4 Mr. C.S. Choi (Shop Manager)
5 Mr. B.H. Yoon (Field Engineer)
6 Mr. Y.S. Ryoo (Design Engineer)
7 Mr. S.B. Kwak (Field Engineer)
8 Mr. K.D. Sung (Accountant)
9 Mr. J.H. Lim (Purchaser)
10 Mr. S.A. Lee (Admin. Manager)
11 Miss M.K. Moon (Secretary)

A Award for excellent sub-contractro

from You-One Const. Co. (1988).
Project: Olypimc Grand Bridge

C Award for excellent sub-contractor

from Jinhung Const. Co. (1989).
Project: Noryang Grand Bridge

B Award for excellent sub-contractor

from Daelim Const. Co. (1989).
Project: Kang-Dong Grand Bridge

D A plaque of appreciation from the

Institute of Korean Machinery (1987).
Project: Load test laboratory

M.S. Lee

Kang-Dong Viaduct: a multi-faceted

project for VSL Korea

Kang-Dong Viaduct
s part of a highway project near
Seoul City, the Kang-Dong Viaduct
crosses the Han River providing a 790m
continuous joint free riding surface.
The parallel box girders were castin-situ by free cantilevering. Maximum
spans were 125m, with a total length
including approach spans of 1126m.
While originally designed to be posttensioned longitudinally and vertically,
with bars an alternative using the VSL
strand system was subtituted for the
longitudinal post-tensioning.
VSLs onvolvement in the project
included: redesign of superstructure,
post-tensioning, placing of reinforcement and concrete, form traveller
operation, and camber control.
Project participants included:
Korea Highway Corporation, Owner;
Korean Eng. Consultants Corp., consultant; Dae-Lim Industrial Co., Ltd.,
Contractor; Sam-Woo Engineering, Co.,
Ltd., Contractors Consultant.

VSL Korea Co., Ltd.

Seoul, Korea

13

VSL

Western Europe

Design and BuildThe Way Ahead

eeting the needs of today's
challenging construction market
in South-East Asia calls for some new
approaches. VSL Singapore has already achieved some success with two
design and build contracts which offer
the owners sole source responsibility,
as well as faster and more economically executed projects.

27 Ciba-Geigy, Singapore
Extensive upgrading of its production facilities and creation of a regional
warehouse has led Ciba-Geigy to carry
out major alterations and additions to
its existing premises in Singapore.
VSL is managing the complete
design and build process for CibaGeigy. The project consists of 4400 m2

of warehouse and 3600 m2 of office/

production area. The building structures
are a mixture of reinforced concrete
and structural steel. One of the main
features of the project is a combined
underground sprinkler water and containment tank providing Ciba-Geigy
with the means to prevent environmental damage in the event of a fire.
VSL has employed consultants locally to
carry out the design and the work is
being carried out under VSL supervision.

Batam, Indonesia
VSL was contracted to design and
build the superstructure of 5 three
storey high industrial factory units each
of which measures over 10,000 m2.
Each unit was completed in under 2
months by using precast columns of
full building height, table form construction and prestressed drop panel slabs
which allowed early stripping. Batamlndo, the industrial Park developers, are
well pleased with the speed produced
by the combined construction efforts of
VSL Singapore and VSL Indonesia.

Colin B. Thoms, Mark Wong

VSL Singapore Pte. Ltd.

Singapore

VSL Design and Build combines precast

columsn, modular formwork system
and prestressing to complete industrial
complex on time.

COMPAQ goes VSL

he Compaq Computer Corporation
Asian administration and production facility was recently completed in
Singapore and comprises a two level
production building and a three level
office structure.
An alternative post-tensioned flat
slab floor system with drop panels was
proposed and adopted for this prestigious office and production complex.
The proposai had the advantage
of providing a simple uncluttered floor
and was built within an extremely tight
schedule. The use of prestress tendon
couplers, large rolling table forms and
judicious planning enabled 14,000 m2 of
floor to be built in a month. The solution
proved to be the most economical due
to reuse of forms made possible by
early stressing, optimum utilization of
labour and equipment resources and
minimum use of materials.

14

28 Cris Dedigama

VSL Singapore Pte. Ltd.

Singapore

Post-tensioned flat slabs the key to

open floor space and quick constuction.

VSL

VSL Post-Tensioning for Jabotabek Elevated Railway Line, Jakarta

he Jabotabek Central Line is an
elevated railway [(ne running from
Manggarai station in the south to Kota
station in the northern part of Jakarta.
The total length of the project is 9 km,
of which one third is post-tensioned
segmental box girder construction with
spans varying from 21 m to 38 m.
PT VSL Indonesia and VSL Far
East Pte. Ltd. were awarded three
contracts for the post-tensioning while
erection was by the consortium made
up of Tekken (Japan), PT Wijaya Jarya
and PT Udinda Aneka Sarana of Indonesia. The project started in 1989 and
is due for completion in 1992.
The 10 m wide 55 tonne precast
concrete segments are erected with
the aid of a launching girder. Joints
between segments are glued with
epoxy and stressed temporarily before
permanent 6-12 tendons are installed.

Johannes Himawan

PT VSL Indonesia
Jakarta, Indonesia

VSL post-Tensioned Railway Viaduct

will improve the Jakarta railway system.

VSL Climbform makes

headway in Far East
he introduction of VSL Climbform
into the Hong Kong market was
heralded with the award of two prestigious contracts in the heart of Hong
Kong's financial centre.
The first project, called Central
Plaza, will tower 278 metres above the
ground and will be the world's tallest
reinforced concrete building. By August
1992, the whole building will provide
186,000 m2 of office space.
The climbform was adopted to
take the core construction off the
critical path. Each climbform attaining a
comfortable cycle of four days. The
building is designed in the form of a
sleek triangular pillar, thus three climbform platforms in a triangular orientation are being used to construct the
service cores of the tower.
The second project, Citibank
Plaza, will be the flagship of Citicorp's
Hong Kong operations and consists of a
47 storey tower, and a second 37 storey
tower. Again, climbform is being used to
accelerate the construction sequence
as this development is scheduled for

completion in February 1992, only 26

months after inception. For the largest
tower the climbform features single
storey height forms covering 654
square metres of core wall surface
and incorporates 117 tonnes of reinforcement steel with a concrete pour
of 306 cubic metres.

Central Plaza Hong Kong.

Climbform takes the panic out of core
construction.

Stuart Pearson

30 VSL Engineers (HK) Ltd.

Hong Kong
15

VSL

VSL NEWS
N U M B E R

O N E

1991

Published by

VSL International Ltd.

Editor Therese Wenger
P.O. Box 7124. 3001 Berne/Switzerland, Tel 41-31-66 42 22, Fax 41-31-66 42 50, Tlx 911755 vsl ch
Layout by comDesign Berne/Switzerland. Produced/ Printed in Singapore by Panache Design/Saik Wah Press Pte, Ltd., MCI (P) 164/1/90
VSL OPERATING UNITS, SUBSIDIARIES AND LICENSEES
Australia
New Zealand
Australia
VSL Prestressing (Aust.)
Pty. Ltd.
P.O. Box 102
Pennant Hills, NSW 2120
6 Pioneer Avenue
Thornleigh, NSW 2120
Tel 61-2-484-5944
Tlx AA 25891
Fax 61-2-875-3894
VSL Prestressing (Aust.)
Pty. Ltd.
P.O. Box 171
Albion, QLD. 4010
Tel 61-7-265-6400
Tlx AA 44703
Fax 61-7-265-7534

USA East
VSL Eastern
P.O. Box 866
8006 Haute Court
Springfield VA 22150-0886
Tel 1-703-451-4300
Fax 1-703-451-0862

New Zealand
Precision Precasting
(Wgtn.) Ltd.
Main Road South
Private Bag, Otaki
Tel 64-694-8126
Tlx aalensn nz 32069
Fax 64-694-8344

VSL Corporation
1414 Post and Paddock
Grand Prairie, TX 75050
Tel 1-214-647-0200
Fax 1-214-641-1192

VSL Western
1077 Dell Avenue
Campbell, CA 95008
Tel 1-408-866-5000
Fax 1-408-379-6205

VSL Corporation
91-313 Kauhi Street
Ewa Beach, HI 96707
Tel 1-808-682-2811

Austria
Sonderbau GesmbH
Sechshauser Strasse 83
1150 Wien
Tel 43-222-812-0280
Tlx 134 027 sobau a
Fax 43-222-812-0280 33

VSL Corporation
608 Garrison Street
Unit V, Lakewood, CO 80215
Tel 1-303-239-6655
Fax 1-303-239-6623
VSL Corporation
370 Middletown Blvd.,
# 500
Langhorne, PA 19047
Tel 1-215-750-6609
Fax 1-215-757-0381

Far East
Singapore
VSL Singapore Pte. Ltd.
151 Chin Swee Road
11-01/10
Manhattan House
Singapore 0316
Tel 65-235-7077/99
Fax 65-733-8642

VSL Corporation
4208 198th Street, S.W.
Lynnwood, WA 98036
Tel 1-206-771-3088
Fax 1-206-672-3020

Brunei
VSL Systems (B) Sdn. Bhd.
P.O. Box 33
Bandar Seri Begawan 2600
Tel 673-2-229153/221827
Fax 673-2-221954

Canada
Canadian BBR (1980) Inc.
P.O. Box 37
Agincourt, Ontario
M1S 3B4
Tel 1-416-291-1618
Tlx 065-25190 bbr cda
Fax 1-416-291-9960

Hong Kong
VSL Engineers (HK) Ltd.
20/F., East Town Bldg.
41 Lockhart Road
P.O. Box 20056
Wanchai/Hong Kong
Tel 852-5-201-600
Tlx 83031 vslhk hx

Switzerland
VSL International AG
Knizstrasse 74
Postfach 7 124
3001 Bern
Tel 41-31-66 42 22
TIx 911 755 vsl ch
Fax 41-31-66 42 50
VSL International AG
Bernstrasse 9
3421 Lysaach
Tel 41-34-47 99 11
TIx 134 027 sobau a
Fax 43-222-812-0280 33

VSL Corporation
7223 N.W. 46th Street
Miami, FL 33166-6490
Tel 1-305-592-575
Fax 1-305-592-5629
VSL Corporation
11925 12th Avenue South
P.O. Box 1228
Burnsville,
MN 55337-0228
Tel 1-612-894-6350
Fax 1-612-894-5708

VSL Corporation
10810 Talbert
Fountain Valley,
CA 92708
Tel 1-714-964-6330
Fax 1-714-965-3265

Fax 852-865-6290

VSL Corporation
5555 Oakbrook Parkway
Suite 530
Norcross, GA 30093
Tel 1-404-446-3000
Fax 1-404-242-7493

VSL Prestressing (Aust.)

Pty. Ltd.
P.O. Box 398
1 Summit Road
Noble Park, VIC. 3174
Tel 61-3-795-0366
Fax 61-3-795-0547

USA West
Canada
USA
VSL Corporation
1671 Dell Avenue
Campbell, CA 95008
Tel 1-408-866-6777
Tlx 821 059
Fax 1-408-374-4113

Europe Middle East Africa South America

Brazil
Rudloff-VSL
Industrial Ltda.
Rua Dr. E. Th. Santana, 158
Barra Funda
Sao Paulo / CEP 01140
Tel 55-11-826 0455
Tlx 113 1121 rudf br
Fax 55-11-826 62 66

VSL

Chile
Sistemas Especiales de
Construccion SA
Josue Smith Solar 434
Santiago 9
Tel 56-2-233-1057/1081
Fax 56-2-231-1205
France
VSL France s. r.l.
154, rue du Vieux-Pont-duSvres
92100 Boulogne-Billancourt
Tel 33-1-4621-4942
Tlx 200 687 vslpari f
Fax 33-1-4761-0558
Germany
SUSPA Spannbeton GmbH
Max-Planck-Ring 1
P.O. Box 3033
4018 Langenfeld-Rhld
Tel 49-2173-79020
Tlx 172173412 suspalf
Fax 49-2173-790-220

Indonesia
PT VSL Indonesia
Jalan Bendungan Hilir Raya
Kav. 36A Blok B No. 3
Jakarta 10210
Tel 62-21-586 190
fax 62-21-581-217
Japan
VSL Japan Corporation
Tachibana Shinjuku Bldg. 4F
2-26, 3-chome, NishiShinjuku, Shinjuku-ku
Tokyo 160
Tel 81-33-346-8913

Fax 81-33-345-9153