Portsmouth, NH – On August 8, 2013, E.S. Boulos Company’s (ESB) project team, headed by Senior PM Bob Goulet and GF Patrick Kennedy, joined with Maine and New Hampshire officials, construction team members, and New Hampshire and Maine residents to celebrate the opening of the new Portsmouth Memorial Bridge. The bridge spans for 900 feet on U.S. Route 1, connecting Portsmouth, NH and Kittery, ME and features a lift that spans 300 feet in length and is 160 feet tall.
ESB’s project scope included installation of the bridge’s electrical lift controls, power distribution system, CCTV, and fire alarm system. The bridge also has a 215kW back-up generator providing emergency power. ESB installed over 11 miles (approximately 60,000 feet) of fiberglass conduit, which was specified to withstand the elements and avoid rusting.
The fast-track project commenced in early summer 2012 and was completed by July 2013, as scheduled. At peak construction, ESB supervised a field crew of more than 30 electricians and tel/data technicians based out of IBEW Local 490 in Concord, NH.
ESB teamed with general contractor Archer Western’s regional office in Canton, MA and project architectural firm HNTB, Inc. of New York. Designed by HNTB’s chief bridge engineer, Theodore Zoli, the new Memorial Bridge is the first gusset-less truss bridge in the world and the first to use the cold-bending of steel in its construction. The bridge is also the first that has its mechanical room under the bridge.
