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August 24

Acrow Supplies Permanent Pedestrian Bridge to Ohio’s Kalahari Resorts

Structure was originally considered a temporary fix for heavy foot traffic at the popular year-round entertainment and meeting complex

(Parsippany, New Jersey) – 24 August 2017 – Acrow Bridge, a leading international bridge engineering and supply company, has announced that it designed and provided a bridge for pedestrian traffic at the Sandusky, Ohio location of Kalahari Resorts, the popular water park resort and meeting chain. With 890 guest rooms and suites, the resort’s hotel is the largest in Ohio. The facility also boasts 215,000 square feet of convention space as well as the second-largest indoor water park in the United States, at 173,000 square feet.

The existing bridge had been in place since the opening of the resort in 2005 and had both a failing superstructure and deck. Because it serves as the only entrance to the facility, replacing the bridge as quickly as possible was critical. It was determined that installing a temporary bridge would be the best option to minimize patron inconvenience until a more permanent structure could be put in place later.

An Acrow modular steel bridge was selected, but the design and installation of the structure posed many challenges. In addition to requiring a tight turnaround time, it was necessary to design the new bridge to fit within the parameters of the existing substructure. After the final design was selected from several proposed by Acrow, substructure changes required additional engineering work.

About a month after the initial discussion on the project, the new 150-feet-long by 10-feet-wide wood deck bridge was open to the public. Pleased with the performance of the “temporary” bridge, after renting the structure from Acrow for eight months, Kalahari Resorts opted to purchase the bridge to keep it in place permanently.

“The quick turnaround time on this project proves that the modular design of Acrow bridges make them a perfect choice when rapid replacement is required,” said Bill Killeen, President and CEO of Acrow Bridge. “And they are an ideal solution for use as permanent structures as they have an estimated life span of 75-100 years and are virtually maintenance-free.”

About Acrow Bridge
Acrow Bridge has been serving the transportation and construction industries for more than 60 years with a full line of modular steel bridging solutions for vehicle, rail, military and pedestrian use. Acrow’s extensive international presence includes its leadership in the development and implementation of bridge infrastructure projects in over 80 countries, covering Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, please visit www.acrow.com.

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