The superstructure of the nearly 8 kilometres long bridge between Sweden and Denmark relies on welds made by Elgacore metal cored and rutile flux cored wires. The superstructure was built in sections by Karlskrona shipyard and was the company’s biggest steel project ever.

Strength and safety
16,000 tons of steel was used to build eight, up to 140 metres long, steel elements. The height is eleven metres, the width 31 and the largest part weighs about 2,000 tons. The superstructure is supported by two pairs of 204 metres high, concrete pylons.

All in all this meant a lot of welding and Karlskrona evaluated a number of consumable suppliers before choosing Elga for this demanding task. Most of the welding was automatic or semi-automatic. The base material was mainly 420 ML and the demands were CVN values at -40°C and CTOD testing at -10°C for thicknesses above 50 mm. High productivity and easy to use were other strong requirements.

From training to follow-up
For automatic and semi-automatic welding Elgacore metal cored wire was used and for manual welding in all positions Elgacore rutile flux cored wire. The metal cored wire was also used for single sided root-runs in dip transfer when necessary.

But Elga’s assignment covered much more than delivering consumables. It also included recommendation of welding parameters, on-site surveys, training of welders and production follow-up.

The Øresund Bridge is a two-level cable-stayed rail and road bridge.  It is a part of the link between Sweden and Denmark, and was inaugurated on the 1st of  July 2000.