Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/319134
I DA U N I V E R S A L M ay -J u n e 2 0 1 4 34 Construction Week.com chose the top 10, because the ingenuity behind each of these projects is undeniable. Each one also represents a massive leap of faith in the power of engineering to overcome the challenges of the natural world and to extend the boundaries of achievement. Notably three of the entries are from China, which has led the world in unbridled engineering ambition over the last 10 years. Each one of the Chinese projects seems determined to defy the limitations of its natural surroundings, as indeed do many of the others. The 1O Greatest Engineering Feats of the Last 15 Years 1. Millau viaduct Taking our top spot is quite frankly the world's most beautiful bridge structure. e Millau Viaduct was designed by Foster + Partners and completed in December 2004, a er a three year construction period. Located in southwest France, the via- duct is comprised of eight sections, with lengths of 2x204m and 6x342m, and spans the River Tarn valley. A total of seven reinforced concrete pylons of heights between 78 and 245m support the 32m-wide steel superstructure, with its hollow box girders and the steel pylons carrying the stay cables. Structural engineering was done by EEG Simecsol and Greisch, with Eiff age Construction acting as the main contractor, and Peri providing the formwork. 2. Burj Khalifa e world's tallest building was an easy pick for this list. e engineering challenges of doing something for the fi rst time, while busting through all previous height records by a mas- sive margin, are part of the reason this structure has caught so much attention. Designed and engineered by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, (the company responsible for the equally cool, but considerably shorter Infi nity Tower) the project offi cially opened in January 2010. 1. Millau Viaduct 2. Burj Khalifa 3. ree Gorges Dam 4. Langeled Pipeline 5. Qingzang Tibet Railway 6. Taipei 101 7. Hangzhou Bay Bridge 8. Big Dig, a.k.a. the Central Artery/Tunnel Project (CA/T) 9. Ras Laff an Gas Trains 10. Large Hadron Collider