SMC completes construction of new Star Tollway bridge

MANILA — San Miguel Holdings Corp., the infrastructure arm of San Miguel Corporation (SMC), has completed the construction of a new bridge of the Southern Tagalog Arterial Road (STAR) Tollway linking Ibaan town and Batangas City.

The 231-meter long Sabang Bridge, which connects Ibaan and Batangas, the last two major exits of the Star Tollway, was found damaged during a routine inspection in December last year, following the onslaught of typhoon “Nina”

The damaged section of the Sabang Bridge, which spans 60 meters and located above a 55 meter deep ravine, was demolished to pave way for the construction of a new one.

SMC deployed demolition experts to remove the old bridge similar to methods used in other countries to implode condemned buildings and other structures with high precision within a few minutes.

“This was an especially challenging project. Given the amount of work that had to be done, the level of difficulty in executing it, and the need to complete it in the shortest time possible, we’ve had to invest significantly to utilize technologies that are new or–to the best of our knowledge–rarely or have never been used in local infrastructure,” SMC President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon Ang said in a statement released Wednesday.

The company utilized the unibridge system which makes use of modular, pre-engineered bridges.

Ang said SMC finished the construction of the bridge within six months.

“Overall, this project shows that with advanced technologies available to us today, and with the expertise of Filipino engineers, we’re more than equipped and capable of undertaking the massive infrastructure projects that our country needs–and delivering these on time,” Ang added.