Mind your step

What better showcase for a glass company than a structure that literally requires your trust in its skills and product. This glass bridge structure spanning the Cobbold Gorge in outback Queensland is a case in point. Would you hold your breath and walk out into the void?

The project presented a unique opportunity to contribute

Two helicopters were required to assists with installing

The owners of the Cobbold Gorge Eco Tourism

The dramatic bridge across the gorge feels even

A daring crossing in a beautiful, picturesque setting.

Created by Glass Innovation

From the glass company:

The Glass Innovation team recently undertook one of their most challenging projects, presenting a unique opportunity to contribute with the design and construction of a glass bridge, connecting an ancient rock formation in a remote outback location, a six hour drive inland from Cairns.

The Project

The Cobbold Gorge project represented a unique opportunity to assist with the design and construction of glass bridge to be nestled between two pieces of ancient rock formation gorge in a remote outback location, six hours drive west from Cairns.

The owners of the Cobbold Gorge have won numerous awards for their Eco Tourism business where visitors can experience Queensland’s youngest gorge and wanted to continue to add to the visitor experience by offering a walk over the gorge via a glass bridge.

Design

Given the natural formation of the gorge, the design and installation of this product required significant planning between the project engineer, fabricator, builder and director John Hyde to ensure the successful completion.

A glass bridge across a gorge has never been undertaken in Australia before so there were a number of design and manufacturing assumptions that needed to be resolved during installation.

Installation

Due to the remote location of the gorge and the minimal access available for standard commercial applications, the glass bridge needed to be built using two helicopters to lift all the steel/glass and structural components into place.

Placement of the beams onto the concrete footings using the helicopter was challenging due to the different levels of rotor wash deflecting back up of the gorge floor and this needed to be managed onsite during installation.

However, installation was made easier due to the planning and pre assembly that was completed prior to the materials being transported to site.

The fabrication of an A frame style gantry system was required to be able to fit a block and tackle that was manoeuvrable the full length of the bridge so it could be used to install the 120kg cross member beams and 360kg glass floor panels.