The City’s Transport Authority scooped an award and two commendation certificates for two projects at the prestigious Fulton Awards gala function held in Johannesburg on Friday, 10 June. 

The Fulton Awards are hosted every two years, a celebration of the Southern African concrete construction industry to recognise and honour excellence in the design, use and innovation in concrete.

The EThekwini Transport Authority (ETA) brought home an award for the infrastructure of under R100 million category for the Umhlatuzana River Bridge Modification and two commendation certificates for Essex Terrace / M13 Bridge Modification for the categories: infrastructure of under R100 million and innovation and invention in concrete. 

For the Umhlatuzana River Bridge project, the judges applauded the team for, “the unique solution that overcame extensive challenges to save a large part of the bridge while causing limited damage to the existing habitat”. The road bridge (links Seaward Road in Clairwood with Sarnia in Pinetown) was severely damaged during the 2019 KwaZulu Natal floods. 

The Essex Terrace / M13 Bridge infrastructure improvement project was triggered by the significant urban development in the neighbourhood which necessitated additional lane capacity through the surrounding interchange. 

In their citation the judges indicated that, “This project used several experimental solutions to support a design rationale that directly addressed sustainability concerns. It also involved some boldly progressive and effective responses to the aesthetic challenges associated with modification of an existing structure”. 

Head of ETA, Thami Manyathi said, “We are thrilled with the accolades awarded to our team. Winning awards of such caliber is testimony that we have some of the best engineering experts in our team. So much creativity and technical thinking goes into coming up with the best engineering solutions for projects of this nature. It is delightful that their hard work is recognized and honoured”. 

An exciting addition was the announcement of the 2022 winners of the Fulton Awards being entered in the American Concrete Institute’s Excellence in Concrete Construction Awards, as the projects compare favorably world class projects. The annual awards gala, with announcement of winners, will be held in Dallas, Texas, on Monday, October 24, 2022.