Whorlton Chain Suspension Bridge

Opened in 1831, Whorlton Bridge is a Grade 2* listed structure and scheduled monument. It’s the UK’s oldest road suspension bridge but has been closed since 2019.  

Durham County Council have won a share of the levelling up fund and appointed a main contractor to carry out the repairs. M J Rees were asked to undertake two tasks. Firstly, topographical surveys to assist with planning and positioning of the cable crane necessary to dismantle the bridge. Secondly, a Revit model to manage the dismantling and re-assembly of the components once restored. The LOD was equivalent to 1/50 scale but varied based on the client’s specific requirements: even down to individual bolts.

The bridge was scanned using a combination of long-range and short-range Leica scanners over 3 days in March 2023. QA checks were completed to ensure that the bridge deck was not moving more than a few millimetres in normal weather conditions. Once satisfied, the point cloud was passed to the modelling team. The resultant model was delivered to the client.