When it is completed, it will be 427 meters long, 55 meters wide and more than 16 meters deep. As large as the locks in the Panama Canal, it is expected to be suitable for seagoing vessels up to 366 meters long, 49 meters wide and 15 meters deep. The lock's gates and bridges are being built in China by a local team from the Sassevaart construction consortium. Two SGS employees, Frank van Eijnatten and John Nijssen, are supporting Sassevaart's China team in matters of quality control and supervising quality control with the manufacturer.
Photo credit: Sassevaart impression, not the final design
Four Major Lock Gate Projects for SGS
This is the fourth major lock gate project for SGS. Previously, Frank was involved in quality control for the Kieldrecht, or Deurganckdok, lock project in the Waasland port in Antwerp, Belgium. SGS worked on behalf of the Flemish government, supervising the manufacturer's quality control in China.
Prior to this, SGS was involved with quality control for the manufacture of sea lock doors for the widening of the Panama Canal. The doors were produced in Italy, and we worked with a team of Italian colleagues there. In Panama, we took care of quality control for all concrete work and monitored the project.
Following the Waasland Port Project, SGS was selected by OpenIJ consortium to undertake quality assurance of the lock gates at the IJmulden lock in The Netherlands. Frank and John spent two years working in Mokpo, South Korea, where the project was completed to the satisfaction of OpenIJ and the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, who jointly supervised the quality controls.
About SGS
SGS is the world's leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 97,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.
