The bridge build marks the opening of a brand new exhibition space at ICE’s Westminster home. The exhibition will be called Bridge Engineering and open at the beginning of November.
The design and construction team hope to break an official Guinness World Record by building the longest bridge span in the world made entirely out of interlocking plastic bricks. The rules state the bridge must be completely free standing without the aid of a reinforcing frame, glue or other supports – a civil engineering challenge in its own right.
ICE member Nick Woodrow, who suggested the record attempt, said: “The design and construction of the LEGO Bridge would demonstrate civil engineering in action in a fun and accessible way to all ages.”
The refurbishment of the exhibition space has been made possible with financial support from eight Founding Partners. These include AECOM, Carillion, Costain Ltd, Kier, Mace Foundation, Mott MacDonald, VINCI Construction UK Ltd and WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff.
In addition to the focal LEGO bridge display, there will be a series of interactive and educational displays of bridge engineering throughout the ages. The exhibition will tell the story of the grand nineteenth century engineering innovations; including IK Brunel and Sarah Guppy’s famous struggle to span the Avon Gorge, and the construction of Telford and Robert Stephenson’s road and rail crossings over the treacherous waters of the Menai Strait. Often considered the cream of nineteenth century bridge design invention, the three bridges helped shape all consequential long span bridge engineering around the world.
Visitors will be taken on a journey through to the 21st century to find out how the civil engineers of the modern age were able to create the longest spans the world had ever seen.
_____________________________________