Opened in October 2007, the second Strelasund crossing was constructed to provide a new connection between the island of Ruegen (a popular German holiday destination), the city of Stralsund on the Baltic coast and the A20 Ostseeautobahn (Baltic motorway).

The new link relieves traffic congestion on the old three-section Rugendamm road and rail bridge, opened in 1936. There are six bridges in the 4,100-metre link: the two Stralsund approach bridges, the Ziegelgraben Bridge, the Daenholm and Strelasund approach bridges, and the Strelasund Bridge – totalling 2,830 metres and costing around €85m.

The project participants

DEGES (Deutsche Einheit Fernstraßenplanungs- und -bau GmbH) was responsible for online collaboration on behalf of the Federal Republic of Germany and the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Implementation plans were drawn up by a planning consortium of engineers Schmitt Stumpf Frühauf und Partner Ingenieurgesellschaft im Bauwesen mbH and Büchting+Streit GmbH. Twelve other planning offices and four test engineers were involved in the project. Overall construction management and construction supervision were the responsibility of engineering association EHS-VCE (EHS beratende Ingenieure für Bauwesen, VCE Holding GmbH). Implementation was carried out by the 2nd Strelasund Crossing working group at Max Bögl Bauunternehmung GmbH & Co. KG.

From the implementation planner’s perspective...

think project! was used as the platform for project communication, plan management and the distribution and archiving of correspondence. As the basis for plan management, a standardised plan numbering scheme was first defined then implemented within think project!. Various plan processes were mapped to optimise coordination, clarification and approval steps. Communication with the many project participants was supported and accelerated by configuring distribution rules. Deliveries of required hard copies to the testing agencies was made more efficient by direct connection to a plan reproduction service provider and automated print orders.

From the construction company’s perspective...

think project! made fast and simple distribution of plans possible, both within the company’s head office and to branch offices and subcontractors. Information on current planning documents was immediately available to all individuals involved, and automatic forwarding and distribution of plans saved valuable time. Plan lists were used to track deadlines, with automatically generated plan deadlines ensuring a clearer overview. At the same time, design movements were clearly documented and all plans and details of planning activities archived seamlessly.