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Building the Doha Expressway

Hyder Consulting has been commissioned by Ashghal, Qatar’s Public Works Authority, to design and supervise a major new six-lane expressway in metropolitan Doha. Construction Business News ME looks into the progress

The upcoming project is part of Qatar’s extensive Expressway Programme, which will provide vital transportation links across Qatar—connecting key cities, towns, and villages with high-quality national freeways and urban arterial routes. The project management consultant delivering Doha Expressway project for Ashghal is KBR.

A key challenge of the project has been to minimise additional land-taking within the project’s urban environment. As a result, this project has some of the narrowest road corridors of the entire Expressway Programme, with some total corridor widths as narrow as 40 metres. Hyder used intelligent 3D modeling and Autodesk software to configure the expressway, associated structures, and utilities within the extremely narrow corridor.

The effective use of model-based design, analysis, simulation, and visualisation has helped the design team overcome complex design challenges, led to a more efficient use of resources, and resulted in more rapid, informed decision making.

In association with BIM service provider Hochtief ViCon, Hyder is using Autodesk Navisworks Manage to provide a structured approach to clash identification, detection, and reporting—helping to improve the efficiency and global collaboration of design teams across three continents. Navisworks software is helping the design teams identify and locate clashes, and determine the disciplines involved. Regular updates of the consolidated model are viewable on stand-alone kiosks in each of Hyder’s design offices, creating virtual windows into the project for all members of the design team. During detailed design, the Navisworks model will be linked with the construction schedule for 4D construction simulation, planning, and sequencing.

Hyder has also commissioned Hochtief ViCon to create photorealistic project visualizations that will highlight the surface features and surrounding built environment of the project, as well as the complex underground utilities and structures that few people ever see or appreciate in civil engineering projects. These visualisations will be utilised as part of Ashghal’s social and public relations campaigns to ensure that the public and stakeholders can be made aware of the features and complexities of the project.

For the future asset management and operation of the expressway, Ashghal is spearheading an asset management system for infrastructure, where all elements of the design are richly populated with metadata. As a part of that effort, Hyder is working to create an asset information model for the project, adding asset information required for the efficient operation and maintenance of each element.

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