Special bridge for giraffe enclosure

Natural-looking construction of four wood species

Although the team at Flora Nova Houtconstructies has had the pleasure of designing and building many unusual and beautiful structures made of wood, the so-called giraffe bridge for the Bellewaerde Park aqua and animal park in Belgium was an extra special project. They are particularly proud of the end result: a 110-meter-long natural-looking bridge made entirely of wood, combining four types of wood.

First, a brief introduction of Flora Nova Houtconstructies: they design and build mainly wooden civil engineering structures and public objects for public spaces. They do this mostly on behalf of municipalities, water boards, provinces and contractors. According to Lennert Joore, construction manager, the company's strength lies mainly in the fact that "we have extensive knowledge and experience in wood, combined with steel, concrete and plastic. This puts us in an excellent position to completely relieve our clients of a variety of tasks."

On wish list

The task of designing and creating the giraffe bridge for Bellewaerde Park came their way. "We are craftsmen and make beautiful constructions and works of art. A work of art for an amusement or animal park had been on our wish list for a long time. The bridge runs around the giraffe enclosure and is intended for the visitors who in this way come face to face with the giraffes at a height of 5 meters. Great that we got this opportunity!"

Combination of wood species

The giraffe bridge, in Bellewaerde Park they call it the Savanna Bridge, had to meet a number of conditions: made entirely of wood and natural looking, so not straightforward. Four specific types of wood also had to be used: Cloeziana for the posts, Azobé for the supporting structure, Bilinga for the deck and Robinia for the railings. "These types of wood are used elsewhere in the park, hence this specific requirement. The railings of the bridge, by the way, are made of cordage. We are also familiar with this, thanks to our experience with playground equipment."

Prefabrication

The starting point for the design was an artist's impression. "From there we started drawing technically in collaboration with the client until we had a feasible design that met all the needs and requirements. We were also responsible for construction and erection on site. We prefabricated as many parts as possible and built the bridge on site in about four weeks."

The team is proud of the result: "We really take credit for our work. With this special bridge we have made our calling card. We therefore hope to be able to develop special structures and works of art for more animal and amusement parks in the near future."