TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipei and New Taipei want NT$1.93 billion (US$57.7 million) in damages from New Taipei Metro Circular Line contractor Bes Engineering Co. after disruptions caused by an April earthquake, New Taipei City Government said Friday.
The earthquake caused multiple track displacements on the line. Repairs were initially estimated to be finished in June this year, yet services resumed last year December.
An independent evaluation confirmed that Bes Engineering Co. failed to follow the approved construction plans. This resulted in the loss of shear resistance at the interface between bearing plates, the New Taipei Department of Rapid Transit Systems said.
Experts from the Chinese Society of Structural Engineers conducted on-site investigations and reviewed the contractor’s design and construction processes. Structural models for computer simulations were also created to validate findings.
The evaluation revealed the bearing pins were designed to be 4 cm thick, with adjustment plates milled to a depth of only 5 mm for a secure fit. However, the plates were instead milled to a depth of 4.1 cm, cutting through to the steel beam’s lower flange.
The excessive milling created a gap that exceeded pin dimensions, allowing the pins to dislodge due to the earthquake. Experts concluded that this rendered the bearings ineffective and led to the displacement of the steel box girders, experts concluded.
