Recently, China's largest tonnage new energy bridge erection machine, the "Tuqiang," successfully completed a 180-degree turning operation on Section X of the Nantong-Suzhou-Jiaxing-Ningbo High-Speed Railway. This 1,100-ton "giant," independently developed by China Railway Science and Industry under China Railway Industrial, has not only set a new domestic record for the maximum girder erection tonnage of railway new energy bridge erection machines but also marked a key step forward in the intelligent and green direction of China's high-speed railway construction equipment, thanks to multiple core innovations such as an intelligent safety management system, digital twin technology, and a new energy power system.
The "Tough Nut" of Thousand-Ton High-Speed Railway Box Girder Erection
The Nantong-Suzhou-Jiaxing-Ningbo High-Speed Railway is a key component of the national "Eight Vertical and Eight Horizontal" high-speed railway network. Section X, spanning a total length of 47.19 kilometers, requires the erection of 1,024 simply supported box girders, including 723 40-meter simply supported box girders. The heaviest box girder weighs 1,070 tons, with dimensions of 40.6 meters in length, 13.5 meters in width, and 3.26 meters in height.
Traditional high-speed railway bridge erection machines commonly use diesel generator sets as their power source. Since erection operations are not continuous, the generator sets often have to run at idle speed during standby, resulting in significant fuel waste. Facing the challenges of long-distance, high-load, and complex working conditions, developing a new type of bridge erection machine capable of lifting thousand-ton box girders while achieving green and low-carbon operation has become a technical problem urgently needing a breakthrough in the industry.
Four Core Technologies Forge a "National Heavy Equipment"
1,100-Ton Lifting Capacity: Setting a New Domestic Record
The "Tuqiang" is the new energy bridge erection machine with the largest lifting capacity in China, with a maximum lifting tonnage of 1,100 tons. On December 8, 2025, it successfully completed the precise erection of the first 725-ton double-track simply supported box girder; on December 25, 2025, it successfully completed the heavy-load erection of a 1,100-ton box girder. This marks the first time in China that a 1,100-ton bridge erection machine has been used to erect a high-speed railway double-track simply supported box girder, and also the first time an electrically driven bridge erection machine has been used domestically.
New Energy Power System: Reducing Carbon Emissions by Over 6,000 Tons Across the Entire Line
The "Tuqiang" innovatively adopts a new generation green energy system of "range extender + power battery," equipped with a working-condition-adaptive energy management system. Compared with traditional fuel-powered bridge erection machines, this equipment achieves low energy consumption and low noise operation throughout the entire process. It is estimated that during the erection of 1,024 box girders on Section X of the Nantong-Suzhou-Jiaxing-Ningbo High-Speed Railway alone, carbon emissions can be reduced by over 6,000 tons.
Digital Twin + Intelligent Control: From "Manual Control" to "Intelligent Control"
The "Tuqiang" is equipped with an intelligent safety management system, an auxiliary decision-making system, and a digital twin system. Through an intelligent scheduling system, it achieves integrated management of "transportation-erection-maintenance." The supporting 1,100-ton new energy girder transport vehicle integrates high-precision mapless navigation and assisted driving technology, supporting high-altitude unmanned operations and remote maintenance. During erection operations, the project team actively applies Beidou positioning monitoring technology, using eight intelligent sensors to collect real-time data, controlling the erection accuracy to within 2 millimeters.
Adaptability to Complex Working Conditions: Rapid Switching Between Single and Double Tracks
Facing complex working conditions such as tunnel portals, small curves, and steep slopes, the "Tuqiang" can quickly switch between single and double track box girder erection, demonstrating strong overall machine adaptability. The design of a three-stage telescopic middle support leg structure allows it to handle various complex construction scenarios with ease.
From the Nantong-Suzhou-Jiaxing-Ningbo Railway to the China High-Speed Railway Network
Serving the Construction of China's High-Speed Railway Main Network
Once completed, the Nantong-Suzhou-Jiaxing-Ningbo High-Speed Railway will connect multiple key high-speed railway lines, helping to form the Shanghai-Ningbo "1-hour transportation circle." The "Tuqiang" completed its 180-degree turning operation in June 2026 and has so far erected a total of 356 box girders. This complete set of technical solutions will be promoted and applied in more high-speed railway projects.
Leading the Green Transformation of Infrastructure Equipment
The "range extender + power battery" hybrid solution provides a feasible path for the electrification transformation of large engineering machinery. The practical data of reducing carbon emissions by over 6,000 tons across the entire line offers a quantifiable and replicable technical model for the infrastructure industry to achieve the "dual carbon" goals.
Promoting the Intelligent Upgrade of Engineering Equipment
From Beidou high-precision positioning to digital twin remote maintenance, the "Tuqiang" has built a complete intelligent operation closed loop. This technical system can be extended to various large-scale construction equipment such as bridge erection machines, girder transport vehicles, and girder lifting machines, promoting the comprehensive shift of China's infrastructure equipment from "manual control" to "intelligent control."