Awnesh (Ash) Sothiratnam, Senior Engineer

As site supervisor for Arcadis for the Rochester Bridge Refurbishment Project my role is to overlook the work being undertaken onsite, ensuring it meets all the required standards as per the design and specification.

I have more than 21 years’ experience in civil engineering, predominantly in highway, railway and foot bridges, so this project is very much in my area of expertise. Some of the projects I’ve worked on include the refurbishment of another Grade II listed bridge, the Albert Bridge, as well as the Woolwich and Greenwich foot tunnel and Wembley Stadium White Horse footbridge, the latter being the construction of the crossing.

For this project, I am particularly looking forward to the works on the Old Bridge, as I have been involved with the detailed design of most of the refurbishment. I think the preparation to paint the underside of the Old Bridge will also be an interesting challenge as the conditions have to be just right to apply the paint.

The whole Rochester Bridge Refurbishment Project is a significant undertaking and I’m really looking forward to its successful completion. It will be a great achievement to be able to say I was involved in helping prolong the life of these structures for the years ahead.