Underwater BoxBolt usage: Duluth seawall project

Duluth Sea Port is the worlds largest inland port and one of the most important ports on the Great Lakes [ref]. The Duluth Sea Port has an aging sea wall that forms a barrier between the the port and Lake Superior. The port has embarked upon a renewal project which will place epoxied steel plates on the corroding corrugated sea wall.

The challenge of this project was of course how to attach the expoxied panels to the old sea wall. The solution: BoxBolt blind bolts. The BoxBolt allows a connection to be secured to a hollow opening from one side. This was exactly what was needed to accomplish the attachment of the new sea wall.

Using BoxBolt the panels could be attached to the old sea wall by drilling a hole in the panel, a hole in the wall, pushing the bolt into the hole and tightening the bolt down. See the pictures below for a look at the project.

Team members examine the corroded sea wall where the panels will be installed.

A new panel sits on the dock pre-drilled and ready to be installed. These panels are lowered by crane into the working area and then secured to the existing sea wall with BoxBolts.

The galvanised BoxBolts used to attach the sea wall are quite large. The housing is held in place by a wrench while the bolt is turned, as the bolt turns the nut on the end splays the metal flanges to tighten the panel against the wall.