The Kuala Terengganu Drawbridge is a bascule bridge located in Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia. It links two areas - Muara North and Muara South - to create a strategic connection in the city, leading all the way to the Sultan Mahmud Airport.

The bridge features a 23-m-wide single carriageway and spans the Terengganu River at a height of 638 m. It consists of a main route, four towers and two ‘sky bridges’, plus a gallery and an observer zone for visitors to enjoy the view.

As the first drawbridge in Malaysia and Southeast Asia, it not only serves as an alternative route to the airport, but also becomes a landmark and tourist attraction in the city. The design was inspired by the Tower Bridge in London. 

For this project, products from Mapei were selected to provide a highly durable waterproofing system. The solutions, supplied by Mapei Malaysia, included Mapelastic and Mapenet 150 to form strong waterproofing layers on the concrete structures.

Mapelastic is a two-component cementitious mortar for waterproofing and protection of concrete structures, renders and cementitious screeds. It features excellent bonding properties to all concrete, together with its resistance to the deteriorating effect of UV rays. When used with Mapenet 150 (a glass fibre mesh designed to reinforce protective waterproofing layers and anti-fracture membranes), it forms a durable and long-term performance barrier.

Once the surface had been prepared according to specifications, the next step was to apply the first coat of Mapelastic. After that, the Mapenet 150 fibre mesh was placed over the first coat and to complete the system, a second layer of Mapelastic was applied over the mesh.

Construction of the bridge started in 2014 and it was opened in 2019. The waterproofing work was carried out from October 2018 to March 2019, covering bathrooms, roof slab and water tank, on an area of 410 sq m.

Note: The article courtesy of Realta Mapei International no. 82.