My Yorkshire Youtube friend Chris and wife Anne were up in Scotland recently and Chris sent me this fascinating video of the famous Falkkirk Wheel Rotating Boat Lift that connects the Forth & Clyde Canal with the Union Canal. It reconnects the two canals for the first time since the 1930s. It opened in 2002 as part of the Millennium Link project.

The wheel raises boats by 24 metres (79 ft), but the Union Canal is still 11 metres (36 ft) higher than the aqueduct which meets the wheel. Boats must also pass through a pair of locks between the top of the wheel and the Union Canal. The Falkirk Wheel is the only rotating boat lift of its kind in the world, and one of two working boat lifts in the United Kingdom, the other being the Anderton Boat Lift.
In March 1999 Donald Dewar, the Secretary of State for Scotland, cut the first sod of turf to begin work at lock 31 on the Forth and Clyde Canal. Over 1000 people were employed in the construction of the wheel, which has been designed to last for at least 120 years.

The wheel was fully constructed and assembled at the Butterley Engineering plant in Ripley, Derbyshire. The structure was then dismantled in the summer of 2001, and transported on 35 lorry loads to Falkirk, before being reassembled into five sections on the ground and lifted into place. Construction of the canal required 250,000 m3 (8,800,000 cu ft) of excavation, a 160 m (520 ft) canal tunnel of 8 m (26 ft) diameter, aqueducts of 20 m (66 ft) and 120 m (390 ft), three sets of locks and a number of bridges, as well as 600 m (2,000 ft) of access roads.[3] The 180 m (590 ft) Rough Castle Tunnel was driven in three stages, with the two upper quarters being drilled with a standard excavator before the lower half was dug using a modified road planer in 100 mm (4 in) layers. This technique was 15% cheaper and reduced the build time of the tunnel by two weeks.

Due to the changing load as the wheel rotates in alternating directions, some sections experience total stress reversals. In order to avoid fatigue that could lead to cracks, sections were bolted rather than welded, using over 14,000 bolts and 45,000 bolt holes.
I believe the total build cost in and around 2000 comes near to £80 million. The cost of the main structure was £ 17,500,000

RMJM Architects
Butterley Engineering
Structural Engineer
Butterley Engineering, Tony Gee & Partners Engineers
Construction Company
Morrison-Bachy-Soletanche
Designed in
1999
Built in
2000 - 2002
Weight
1.800 toneladas
Height
35 metros
Length
28 metros
Location
Falkirk, Scotland

General Information
The Falkirk Wheel is 35 meters high, the equivalent of eight double-decker buses stacked on top of each other.
The wheel can lift 600 tons, 300 at each end
The assembly of the overall project occupies 45 hectares
The cost of the main structure was £ 17,500,000
Its structure contains over 14,000 and 45,000 bolts for through holes
Construction materials include 7,000 cubic meters of concrete, 1,000 tons of reinforced steel, 1,200 tons of prefabricated steel and 35,000 square meters of canal lining.
Its construction involved more than 1000 people.
Between the two drawers have 500,000 liters of water, enough to fill an Olympic pool.

What feat of design and engineering.
Many thanks to Chris!

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