![cover image](https://wikiwandv2-19431.kxcdn.com/_next/image?url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/ae/Cleveland_Bridge_logo.svg/640px-Cleveland_Bridge_logo.svg.png&w=640&q=50)
Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Company
Former bridge works and structural steel contractor based in Darlington, England / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Company was a British bridge works and structural steel contractor based in Darlington.[1] It was operational for 144 years.
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Industry | Construction |
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Founded | 1877[1] |
Defunct | September 2021 (September 2021)[2] |
Headquarters | Darlington |
Products |
From the founding of the company in 1877, it had a presence in Darlington. While initially focused on fabrication, the company became one of the major bridgebuilders in the world, having constructed structures across all five inhabited continents. It built numerous landmarks around the world, including the Victoria Falls Bridge in Zimbabwe; the Tees Transporter Bridge; the Forth Road and Humber suspension bridges in the UK; Hong Kong's Tsing Ma Bridge, and London's Wembley Stadium Arch.[3][4] Cleveland Bridge's Dubai subsidiary, which was established in 1978, fabricated and erected steel structures for, amongst other projects, the Burj Al Arab and Emirates Towers.[3]
During 1967, the company was acquired by The Cementation Company, which was itself bought by Trafalgar House soon thereafter. During 1990, it was merged with Redpath Dorman Long, another subsidiary owned by Trafalgar, to create Cleveland Structural Engineering. After a management buyout in 2000, the company operated as an independent concern, with considerable financial backing from Saudi Arabia's Al Rushaid Group. However, the company soon found itself in multiple legal disputes due to alleged quality issues and other concerns on its work on major projects such as The Shard and New Wembley Stadium; these proved to be not only costly in financial terms but also damaging to its reputation. During the early 2020s, the fiscal situation of the company declined considerably and backers proved to be unwilling to expend additional resources. Thus, in July 2021, the Darlington portion of the company went into administration in July 2021, owing £21m. After unsuccessful efforts to attract a buyer, the company was closed in September 2021.[2]
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