The Hoover Dam may have been opened in 1936 but it still stands today
as one of the greatest engineering achievements of all-time. There are a number
of mind-blowing facts behind the construction of a dam.
An Immense Amount Of
Concrete
The concrete used in the construction of the Hoover Dam was on an
immense scale. 4.36 million cubic yards of concrete was required. Most of the
material was for the construction of the dam but the power plant and related
facilities took their share as well.
That amount of concrete would be able to build a road from one side of the US to
the other— about 3,000 miles to be laid down as a major interstate. It shows you
the sheer scale of the material used, which was the equivalent of five million
barrels.
With all that concrete you could only imagine how many fittings, epoxy
anchors, and fasteners were needed. It required great epoxy companies that were able to
provide the equivalent likes of AC 100 epoxy and HY200 epoxy anchors to
complete the construction.
Problem Solving
As with epoxy, concrete has a curing period and using that amount of
material can cause issues. Without intervention, it would have taken years for
the concrete that was used in the dam to naturally cool. Since that wasn’t
possible in such a case, extra measures had to be taken.
To solve the problem, engineers built huge refrigeration machines that
were used to dispense ice and speed up the cooling process. This rapid cooling
helped to prevent cracking that might occur with temperature fluctuations and
enabled construction time to be reduced.
With no town nearby to host the many people responsible for building
the dam, a whole city was built to accommodate the 5,000 workers. Boulder City
still stands and thrives today, with a population of around 16,000.
The Hoover Dam itself was called the Boulder Dam for a relatively
brief period. Although it was named for President Herbert Hoover in 1930, the
name was changed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Secretary of State Harold
Ickes in 1933. A resolution in congress 14 years later would reverse that
change and the dam has since maintained its original moniker.
A Huge Success
Given that it’s still operating perfectly today, the dam has been
considered a huge success. The task was too big for any one company to
complete. In total, six construction companies came together to get the work
done. The structure has helped to inspire many more engineering projects around
the world.
The dam is able to supply energy across three states and to 1.3 million
people. When full, the reservoir behind it remains the largest in the USA. It
still looks magnificent and thanks to a huge combination of skill and
materials, it is as effective as ever.
