New website will give camera-eye view of work on Canal expansion .
.Companies around the world are working on the design and construction of the third locks - the largest of the four components of the work of the Panama Canal Expansion, one of the 10 largest infrastructures on the planet.
Excavation work at the Atlantic end of the CanalThe Consortium masterminding the project, Grupo Unidos (GUPC) says it is committed to compliance with social and environmental standards as well as rapprochement with established communities in the vicinity of the works.
The consortium is composed of Sacyr Vallehermoso (Spain), Impregilo (Italy), Jan de Nul (Belgium), Constructora Urbana, SA (Panama), and f began operations August 25, 2009, developing the work of excavation, the infrastructure necessary for the production of concrete and the achievement of electromechanical parts, in addition to staffing, .
"Now we must continue with what has been agreed with the ACP to ensure that, in 2014, the country will deliver a work that promises to be high impact on the economy and trade with one of the 10 largest infrastructure of the world, ", said Antonio Zaffaroni, CEO of the group.
One crucial aspect of the design work was the filling and emptying of the locks, whose times are being supported through the use of a scale model built in the laboratories of the Compagnie Nationale du Rhone in Lyon, France. The consortium is involved with offices in Bellevue Chicago Buenos Aires, Argentina; Papendrecht, Netherlands and Milan, Italy, where they are developing the engineering works.
GUPC currently is in the process of selecting companies that are responsible for the manufacture of gates and valves, locks, and in the final phase of the installation of garages and warehouses needed for the maintenance and repair all the machinery involved in the work.
As part of its commitment to transparency, GUPC has launched a website
www.gupc.com.pa, where it provides current information on the progress and development of the work, and where you can access live cameras located in the Atlantic and Pacific project sites.
I don't think the site is up yet. I couldn't get in it. C.C.13