Christiani & Nielsen

Christiani & Nielsen
Industry	Construction
Founded	1904
Founder	Rudolf Christiani; Aage Nielsen
Defunct	2000 (continues to trade in Thailand)
Fate	Administration
Headquarters	Leamington Spa, Warwickshire
Key people	Amorn Asvanunt (Chairman); Alan Crane (Managing Director)
Products	Motorways, bridges

Christiani & Nielsen was a construction contractor with major operations worldwide. It still trades in Thailand.

History

Christiani & Nielsen was established by Rudolf Christiani, a Danish civil engineer, and Aage Nielsen, a captain in the Royal Danish Navy, in Copenhagen, to build bridges, marine works, and other reinforced concrete structures, in 1904.^[1] It soon established a branch in Hamburg, and after the First World War, extended its operations to the United Kingdom, South America, Australia, and South Africa.^[2]

The company's business in Thailand was demerged on the Stock Exchange of Thailand in 1991 and continued operating under different ownership.^[3]

The main company went into administration in November 2000.^[4]

Major projects

Major projects included:

Roads

M5, junctions 8-9 (M50) to Tewkesbury, (built as Christiani-Shand) completed in 1970^[5]
M56 Preston Brook to Hapsford in Cheshire, (built as Christiani-Shand) completed in 1970^[6]^[7]
M6 Ansty to M1 at Catthorpe, Contract A, (built as Christiani-Shand) completed in 1971^[8]
M6 north of Tebay (junction 38 for A685) to Thrimby (built as Christiani-Shand) completed in 1970^[9]
M74 Larkhall to Uddingston (built as Christiani-Shand) completed in 1966^[10]
Cardiff to Merthyr Tydfil A470, £5m first stage from Whitchurch bypass to Nantgarw, 3.25 miles (built as Christiani-Shand) completed in 1971^[11]

Bridges

The foundations and piers for the Storstrøm Bridge, Denmark, completed in 1937^[12]
The foundations and piers for the Masnedsund Bridge, Denmark, completed in 1937^[13]
Narrows Bridge in Perth, Australia, completed in 1959^[14]
M2 Medway Bridge, Kent, completed in 1963^[15]
Winthorpe Bridge, Nottinghamshire, completed in 1964^[16]
M56 Weaver Viaduct, (built as Christiani-Shand) completed in 1971^[17]
The foundations and piers for the Erskine Bridge, (A898), West Dunbartonshire and Renfrewshire, (built as Christiani-Shand) completed in 1971^[18]
Dornoch Firth Bridge, completed in 1991^[19]
Salford Quays lift bridge, completed in 2000^[20]

Other

Monumento Rodoviário da Rodovia Presidente Dutra in Piraí, Brazil completed in 1938^[21]
Democracy Monument in Bangkok, Thailand, completed in 1940^[22]
Aula Magna Auditorium, Caracas, Venezuela completed in 1953^[23]
Rebuilding of the Rama VI Bridge, in Bangkok, Thailand, completed in 1953^[24]
Kish Bank lighthouse, near Dublin, Ireland, completed in 1965^[25]
Bagsværd Church, Copenhagen, completed in 1976^[26]
Thammasat Stadium in Rangsit, Thailand, completed in 1998^[27]
Prince Mahidol Hall in Phutthamonthon, Thailand, completed in 2014^[28]

References

^ "Company profile". Christiani & Nielsen Thailand. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ "The history of Christiani & Nielsen Thailand". dancham.or.th. Danish-Thai Chamber of Commerce. 19 September 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
^ Marsden, David (13 January 2025). "Yet another pier story but a warning from the past". Southport Online News. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ "Christiani falls into Kier hands". Construction News. 23 November 2000. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ "The Blue Billies". Made in Oldbury. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
^ Runcorn Weekly News Thursday 7 November 1968, page 8
^ Derby Evening Telegraph Monday 11 November 1968, page 7
^ "Midland Links Motorways. M5 (J1 to J3) and M6 (J13 to J1)". Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
^ "Roads Report". Commercial Motor. 16 August 1968. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
^ "50 years on: The M74 opened in December 1966 and work on new road continues today". Daily Record. 2 December 2016. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
^ Derby Evening Telegraph Tuesday 18 March 1969, page 12
^ Andersen, Ulrik (28 October 2011). "Dansk bacon skyld i Storstrømsbroens problemer". Ingeniøren (in Danish). Retrieved 11 January 2018.
^ "Danish Bridges". Wonders of World Engineering. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ Gregory, Jenny (2003). City of Light: A History of Perth Since the 1950s. Perth: City of Perth. p. 107. ISBN 0-9594632-5-9. LCCN 2005440691. OCLC 54781434. OL 3465933M. Wikidata Q133458669.
^ "The Medway Bridge on the M2 Motorway" (PDF). The Cement and Concrete Association. 1 February 1962. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ "The A1 By-Pass". Winthorpe with Langford Parish Council. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ Staffordshire Sentinel Thursday 14 March 1968, page 18
^ "Construction of the Erskine Bridge". Erskinebridge.co.uk. Archived from the original on 13 December 2013. Retrieved 31 December 2013.
^ "The Dornoch Firth Bridge". Ross and Cromarty Heritage. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ "Massive paint job for Salford Quays Millennium bridge". Manchester Evening News. 11 May 2023. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ "Monumento Rodoviário". São Paulo Antiga (in Brazilian Portuguese). 3 August 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2019.
^ Møller, Gregers (29 August 2002). "Christiani & Nielsen - a Danish legend lives on in Thailand". ScandAsia. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
^ "15 Datos curiosos sobre el Aula Magna de la UCV". La Tienda Venezolana (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 27 August 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
^ "ครบรอบ 93 ปีเปิดใช้สะพานพระราม 6 สะพานรถไฟข้ามแม่น้ำเจ้าพระยาครั้งแรก" [93rd anniversary of opening Rama VI Bridge, railway bridge crossing Chao Phraya River]. Matichon (in Thai). Thailand. 1 January 2019. Archived from the original on 3 January 2022. Retrieved 3 January 2022.
^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Eastern Ireland (Leinster)". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
^ "Sagt og skrivet". Bagsvard Krike. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ "Thammasat Stadium". Soccerway. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
^ "Prince Mahidol Hall". Saint-Gobain Gypsum Trophy. Retrieved 19 January 2025.